Scott McQuire  has a strong interest in interdisciplinary research and has lectured in disciplines including politics, sociology, cinema studies, art and architecture, and media and communication.  His research explores the social effects of media technologies, with particular attention to their impact on the social relations of space and time, and the formation of identity. His most recent book, The Media City (2008) traces the way in which cities have become increasingly media-dense environments, transforming previous conceptions of public and private space. He is also Chief Investigator on two current ARC projects examining the impact of large  screens in public space.

Scott is an active researcher who has been a Chief Investigator on seven Australian Research Council funded projects. He has previously held a number of research fellowships including a visiting fellowship at the Department of Film, Theatre and Television, UCLA (1998), an ARC Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship (1999-2001),  and a visiting fellowship at the Celeste Bartos International Film Study Center, Museum of Modern Art, New York (2000). He has also received funding from the Australia Council for the Arts, and has undertaken research consultancies for the Communications Law Centre, the Australian Film Commission and the Australian Key Centre for Media and Cultural Policy.  Scott returned to the University of Melbourne to help establish the Media and Communication Programme in 2001, and is currently Chair of the Research and Research Training Committee in the School of Culture and Communication.