Robert Lynn Savage, was born February 26, 1939, in Fort Worth, Texas, to Henry and Helen Savage. He served in the United States Air Force from 1956-1959 as a weather observer before earning a B.A. from Tarleton College. He then continued to pursue an M.A. from the University of Houston and a Ph.D. from the University of Missouri. Savage started his teaching career as an Assistant Professor of Government at Auburn University at Montgomery from 1971-1974. Savage began teaching at the University of Arkansas in 1974. In 1980, Savage married Barbara Grace Brown. Savage has two daughters named Naomi Lynn and Georgia Faye.

Savage specialized in the subjects of political communication and political culture. He served in leadership positions in professional organizations such as Chair of the International Communication Associations Political Communication Division as well as President of the Southwestern Social Science Association and the Arkansas Political Science Association. From 1989-1998, Savage served as Chair of the Department of Political Science at the University of Arkansas.