Co-leading the ECREA PhD workshop in Brussels on Diaspora, Media, and Migration

July 18, 2019

I just received drafts of the work I’m going to be reviewing and giving feedback on for this workshop. Looking forward to going to Brussels in October to engage, together with the wonderful Myria Georgiou (LSE), with these PhD researchers. The workshop is part of the events organized by the European Communication Research and Education … More Co-leading the ECREA PhD workshop in Brussels on Diaspora, Media, and Migration

Open access publication on “careful co-presence” in transnational families

June 25, 2019

My latest article is out in Social Media + Society. Here’s the abstract: This article investigates how migrants experience “co-presence” with their loved ones through social media. On the basis of empirical investigation, the article engages with current debates about how social media shape emotional experiences. It draws on short-term ethnographic research of everyday social … More Open access publication on “careful co-presence” in transnational families

Guest Lecture on digital citizenship at University College Utrecht

April 9, 2019

Yesterday I gave a guest lecture to a wonderful group of students at University College Utrecht, the same college I received my Bachelor of Arts from 15 years ago. It was a memorable experience for me, and the students had engaged questions about political communication and the social media dissemination of anti-immigrant sentiment, the meanings … More Guest Lecture on digital citizenship at University College Utrecht

Co-editing special issue on migration and emotion for International Journal of Cultural Studies

February 19, 2019

Together with Prof. Sandra Ponzanesi, I’m a guest editor at the International Journal of Cultural Studies for a special issue on Migration, Media, and Emotion. I’m very much looking forward to going through the 80 odd extended abstracts we received in response to the call for papers. Judging only from what I’ve scanned so far, these submissions … More Co-editing special issue on migration and emotion for International Journal of Cultural Studies

Guest lecture: Engaging with the Syrian refugee crisis’ origins rather than focusing only on Europe’s borders

January 23, 2019

Last week I gave a guest lecture in the graduate course, Postcolonial Transitions, at Utrecht University (course lecturers Dr. Gianmaria Colpani and Prof. Sandra Ponzanesi). The lecture was part of a course module on applying postcolonial frameworks in order to better understand the Arab Spring, its history, and aftermath. It was also designed to raise … More Guest lecture: Engaging with the Syrian refugee crisis’ origins rather than focusing only on Europe’s borders

Opinion piece on intellectual freedom and the rise of the right wing at universities

November 3, 2018

Today this piece of mine was published on a Dutch political opinion site. I’m adding the English version of it here: The UvA should not have offered Jordan Peterson a right wing “safe space” Last week, I joined dozens of UvA academics to sign a letter asking that the controversial political speaker, Jordan Peterson, be … More Opinion piece on intellectual freedom and the rise of the right wing at universities

Report: Identity and Exile edition on Iranian diaspora

October 23, 2018

This month, a Twitter troll reminded me of this publication from 2016 that I co-authored with Prof. Halleh Ghorashi for the Heinrich Boll Foundation. He used it to call me a regime apologist for the Islamic Republic of Iran. Besides finding that amusing, I realized I had forgotten to re-post the publication link to my … More Report: Identity and Exile edition on Iranian diaspora