I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Asian American Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. I am a digital media anthropologist and human-centered design researcher who studies how people use social media. Previously, I was a University of California President’s Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Informatics at UC Irvine. I received my Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin’s Radio/TV/Film Media Studies program.
I am co-author of The Digital Edge: How Black and Latino Youth Navigate Digital Inequality (NYU Press, 2018) and co-editor of a tumblr book: platform and cultures (University of Michigan Press, 2020), which is readable online, open access. I am also an affiliate of NYU’s Center for Critical Race and Digital Studies and lead author of UNICEF’s report on Digital Civic Engagement by Young People.
I have been interviewed regarding my research on digital cultures, social activism, and LGBTQ/people of color for publications such as The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, CBC Radio, The Conversation, and Pitchfork.
I’ve taught classes on media and cultural studies, Asian American Studies, and information studies at the University of Texas at Austin’s Center for Asian American Studies and Department of Radio-TV-Film, as well as UC Irvine’s Department of Informatics.
Previously, I was the Editor of the Southern California LGBT newsmagazine Frontiers, where I oversaw a comprehensive relaunch as well as secured the worldwide exclusive coming out interview with Star Trek icon George Takei.