Matt Sienkiewicz teaches courses in global media cultures and media theory. His research focuses on the West’s investment in Middle Eastern broadcasting initiatives as well as portrayals of race and religion on the American screen.
His publications include articles in Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies, Media, Culture and Society, The International Journal of Cultural Studies, Popular Communication, The Journal of Film and Video, The Velvet Light Trap and The Middle East Journal of Culture and Communication. He is the co-editor of Saturday Night Live and American Television, available from Indiana University Press. His current project, a full-length monograph entitled The Other Air Force, focusing on America’s efforts to shape media culture in the Middle East over the past decade.
His journalistic and op-ed work has been featured in The Atlantic, The Daily Beast, Tikkun, ThinkProgress.org, Columbia Journalism Review, EA Worldview and The Times of Israel.
Currently Matt hosts two podcasts: The Interpreter, which focuses on Russian media and New Books in Popular Culture, on which he interviews scholars who have recently published original research.
In addition to his work as a scholar, Matt is also an Emmy-nominated documentary filmmaker and screenwriter. His documentary, Live From Bethlehem, was released by the Media Education Foundation in September 2009 and has screened worldwide. His most recent film, The Ragged Edge, is due out in 2014.
Matt has given lectures about the Middle East, Media History and Jewish Culture at universities across the world as well as in synagogues and community centers. To inquire about a potential public talk at your institution, please email: mattsienkiewicz@gmail.com
Matt Sienkiewicz, PhD 