Azeb Madebo, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, Communication Studies

Azeb Madebo (she/her) earned her M.A. and Ph.D. at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. Before her graduate studies, she earned her B.A. in communication with minors in anthropology and African diaspora studies from University of Washington, Seattle. She is a digital media scholar, Black cultural studies scholar, and Africanist specializing in Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa region. She is particularly fascinated by the ritualistic and community-forming processes of online activism and engagement; the appropriation and adaptation of communication technologies by Africans (and the African diaspora) for sociopolitical ends like nation-building; the relationship between economic development agendas and perceptions of progress in Ethiopia; and the politics of identity—racial, national, and ethnic—in Africa and its diaspora communities. Her teaching will specialize in critical media and ethnic studies. She hopes to connect with and mentor students from all walks of life—especially those who share an interest in the scholarly interrogation of media, identity, culture, and power. Outside of her academic life, she appreciates spending time with her partner, her non-human animal companions, wandering somewhere in nature, traveling, silversmithing, or curling up somewhere cozy with a cup of tea or coffee. In the coming years, she hopes to foster community at the University of Portland, the greater Portland area, and the Pacific Northwest.