Associate Professor of Media and Communication
Maha Bashri is an Associate Professor of Media and Communication at The Africa Institute, Global Studies University (GSU). Prior to joining GSU, she was Associate Professor of Communication and MA Coordinator at United Arab Emirates University. She holds a Ph.D. in Journalism and Mass Communications from the University of South Carolina, USA.
She is co-editor of Minority Women and Western Media: Challenging Representation and Articulating New Voices and has published numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. Bashri currently serves as Chair of the Robert L. Stevenson Faculty Competition for the International Communication Division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) and is an active member of professional organizations such as the UNESCO Media and Information Literacy Alliance’s Africa Chapter.
Her work bridges academic research and practical media literacy efforts, reflecting a commitment to addressing global communication challenges with a focus on the Global Majority.
Research
Bashri’s research focuses on political communication, digital media, and civic engagement in African and Global South contexts. Her work examines gendered digital citizenship, the representation of marginalized groups, and the role of media in social change. She is currently investigating the emotional and psychological impact of trauma on journalists in the newsroom, with a particular focus on how media practitioners in the Global South experience, internalize, and navigate this trauma. Her research is grounded in a decolonial approach to media studies and guided by a commitment to amplifying marginalized voices and centering the lived experiences of communities across the Global Majority.
Publications
- Walcott, Carolyn, Maha Bashri, and Uche Onyebadi. "Global South diasporic voices: Rethinking praxis and theory in communication for development." Journal of Global Diaspora & Media 6, no. 1 (2025): 3-8.
- Bashri, Maha. 2025. "Contesting Boundaries: Gendered Citizenship and Digital Activism in Sudan." In Feminist Digital Citizenship in Africa, 183.
- Bashri, Maha, Christine Walcott, and Helen Guta. 2025. "'You're on Your Own Baby': Sudanese Women Bridging Conflict, Journalism, J'activism, and Media (In)Visibility." Media, War & Conflict 0, no. 0.
- Bashri, Maha. 2024. "Reimagining Sudan: Sufism, Revolt, and National Identity(ies) in Film." In Routledge Handbook on Arab Cinema, 70–81. London: Routledge.
- Deiri, Yasmin, and Maha Bashri. 2024. "Introduction: Special Issue: Tectonic Intimacies of Transformation, Knowledges of Emancipation, and Narratives of Resistance and the Amplification of Global Majority Voices." Journal of Ethnic and Cultural Studies 11, no. 5: 1–15.
- Bashri, Maha. 2023. "'Noon Al Niswa'–N Is for the Female Collective: Contesting Androcentric Power Structures through Grassroots Women's Groups in Sudan." Information, Communication & Society 26, no. 13: 2614–2629.
- Bashri, Maha, and Prisca Tedam. 2023. "Heed Their Rising Voices: Conflicts and the Politics of Women's Representations." Journal of International Women's Studies 25, no. 6: 6.
- Bashri, Maha. 2021. "Networked Movements and the Circle of Trust: Civil Society Groups as Agents of Change in Sudan." Information, Communication & Society 24, no. 3: 470–489.
- Bashri, Maha, and N. Zaki. 2021. "#Allhandsondeck Shaun King and Unite the Right Rally: Mobilization and the Networked Social Journalist." The Atlantic Journal of Communication 29, no. 5: 292–311.