Ben Davis

Biography

Research Interests

Ben is a Ph.D. student in Media and Cultural Studies. His research interests are within and intersect (1) men and masculinity studies; (2) studies of competitive cultures, primarily games and sports subcultures; and (3) rural media and technocultures with a focus on the midwestern United States. Ben’s work is informed by theoretical frameworks from feminist media studies, science and technology studies, digital studies, and game studies. His current research investigates expressions of masculinity in digital/tech communities, focusing on the pervasiveness of the use of competition as a way for men to prove their masculinity and how that may compel the creation of communities of violence and of care. As well, another arm of his research studies rural communities engagement with digital media, technologies, and the internet, with one of his current projects adopting an interview-based methodology with hunters to understand their usage of GPS technologies. His work has been presented at conferences such as the Society for Cinema and Media Studies (SCMS), Console-ing Passions, and the Canadian Game Studies Association (CGSA). Ben is passionate about making academic knowledge accessible to the public and is always looking for ways to incorporate public outreach into his research. Ben is currently the editorial assistant for the Editing, Design, and Production Department at the University of Wisconsin Press.

Education

• M.A. Media and Cultural Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2025
• B.A. Anthropology with High Honors and Linguistics, double-minor in Digital Studies and Museum Studies, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, 2023

Select Conference Presentations

• 2026 – Society for Cinema and Media Studies, Masculinized Mobile Gaming: On Industrial Contestation of Gendered Connotations of Mobile Gaming and the Nokia N-Gage
• 2025 – Console-ing Passions, “Rewriting Transgender Identity Back into Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door: The Representational Power of Video Game Remakes”
• 2025 – Canadian Game Studies Association, “Emulators as Tools for Inclusivity: Breaks, Saves, and Playing Past Games”
• 2025 – Popular Culture Association, “Masculinity, Optimization, and Meritocracy: The Influence of Energy Drinks on Video Game Culture”
• 2024 – GAFIS Symposium, “Leveling Up, the Luck Stat, and Final Fantasy X: Incorporating Luck into a Meritocratic System”

Courses and Teaching

• CA 250: Survey of Contemporary Media, Fall 2025 – Spring 2026
• Design Lab Design Consultant Spring 2025
• CA 313: The Business and Culture of Disney (Grader) Fall 2024
• CA 155: Introduction to Digital Media Production Fall 2023 – Fall 2024
• Guest Lecture in “Language and Power” Course on Ethnographic Fieldwork, Stanford University 2024

Service

• Editorial Board Member, The Velvet Light Trap, 2023-Present
• UT Press Liaison, The Velvet Light Trap 2025-2026