Ben Davis

Research Interests

Ben is an M.A. student in Media and Cultural Studies whose research focuses on digital hate, video game studies, and masculinity studies. His B.A. Honors Thesis, “Being Contrarian in a Post-Gamergate World: What TERFs Tell Us about Performance, Moderation, and Platforms” researched how TERF behavior online can shift current scholarly perceptions of trolls and other contrarians. Ben is passionate about making academic knowledge accessible to the public and is always looking for ways to incorporate media production and public outreach into his research.

Education

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

Conference Presentations

• 2024 – Console-ing Passions, “The Rhetoric of TERFs: Response Videos, Intellectualism and Seriousness”
• 2024 – GAFIS Symposium, “Leveling Up, the Luck Stat, and Final Fantasy X: Incorporating Luck into a Meritocratic System”

Courses and Teaching

• CA 155-Introduction to Digital Media Production
• Guest Lecture in “Language and Power” Course on Ethnographic Fieldwork, Stanford University 2024

Service

• Editorial Board Member, The Velvet Light Trap, 2023-Present