Rasha A. Abdulla

Visiting Research Scholar

Specialization

Rasha A. Abdulla was a CITS Visiting Research Scholar. Dr. Abdulla is a Professor and Past Chair of Journalism and Mass Communication at the American University in Cairo. Her research interests include the uses and effects of mass media, new media, particularly the Internet, development communication and education through entertainment, freedom of expression, as well as music and music videos as communication media. She is the author of "The Internet in Egypt and the Arab World,""The Internet in the Arab World: Egypt and Beyond," "Policing the Internet in the Arab World," and numerous other research articles, reports, and book chapters.

Rasha's faculty lecture "The role of social media in the aftermath of Egypt's revolution" happened on December 5, 2012. 

Bio

Dr. Rasha Abdulla is Associate Professor and former Chair of Journalism and Mass Communication at the American University in Cairo. She has a Ph.D. in Communication (December 2003) from the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida. She is the proud recipient of several teaching and research awards, including the AUC Excellence in Research and Creative Endeavors Award for her research on social media and political activism leading to Egypt’s revolution (2011).

Dr. Abdulla has taught at the University of Miami, Georgia State University, and Portland State University in the United States, and is currently teaching at the American University in Cairo, Egypt. She has guest lectured at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California, Marquette University, and California State University at Long Beach.

Dr. Abdulla is also an avid tweep. You can follow her on Twitter at @RashaAbdulla

Research

Dr. Abdulla's research interests include the uses and effects of mass media, new media, particularly the Internet, development communication and education through entertainment, freedom of expression, as well as music and music videos as communication media. She is the author of "The Internet in Egypt and the Arab World," published in Arabic by Afaq Publications in March 2005; "The Internet in the Arab World: Egypt and Beyond" in March 2007 by Peter Lang, Inc; "Policing the Internet in the Arab World" in 2009 by the Emirates Center for Strategic Study and Research; and numerous other research articles and book chapters. In 2007, she received the Excellence in Research Award from the School of Business, Economics, and Communication at the American University in Cairo.

Dr. Abdulla is an international consultant, providing training to a list of clients, including IREX, Internews, the Anna Lindh Foundation, the Open Society Institute, Freedom House, Institute Panos Paris, Cospe International, Media Diversity Institute, Meridian Eaton International, NovoNordisk, the African Journalists' Union, Iraqi journalists, and others. She lectures and conducts research on a variety of topics, including media diversity, cross-cultural communication, new media uses and effects, and freedom of expression, particularly as it relates to Internet-related communication. She provides training on public speaking, presentation skills, negotiation skills, leadership, organizational communication, development communication, crisis management, as well as marketing skills and writing and editing.