At the annual meeting, AoIR transitioned its Executive Committee. Over the next few weeks, we will post interviews from our incoming Executive Committee, as we welcome them into the leadership of the Association.
Kate Miltner
2017-2019 AoIR Executive Committee – Graduate Student Representative
Who are you? Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I’m a PhD Candidate at USC Annenberg. I got my MSc at the London School of Economics, worked as the Research Assistant for the Social Media Collective at Microsoft Research for two years, and also worked in the Research department at Twitter for a summer. I’m also a recovering advertising executive and shameless karaoke enthusiast.
What is your AoIR Executive Committee position?
Graduate Student Representative
What motivated you to serve on the Executive Committee for AoIR?
AoIR is, shall we say, my people. The conference is my favorite academic event of the year, and I’m invested in making it even more awesome and inclusive for grad students (and everyone, really).
How long have you been involved with AoIR? How many conferences have you attended?
I’ve been to every AoIR since 2012 (except for 2014 in Daegu).
What is/are your current research interests?
My research generally examines the intersection of technology, power, and identity. My dissertation is an examination of the Learn to Code Movement in the U.S., particularly as it pertains to discourses of “diversity” and marginality in the form of gender and race. I also have an interest in how forms of internet cultural forms (memes, emoji, GIFs) contribute to the (re)production of social norms and inequalities.
What is your favorite meme or YouTube video? Please provide a link to it if you can.
Favorite meme is this: http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/facebook/000/217/040/48ACD.png (I have it on my phone case)
Favorite YouTube video is actually a Vine (RIP Vine): https://vine.co/v/hIntHMhlaVd/embed/simple?abvariable=control
