Back to top

Photograph of Chelsea Butkowski

Chelsea Butkowski Assistant Professor SOC | Communication Studies

Contact
Chelsea Butkowski
SOC | Communication Studies
4400 Massachusetts Avenue NW 309
Degrees
Ph.D. Communication, Cornell University
M.A. Communication, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign
B.A. Communication & Art History, SUNY Geneseo

Bio
Dr. Chelsea Butkowski is an Assistant Professor of Data, Media & Identity in American University's School of Communication. Their research examines the relationship between digital media technologies and identity, including the social practices and effects of everyday social media use. Most recently, they have turned to studying online identities during times of rapid change to consider how so-called "unsettled times" can unsettle our sense of self. Butkowski's research interests include feminist and queer media studies, platforms and algorithms, visual cultures, and political communication.

Recent work has involved analyses of digital popular culture during U.S. elections and legacies of gender stereotyping in selfies. They are currently undertaking a multi-year study of social media and identity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Butkowski draws from a background in art history, material culture, and museum studies to situate contemporary digital and visual media within wider historical contexts of communication practice. They also specialize in social scientific media research methods, including content analysis and in-depth interviewing.

Butkowski's research has been recognized with support from major funding organizations and awards at national and international conferences. Their work can also be found in a number of leading communication journals, including New Media & Society; Social Media + Society; Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication; Communication, Culture & Critique; and Feminist Media Studies. Butkowski is also affiliated with the UNC Center on Information Technology and Public Life (CITAP) and the UPenn Center on Digital Culture & Society (CDCS).

Butkowski is currently taking PhD students, so please be in touch!

Recent Publications:
Butkowski, C. P., & Corry, F. (equal authorship). (2025). Social media’s midlife crisis: How public discourse imagines platform futures. Social Media + Society, 11(2), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051251351493
Butkowski, C. P., Wilson, S. R., Wiemer, E. C., & *Kessler, F. (2025). The bad citizen? Framing non-voting on Twitter during the 2020 U.S. election. Journal of Information Technology & Politics. Advance online publication, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/19331681.2025.2455973
Butkowski, C. P. (2024). Record, revise, reinvent, and resist: The politics of social media self-representation during the COVID-19 pandemic. New Media & Society. Advance online publication, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1177/14614448241262984
For the Media
To request an interview for a news story, call AU Communications at 202-885-5950 or submit a request. Explore all AU Faculty Experts in our media guide.

Teaching

Spring 2025

  • COMM-365 Digital Media and Culture

  • COMM-378 Intro to Comm Research Methods

  • HNRS-398 Honors Challenge Course

Fall 2025

  • COMM-378 Intro to Comm Research Methods

  • COMM-751 Adv Media Research Methods