Broadly, I study digital foodscapes as a site of resistance, meaning making, nation-branding, identity negotiation, and geopolitics.
My work is motivated by a commitment to understanding how media narratives shape national identity and public discourse, and by an ambition to contribute to socially impactful research that can inform policy and advocacy efforts.
My dissertation, A Recipe for Conflict? Moroccan Geopolitical Dynamics Through the Lens of Gastronationalism, examines how digital food influencers (DFIs) engage in nation branding in Morocco via Instagram by producing and disseminating narratives of national identity and cultural authenticity in complex political and economic ecosystems.
Peer Review Publications
Slavik, C. E., Chapman, D. A., Cohen, A. S., Bendefaa, N., & Peters, E. (2024). Clearing the air: Evaluating institutions’ social media health messaging on wildfire and smoke risks in the US Pacific Northwest. BMC Public Health, 24(379). Read Article
Manuscripts in Submission
Bendefaa, N. & Bunquin, J.B. (under review). Calibrating Culinary Expertise: Culinary Expertise and Knowledge Construction Strategies among TikTok’s Digital Food Influencers. Information, Communication & Society.
Workneh, T. W. & Bendefaa, N. (in preparation). From Voyeurism to Visual Historiography: Regenerative Decolonization in Netflix’s High on the Hog. Critical Studies in Media Communication
Reynolds, C., Maddox, J., Stein, K., & Bendefaa, N. (under review). In Defense of Qualitative Description: Reclaiming “Small t” Theory as a Site of Knowledge Advancement. Communication Theory.
Manuscripts in Progress
Digital Food Studies
Bendefaa, N. & Wilson, A. (in preparation). Not Eggs-actly Healthy Living: Right-Wing Identity Politics in Digital Health & Wellness Discourse
Bendefaa, N. (in preparation). From Farm to (Digital) Feed: Insights into American Commodity Checkoff Programs Collaborations with Content Creators and Influencers
Bendefaa, N. & Flaherty, M. E. (in preparation). Yelp as a Digital Foodscape: Negotiating Identity, Exclusion, and Belonging in Midwestern Restaurant Reviews
Bendefaa, N. (in preparation). “Bese7a w Ra7a”: An exploration of cultural and gender self-representation in Moroccan digital foodscapes
Communicating Crisis & Conflict
Gattis, L., & Bendefaa, N. (in preparation). Shaken Narratives: Moroccan and American News Outlets’ Coverage of the 2023 Earthquake.
Bendefaa, N. & Fofie, I. (in preparation). Watchdogs and storytellers: Examining journalistic boundaries in Ghana.
Workneh, T. W. & Bendefaa, N. (in preparation). Covering the ET500 crash: Western erasure of an African tragedy.
Nahla Bendefaa 