Received Sylff fellowship in 2025
Academic supervisor : Dr. H. Leslie Steeves
Current affiliation : University of Oregon
Nahla (she/her) is a Moroccan-American scholar, communication practitioner, and multimedia storyteller pursuing a Ph.D. in Communication and Media Studies at the University of Oregon. She holds an MA in Global Communication from Kent State University and a BA in Communication Studies, with a media studies emphasis, from Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane, Morocco. Nahla's career has spanned quasi-governmental organizations, public radio (NPR affiliate) and non-profit journalism, and digital media strategy. She also runs her own strategic communication and media project management consulting business through which she guides communication and content teams to function more efficiently and produces engaging and impactful digital content strategies across various platforms and industries. These experiences all influence and shape Nahla's research interests. Through her academic research, Nahla explores the interactions between state actions/actors and media workers, industries, and systems in North and West Africa, with a strong emphasis on food media, platform studies, and media ethics. In her solo and collaborative work, she explores how power, identity, and representation are negotiated in digital spaces through diverse lenses and examine digital platforms as both discursive and material spaces. More specifically, Nahla's dissertation investigates the intersections between creator studies, digital platforms and cultures, and the development of politically dominant narratives in foodscapes.
Academic Achievements,Social Engagement Initiative
2025 Margaret McBride Lehrman Graduate Scholarship, University of Oregon
2024 Division of Graduate Studies Professional Development Award, University of Oregon
2023 Anderson Family Fellowship, School of Journalism and Communication, University of Oregon
2023 Media in Ghana Scholarship, School of Journalism and Communication, University of Oregon
2022-2026 Columbia Scholarship, School of Journalism and Communication, University of Oregon
2022 Promising Scholar Award, Division of Graduate Studies, University of Oregon
2019 Presentation Award Winner, Graduate Research Symposium, Kent State University
2018 Dr. Dominic A. Infante Communication Scholarship
2018 The D. Ray and Susanne E. Heisey Endowed International Scholarship Fund
https://nahlabendefaa.com/
