I study how communication systems produce ignorance — examining the gap between institutional narratives and lived realities, and working to rebuild them toward justice.
I am a Ph.D. Candidate in Mass Communication at Ohio University, working in agnotology — the study of how ignorance is produced, sustained, and circulated through media and institutional communication. I am interested in what remains unseen, unheard, or misunderstood in public discourse, and why.
My research investigates why critical social issues such as human trafficking, environmental health hazards, and health inequities remain deeply misunderstood despite widespread information. Rather than asking why awareness is lacking, I examine how communication itself contributes to gaps in understanding.
Through 100+ interviews across India and the United States, and analysis of multiple large-scale datasets, I study how institutional narratives often fail to align with lived realities. Working with NGOs, journalists, healthcare workers, police, and community members — particularly in Indigenous communities — I examine how knowledge is framed, prioritized, or excluded.
Communication can inform, but it can also erase. My goal is to develop culturally grounded communication frameworks that move beyond awareness toward prevention, accountability, and justice.