Jennifer Cool

Jennifer Cool is an Associate Professor (Teaching) of Anthropology at the University of Southern California, where she has taught since 2010. Her work bridges social anthropology and ethnographic filmmaking, focusing on cultural production, technopower, and digital media.

• Ph.D. in Anthropology (USC, 2008)
• M.A. in Visual Anthropology (USC, 1993)
• A.B. in Anthropology (Harvard, 1987)

Her research explores the social construction of technology through grounded ethnography, challenging narratives of individualized innovation. She investigates cultural imaginaries like the American dream of homeownership and tech-driven social revolution, with specific attention to ethnographic film's theoretical scope and digital media's material conditions. Current projects include a book on Theorizing Production: Research Media from Field to Screen and analyses of Twitter's social construction.

Jennifer Cool's publications reveal consistent engagement with digital culture, ethnographic methods, and media theory. Her work spans reflexive filmmaking, metadata ecology, and social media's ideological frameworks. Notable contributions include the Home Economics: a documentary of suburbia (PBS 1995) and multimedia performances interrogating anthropological history.

• Final Year Dissertation Fellowship (USC, 2007-2008)
• Award for Excellence in Teaching (USC, 2006-2007)

As Co-Chair of CASTAC (2009-2014) and President of the General Anthropology Division (2020-2022), she has shaped academic discourse around technology studies. Her CASTAC blog editorship and Anthropology Now media editorship reflect commitment to public scholarship.