Adam Joseph LoBue

Adam Joseph LoBue is a Lecturer and PhD Candidate in the Department of History at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His research focuses on Cold War-era print cultures in East Africa, emphasizing African agency in Cold War discourses. He is affiliated with the Unit for Criticism and Interpretive Theory, Center for African Studies, Center for Global Studies, and Humanities Research Institute.

Education:

• B.A. Cultural Anthropology, Boston University, 2010
• M.A. Near Eastern Studies, New York University, 2014
• M.A. History, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2018
• PhD in History (expected May 2025)

Research Interests: LoBue explores how Cold War propaganda interacted with African readership and labor diasporas through print media. His work challenges top-down narratives by examining how anti/communist texts were both produced and consumed, highlighting African agency in shaping Cold War discourse. Key themes include:

• Africanization of Cold War rhetoric
• Global Cold War's cultural dimensions
• Indian Ocean labor networks

Teaching: Courses taught include HIST 112 (Africa Since 1800), HIST 164 (The Automobile), and HIST 130 (Modern South Asia). He has also served as a Teaching Assistant for World Religions and Black Music studies.

Awards & Grants: Recipient of multiple prestigious fellowships including the Humanities Research Institute Graduate Fellowship (2023-2024), Graduate College Dissertation Completion Fellowship (2022-2023), and Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships for Swahili and Arabic. His work has been recognized with the Joseph Ward Swain Award and student excellence ratings.