Christopher Schaefer

Christopher Schaefer is a Postdoctoral Affiliate at the University of Cambridge specializing in the History of U.S. and the World, with research focused on U.S. market empire and the evolution of global media through institutions like the International Herald Tribune as instruments of American soft power from the Marshall Plan era through the Cold War and digital revolution.

His educational background includes a Master’s degree in Hispanic Studies from the University of Pennsylvania, where he worked with historian Roger Chartier.

Schaefer’s research spans transnational methodologies in World history and International history, examining American journalism’s role in market empire through Cultural history, Diplomatic history, and Intellectual history frameworks. He extensively employs oral history—conducting nearly 200 interviews during the pandemic—to explore intersections of media, power, and global influence, with particular attention to the History of the book and North American history.

He currently supervises an undergraduate dissertation linking Cold War-era McCarthyism with medical rhetoric, while teaching courses including North American History since 1865, Historical Argument and Practice, 20th century World History, and the Latinx Experience in the United States. His conference presentations at venues like the Society of Historians of American Foreign Relations and American Journalism Historians Association demonstrate active scholarly engagement with evolving media landscapes and U.S. global influence.