Gazal Shekhawat

Gazal Shekhawat is a PhD researcher and Research Associate at the London School of Economics (LSE), affiliated with the Department of Media and Communications. Her work focuses on gender dynamics in digital media, particularly examining how women in India’s Hindi heartland navigate cultural and technological shifts. She holds a Research Associate position at the Digital Futures for Children Centre and previously worked as a Research Fellow at Microsoft Research Lab, India. Her research interests span platform studies, media sociology, and children’s digital rights.

• Education: MSc (distinction) from LSE’s Department of Government; BSc in Mass Communication from Symbiosis Centre for Media and Communication; Diploma in Conflict Transformation and Peacebuilding from Lady Shri Ram College for Women (University of Delhi).
• Teaching: Leads seminars for LSE Summer School’s 'International Journalism & Society' and serves as a GTA for Sociology’s 'Power, Inequality and Difference' course.
• Grants: AHRC London Arts and Humanities Partnership PhD studentship.

Her research bridges journalism ethics, digital sociology, and policy advocacy, with a focus on marginalized voices in technology governance. She collaborates with global youth initiatives to amplify children’s perspectives in digital policy frameworks.