Jiajun Liang

Jiajun Liang is an Assistant Professor of Media Studies at the University of California, Merced, affiliated with the School of Social Sciences, Humanities & Arts and the Department of Global Arts, Media and Writing Studies. His research focuses on modern Japanese literature, film, and media with an emphasis on memory, trauma, and colonial violence across transnational contexts.

Education: Ph.D. in Japanese Literature and Culture from UCLA (2021); M.A. in Japanese Studies from the University of Michigan (2015).

Research interests include postwar Japanese cultural transformations, decolonization theories, and media studies. His current book project, Echoes of the Empire: Memory and Narrative in Postwar Japanese Literature, examines repatriation and demobilization narratives in early postwar Japan. His recent articles explore topics like digital censorship during the pandemic and the cinematic techniques in Paprika.

Recipient of the 2024 Ian Nish Prize and multiple research grants including the Academic Senate Faculty Research Grant and Japan Foundation Fellowship. Active in interdisciplinary scholarship bridging media theory and postcolonial studies.