Dr. Nolan Higdon
Bio:
Dr. Nolan Higdon is an author and university lecturer of history and media studies. Higdon’s areas of concentration include youth culture, news media history, and critical media literacy. He sits on the boards of the Action Coalition for Media Education and Northwest Alliance For Alternative Media And Education. His most recent publications include The Anatomy of Fake News from University of California Press (2020) and United States of Distraction with Mickey Huff from City Lights Publishers. He is co-host of the Along the Line podcast with “Dr. Dreadlocks” Nicholas Baham III, and a longtime contributor to Project Censored’s annual book, Censored. In addition, he has been a contributor to Truthout and Counter-punch; and a guest commentator for The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle,and numerous television news outlets.
Education:
SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY — SAN FRANCISCO, CA
Doctorate of Education concentrated in critical news literacy, 2017
SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY — San Diego, CA
Master of Arts in History concentrated in U.S. History and Latin America Studies, 2012
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, DAVIS — Davis, CA
Bachelor of Arts in History Education concentrated in U.S. race relations, 2009
Publications:
® Books
o The Anatomy of Fake News: Critical News Literacy Education, University of California Press, 2020.
o United States of Distraction Media Manipulation in Post-Truth America (And What We Can Do About It). City Lights Publishing, 2019.
® Electronic Articles
o “The Bernie Blackout Is Real, and These Screenshots Prove It,” co-authored with Mickey Huff, Truthout, January 30, 2020.
o “As Democracy Crumbles, Silence Speaks Volumes,” co-authored with Mickey Huff, Counter Punch, January 10, 2020.
o “Scandalgate: Weapon of Mass Distraction,” co-authored with Mickey Huff, Project Censored, November 25, 2019
o “Follow The Youth Left: Dissecting The Corporate News Media’s “Moderate Electability” Farce,” co-authored with Mickey Huff, Demcast, September 23, 2019
o “Has Media Literacy Been Hijacked?,” co-authored with Ben Boyington, Project Censored, March 19, 2019
o “The Global Critical Media Literacy Educator’s Resource Guide,” co-editor, 2015
o “Disinfo Wars: Alex Jones War on Your Mind,” Project Censored, 2013
® Articles
o “What is Fake News?: A Foundational Question for Developing Effective Critical News Literacy Education.” Democratic Communiqué, Vol. 29, No. 1, January 2020.
o “Rallying Over Balloting: The Origins of Millennial Activism.” Journal of Critical Thought and Praxis 8, no. 1 (2019): 3.
® Book Chapters
o “The New American Authoritarianism: How the Corporate Media Normalized Racism in 2016,” co-author with Nicholas Baham, Censored 2018. Huff, Mickey, and Andy Lee Roth, eds. New York, NY: Seven Stories Press, 2017.
o “Post-Truth Dystopia: Fake News, Alternative Facts, and Russian Hackers,” Huff, Mickey, and Andy Lee Roth, eds. Censored 2018. New York, NY: Seven Stories Press, 2017.
o “Millennial DeMockracy: The Corporate Media’s War on Social Justice,” The Global Critical Media Literacy Project, GCML.org, 2016.
o “Junk Elections and The Façade of Democracy: The Corporate Media’s 2016 War on Social Justice,” Huff, Mickey, and Andy Lee Roth, eds. Censored 2017: Fortieth Anniversary Edition. New York, NY: Seven Stories Press, 2016.
o “A Vision for Transformative Civic Engagement: The Global Critical Media Literacy Project,” Huff, Mickey, and Andy Lee Roth, eds. Censored 2016: The Top Censored Stories and Media Analysis of 2014-15. New York, NY: Seven Stories Press, 2015.
o “A Vast Wasteland: The Ongoing Reign of Junk Food News and News Abuse,” Huff, Mickey, and Andy Lee Roth, eds. Censored 2016: The Top Censored Stories and Media Analysis of 2014-15. New York, NY: Seven Stories Press, 2015.
o “Ukraine: Another Step in Capitalism’s Global Dominance Strategies and Power Inside the Transnational Global Corporate Class and US-NATO Global Empire,” Stephen Lendman, ed., Flashpoint In Ukraine: How The US Drive For Hegemony Risks World War III.” Clarity Press, 2014.
o “Mea Culpa, Mi Amore: Sorry for all the Junk Food News and News Abuse,” Huff, M. and Roth, A.L. eds., Censored 2015: Inspiring We the People; The Top Censored Stories and Media Analysis of 2013-2014. Seven Stories Press, 2014.
o “Can’t Touch This: Junk Food and News Abuse” Huff, M. and Roth, A.L. eds., Censored 2014: Fearless Speech in Fateful Times; The Top Censored Stories and Media Analysis of 2012-13. New York, NY: Seven Stories Press, 2013.
® Screenplay
o “United States of Distraction: Fighting The Fake News Invasion,” Screenplay co-writer and expert, Media Freedom Foundation, 2019
® Dissertation
o “Effective Critical Media Literacy Pedagogy in Higher Education: Turning Social Justice Theory into Practice,” doctoral dissertation, San Francisco State University, 2017
® Thesis
o “The Politics of Desertion,” master’s thesis, San Diego State University, 2012.
Affiliations:
Union for Democratic Communications
Steering Committee 2016-2020
Northwest Alliance for Alternative
Board Member 2016-Present
Media and Education
Global Critical Media Literacy Project
Co-Founder/Coordinator 2014-2016
Media Freedom Foundation
Board Member 2014-Present
ACME: Action Coalition for Media Education
Secretary & Board Member 2014-Present
Project Censored
Critical Media Literacy Officer 2012-Present