Bio
Maggie MacDonald is a PhD candidate researching pornography platforms, with a graduate specialization in Sexual Diversity Studies. Her dissertation project considers changing dynamics for work, markets, governance and cultural production under platformization using the case of Pornhub.
MacDonald is a 2024 Massey Junior Fellow, 2023 Connaught Fellow, and her work is supported through a SSHRC Joseph-Armand Bombardier CGS-Doctoral Scholarship. During her doctoral studies, MacDonald’s research has been published in New Media & Society, First Monday, Synoptique, The Canadian Journal of Communication and The Walrus, and she currently works with Pornhub directly on porn industry issues and platform governance as a member of their parent company’s advisory board. Finally, she is supported by a strong local union with CUPE 3902. Workers of the world, unite!
Specializations
Platform studies, pornography, Internet policy, digital methods, political economy.
Degrees
- MA, Media Studies – Concordia University, Montreal
- BA, History of Art, Design and Visual Culture – University of Alberta, Edmonton
Committees or Affiliations
- Advisory Board Member with Pornhub (Ethical Capital Partners, March 2023-present)
- Graduate Student Representative for the Society of Cinema and Media Studies’ Adult Film & Media Scholarly Interest Group
Awards and Accolades
- Massey Junior Fellow, 2023-2024
- Connaught ‘PhDs for Public Impact’ Fellow, 2022-2023