Selfies are often dismissed as vain attempts at self-promotion, yet nearly every candidate in the 2016 presidential election has stopped to take them with their supporters. This discussion—featuring interdisciplinary researcher David A. Banks and journalist and author Melissa Gira Grant—centers on how the selfie took on a new identity through dissemination over social networks and moved into the political mainstream.

Bios
David A. Banks is an interdisciplinary researcher, organizing committee member for Theorizing the Web, and an editor of The Society Pages’ technology and society site Cyborgology. His work has been featured in Real Life, The New Inquiry, Tikkun Magazine, The Baffler, and McSweeney’s. David’s work focuses on the intersections of digital networks, urban form, and structures of power. He holds a PhD in Science and Technology Studies from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a BA in Urban Studies from New College of Florida.

Melissa Gira Grant is a journalist and the author of Playing the Whore: The Work of Sex Work (2014). Her work has appeared in Glamour, the Guardian, The Nation, Wired, and The Atlantic. Learn more at melissagiragrant.com