I recently completed ten months’ fieldwork under the auspices of a Fulbright Senior Scholar Award, and have begun writing up the research as an associate in the Department of Anthropology. My primary research and teaching interests lie in the ethnographic and historical study of South and Southeast Asian religions, with a special emphasis on media and performance in Indonesia and the Malay region. In 2002 I completed my doctorate in Anthropology and Religious Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies (University of London), and have subsequently taught at Williams College and the University of Chicago. My first book, Critical Reflections on Religion and Media in Contemporary Bali was published this year in the Numen Series in the History of Religions (Leiden: Brill). It examines some of the ways in which Balinese have come to understand themselves as adherents to a modern, state-sanctioned form of Hinduism through practices mediated by text, television and improvisational theatre. I have a strong interest in theoretical issues in anthropology, the history of religions and cultural studies, and am currently working on a book project based on my recent ethnographic research, addressing issues of performance and practical reasoning. In addition to an edited volume on Entertainment Media in Indonesia (Routledge 2008, with Mark Hobart), my most recent publications have appeared in History of Religions, Modern Asian Studies, Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde, Asian Journal of Communication, and the Jurnal Kajian Bali.
Link to personal website.