Dr Cristina Moreno-Almeida

Dr Cristina Moreno-Almeida is senior lecturer in Digital Culture at Queen Mary University of London. She specialises in memes, online networks, and youth culture, examining how digital spaces shape identity and everyday life. Her latest book, ‘Memes, Monsters, and the Digital Grotesque’ (Oxford University Press, 2024), explores how memes, horror, and the grotesque capture feelings of alienation and despair while also opening new opportunities for creativity in the post-digital era. 

Alongside her work on memes, Dr Moreno-Almeida leads the ERC-UKRI funded project ‘Digital Al-Andalus: Radical Perspectives Of and Through Al-Andalus’ (2023–2024), which investigates how reactionary groups use and distort history in digital media. She is also the author of ‘Rap Beyond Resistance: Staging Power in Contemporary Morocco’ (Palgrave, 2017), a study of cultural politics in North African hip hop. Her research broadly addresses popular culture, digital participation, nationalism, and Far-Right communities online. At Queen Mary University of London, she also directs the MA in Digital Media and Global Cultures, supporting critical engagement with digital transformations worldwide.