Hey there! Thanks for checking out my site. A little bit about myself: I’m a writer, teacher, and public sociologist.
My first book is called The New Prophets of Capital (Verso 2015). In it I examine the pervasive feeling that capitalism is leading us in the wrong direction and argue that it’s time for ideas that challenge the core assumptions of our for-profit system. In New Prophets I cover a range of topics from feminism to green capitalism, to public education and therapy culture.
My second book is called The Smartphone Society: Technology, Power, and Resistance in the New Gilded Age (Beacon 2020). Using the smartphone as a lens, I examine the cultural, political, and economic shifts reshaping American society since the birth of the smartphone in 2007. In particular, I interrogate the defining tension of digital life: the stark disconnect between the ordinary smartphone user seeking entertainment, connection, information, and justice, and the tech companies looking to profit from our every tap and swipe.
I write about technology, labor, politics, feminism, the economy, and the environment. Check out the Articles page for links.
I have a PhD in sociology from Johns Hopkins University and taught for several years at Boston University. I wrote my dissertation on capital mobility in the automotive industry; here’s a piece that covers some of its themes. I’ve worked on a variety of other academic projects as well, like this article on accumulation by dispossession and development in southern Africa.
These days I’m teaching at UMass Boston in the Labor Resource Center.
You can reach me at nicoleaschoff@protonmail.com