Toussaint Nothias is the Associate Director of Research at Stanford University’s Digital Civil Society Lab, a Research Scholar in the Stanford Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society (PACS), and a Faculty Affiliate of the Center for African Studies. He holds a PhD from the School of Media and Communication at the University of Leeds. In the Spring of 2022, he’s a Visiting Fellow in the Department of Media and Communications at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). 

Toussaint is a global communication scholar working on journalism, civil society, and digital technologies in Africa. His research explores the multifaceted legacy of colonial power relations on contemporary media representations, journalistic practices, associational life, and digital networks. 

The first stream of his research agenda concentrates on media stereotyping and representations of Africa in global news. The other explores digital technology and advocacy across several African contexts, particularly focusing on Big Tech’s initiatives to increase global connectivity. His most recent article – “Access Granted: Facebook’s Free Basics in Africa”– traces the history of one of the most notorious and controversial initiatives by tech corporations to increase connectivity across the Global South: Facebook’s Free Basics project. Drawing on an innovative virtual private network (VPN)-based method, the paper outlines the key drivers behind the quiet expansion of the program to 32 African countries.

Toussaint Nothias served as an External Evaluator for the 2022 Just Tech Fellowship.