Welcome! I am a cultural historian of cities, suburbs, media, and technology in recent American history.

I work as an Associate Teaching Professor in the Federated Department of History at Rutgers-Newark/New Jersey Institute of Technology and Director of the Graduate Program in American Studies.

I served as the President of the Newark Chapter of our AAUP-AFT union. If you have questions about our newly ratified contract, please let me know.

See my courses and syllabi here.

My book is Neighborhood of Fear: The Suburban Crisis in American Culture, 1975-2001

Bookshop.org

Johns Hopkins University Press

Smithsonian Scholars chose Neighborhood of Fear as a favorite book of 2020.

Hear me discuss Neighborhood of Fear on the New Books Network Podcast.

Read about how suburban crime culture of the 1980s led us to Ring, NextDoor, and Stand Your Ground here.

Feel free to email me with any questions about my research or the graduate program in American Studies at Rutgers-Newark.

I am also available for virtual talks, classroom visits, interviews, and podcasts.

Twitter