Chanapang Pongpiboonkiat

Profile

I am a PhD student funded by the School’s scholarship to do my research about how digital media especially social media represents female subjectivity nowadays, focusing on the case of female officers working in Thailand’s military forces. Since the role of women back in Thailand has been seen as inferiority in so many levels, also the way that Thai traditional media (also global media) usually stereotypes them with a so-called image of ‘sex object’, I find it very intriguing to see if new media could contribute changes in terms of visual representation, or give a new form of power to the group of women in redefining themselves, who have been suppressed underneath male-dominated environment as well as the entire society.

Prior to my PhD, I finished BA (Hons) in Communication Arts, Chulalongkorn University. I had worked for women’s magazine and publishings for years as a columnist and changed my career path to serve the Royal Thai Air Force in 2014 as a Public Relations officer (Flg.Off.) specialized in creating PR materials, corporate communication, crisis management and broadcasting. I later did my MA in International Communication at the University of Leeds through the Chevening Scholarship, went back for work and decided to come back to the UK aiming to extend my knowledge and ability in doing an academic research in something I am passionate about, which are feminism, gender equality, gender representation in media, visual communication with digital media as a tool.

Research interests

• Feminism
• Gender equality
• Gender representation in media
• Visual communication
• Military culture and organization
• Crisis management and communication 
• Corporate communication
• Digital media 
• Popular Culture
• Cross-cultural communication

Qualifications

• BA (Hons) Communication Arts (Public Relations), Chulalongkorn University
• MA International Communication, University of Leeds