About Karen

Hi! My name is Karen Chalamilla and I’m a gender and media researcher, and culture writer with a keen interest in the relationship between gender, art, and media. I’m intrigued by the relationship between storytelling and our understanding and performance of gender, especially in African contexts.

My work explores the way our understanding of gender shows up in stories told in pop culture and other kinds of media like ‘hard’ news and sports news. I’m also interested in considering the way gender intersects with other forms of identity such as race, sexuality and class.

I have worked as a freelance writer and researcher for outlets such as The Floor Mag, AMAKA Studio, Gal-dem, Tangaza and The Citizen newspaper. And also, for civil society organizations such as The Africa Philanthropy Network as a project manager and most recently, a gender and media researcher.

Follow me on X @kayandstuff.