Personal profile

Research interests

Matthew Alford's PhD thesis applied Noam Chomsky's Propaganda Model to contemporary Hollywood and his subsequent research similarly concerns the representation of Western power.

He has taught a range of subjects - Film & Media, International Relations, and British & American politics - and is a Fellow of the HEA.

Dr. Alford co-produced the film Theaters of War (2022), which revealed how the Pentagon and CIA have rewritten thousands of Hollywood movies & network TV shows. It is primarily based on his co-authored book National Security Cinema: The Shocking New Evidence of Government Control in Hollywood (2017) and draws on archival and interview-gathering trips to Los Angeles and Washington, DC.

His first feature, The Writer with No Hands (2014), uncovered crucial new evidence in the missing persons case of screenwriter Gary Devore. It premiered at Hot Docs, Toronto and the stage adaptation of the eponymous novel was livestreamed at the Edinburgh Fringe. 

Both films won 'Best Documentary' at international festivals.

Dr. Alford's books have been translated into Chinese, Persian, & French and he has presented on Julian Assange's legal case for the Universal Periodic Review of Human Rights at the United Nations in Geneva.

Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):

  • SDG 16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

External positions

Visiting Lecturer (UK campus), Franklin and Marshall College

2017 → …

Visiting Lecturer, University of Birmingham

20172018

Visiting Lecturer, University of Portsmouth

20172019

Visiting Lecturer, University of Bristol

20122017

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