Gordon Named Editor of International Journal of Middle East Studies

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Joel Gordon, professor in the Department of History at the University of Arkansas, has been named editor of International Journal of Middle East Studies.

Joel Gordon, professor in the Department of History at the University of Arkansas, has been named editor of the International Journal of Middle East Studies, effective summer 2019.

The IJMES is the premiere English-language journal on the Middle Eastern region, published quarterly under the auspices of the Middle East Studies Association. Now in its 50th year of publication, the IJMES publishes original research on politics, society, and culture in the Middle East from the seventh century to the present day, with contributions from a wide variety of disciplines.

"IJMES is the flagship journal of Middle East Studies, the most important venue for articles and reviews that establish the scholarly standards of the field and draw attention to path-breaking research," said Judith Tucker, president of the Middle East Studies Association, past IJMES editor, and professor of history at Georgetown University. "We are thrilled that professor Joel Gordon is taking over the helm as editor — he brings his own record of superb scholarship and deep interdisciplinary engagement to the task. IJMES could not be in better hands."

Gordon's research focuses on modern Egypt, popular culture, cinema and mass media, religion and politics. He has served as director of the King Fahd Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Arkansas, as book review editor of the IJMES, and as a visiting professor at Ben Gurion University. 

He is the author of three books, Nasser: Hero of the Arab Nation (Oneworld Press, 2006), Revolutionary Melodrama: Popular Film and Civic Identity in Nasser's Egypt (University of Chicago Middle East Center, 2002), and Nasser's Blessed Movement: Egypt's Free Officers and the July Revolution (Oxford University Press, 1992). 

Gordon wrote the chapter on 'Egypt from 1919' for The New Cambridge History of Islam and has contributed essays to numerous edited collections and encyclopedias, including the six-volume Dictionary of African Biography and the 3rd edition of The Encyclopedia of Islam. His many articles and reviews have appeared in academic journals such as IJMES, Review of Middle East Studies, Journal of Levantine Studies, Popular Music, Journal of Film and Video, Quarterly Review of Film and Video, History Compass and The Muslim World.

"It is a particular honor — and challenge — to take over IJMES at this time, when the Middle East and broader Muslim world face so many momentous challenges, and as our study of this vital geo-cultural region becomes ever more innovative and interdisciplinary," Gordon said. "I follow in the footsteps of eminent scholars — mentors, colleagues and friends — whose work has been so influential to my own intellectual growth. I relish this opportunity to, as one of them put it, help 'shape the field' in the widest possible ways."

About the Middle East Studies Association: The Middle East Studies Association, based at the University of Arizona, is a private, non-profit, learned society that brings together scholars and educators from all over the world who are involved in the study of the region. Founded in 1966, it has more than 2,700 members and it serves as an umbrella organization for more than 50 institutional members and 36 affiliated organizations.

About the King Fahd Center for Middle East Studies: The King Fahd Center for Middle East Studies is an academic and research unit in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas. An interdisciplinary and interdepartmental area studies center that offers diverse cultural, intellectual, and educational opportunities for the U of A community, the Center promotes research and teaching in interdisciplinary Middle East studies. The Center offers an undergraduate major in Middle East Studies and supports graduate studies in related programs with assistantships, language study, conference travel, and field research grants. More information about the King Fahd Center can be found at mest.uark.edu. For ongoing news, follow the Center on Facebook and Twitter.