Umar Ajetunmobi

I am a doctoral student of Communication Studies with a strong interdisciplinary focus that bridges political and health communication. To be specific, my research spans two interconnected domains: (1) social media’s role in political discourse, particularly in areas such as linguistic framing and semiotic interpretations, and (2) transcendental health beliefs and practices, especially among marginalized populations. For the latter, I focus on how non-biomedical health conditions like jinn possession and beliefs in sorcery and witchcraft influence well-being, stigma, and social support systems. My work in this second area serves as a critically and culturally grounded counter-narrative to Eurocentric medical discourses that frequently silence non-Eurocentric understanding of ill health. With advanced methodological and theoretical training as well as field experience, I am committed to collaborating with interdisciplinary scholars to produce culturally grounded, policy-relevant research that promotes social justice and health equity for marginalized communities.

My academic training includes qualitative research methods, political communication, health and social behavior, community health and development, interpersonal communication and intergroup relations. Outside academia, I lead a team of scholars working on JIN-LAB Taxonomies (JINLAT). JINLAT is an ongoing project where we archive Nigerian Islamic exorcism practice using cultural, linguistic, communication and bio-psycho-socio-spiritual models. In addition, I lead a team of The Nigerian Exorcists, a YouTube medium for archiving experiences of professional, experienced and reliable Nigerian Islamic exorcists using in-depth interview and ethnographic formats (https://www.youtube.com/@TheNigerianExorcists/videos). Finally, I created a multimedia, digital learning podcast-like forum, Beyond The Visibles (BTV) [https://www.youtube.com/@beyondtheinvisbles], to frequently enlighten Muslims about invisible causes of physical and mental health conditions, their preventive and curative measures. Live learning session holds weekly on Telegram in Yoruba, the language that participants speak.