Simran Agarwal

Postdoctoral Fellow

E: agarwalsimran079@gmail.com

Dr. Simran Agarwal is a researcher in media and platform governance from India. She joins SFU as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the School of Communication, where she will work with Dr. Sarah Anne Ganter to examine the emerging platform–publisher regulations and their (un)intended consequences for journalism. Simran holds a PhD in Information & Communication Sciences from the Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, France. Her doctoral research focused on the political economy of platform governance of digital journalism in India. During this time, she also held visiting researcher positions at the University of Amsterdam and the Centre de Sciences Humaines, New Delhi. Her research interests lie in examining the dynamic relationship between states and digital platforms in shaping journalism and free speech, while remaining attentive to the structural specificities of contemporary media systems. Simran is a part of several international research networks where her work contributes to broader debates on the platformisation of culture industries, media regulation and censorship, and infrastructural governance in the Global South. 

RESEARCH, EXPERTISE & INTERESTS

  • Media and platform governance
  • Platformization of culture industries
  • Technopolitics
  • Free speech and censorship
  • Infrastructural governance
  • Political economy of media

EDUCATION

  • PhD in Information & Communication Sciences, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, Paris
  • MA in Media Governance, Jamia Millia Islamia University, New Delhi
  • BA in Political Science, St. Xavier's College, Mumbai

AWARDS

  • 2025  Dissertation Scholarship, Centre de Sciences Humaines, CNRS, New Delhi
  • 2024  'Platforms' Project Grant, LabEx ICCA, France
  • 2023  Oxford Media Policy Summer Fellowship, United Kingdom
  • 2023  International Mobility Scholarship, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, France
  • 2021  Doctoral Scholarship, LabEx ICCA, France
  • 2019  Junior Research Fellowship, University Grants Commission, India 

AFFILIATIONS

  • 2024  Member, International Research Network - South Stream, CNRS, France
  • 2023  Expert Member, Media & Journalism Research Centre
  • 2023  Contributor, Research Group on Global Perspectives on Platforms & Cultural Production, University of Amsterdam 
  • 2022  Member, Réseau Des Jeunes Chercheurs, LabEx ICCA, France

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

  • Agarwal, S. (2025). Contextualizing Platform Dependence and Publisher Disentanglements in India. Digital Journalism, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/21670811.2025.2573072
  • Agarwal, S. (2025). Rooting Platform Dependencies in the Digital News Economy: Google News Initiative in India. International Journal of Communication, 19(1) 
  • Agarwal, S., & Heda, S. (2023). Media Regulations in India: Government Overreach Disguised as ‘Parity’. Tech Policy Press. https://www.techpolicy.press/media-regulations-in-india-government-overreach-disguised-as-parity/ 
  • Parthasarathi, V., & Agarwal, S. (2023). Platformization of Matchmaking: Reconfiguring Social Economies in India. In Digital Platforms and the Global South (pp. 56-73). Routledge.
  • Agarwal, S.(2022). State Interest in Content Governance Through Platforms. Sciences Po Chair in Digital, Governance, and Sovereignty. https://www.sciencespo.fr/public/chaire-numerique/en/2022/08/29/state-interest-in-content-governance-through-platforms/ 
  • Parthasarathi, V., & Agarwal, S. (2020). Rein and laissez faire: The dual personality of media regulation in India. Digital Journalism, 8(6), 797-819.
  • Parthasarathi, V., & Agarwal, S. (2020). Media Influence Matrix, India: Funding Journalism. Central European University (Budapest)
  • Parthasarathi, V., & Agarwal, S. (2019). Media Influence Matrix, India: Politics, Government and Regulations. Central European University (Budapest)