I’m Aidan Walker, a writer, content creator, and internet culture researcher.

You can find me posting as @aidanetcetera on TikTok, where I have 45M+ post views, at Instagram, on YouTube, or at my Substack newsletter How To Do Things With Memes. You can find my work at the BBC, Know Your Meme, The Daily Beast, More Perfect Union, and other outlets.

I hold a Master’s degree in History-Literature from Columbia University and EHESS, for which I wrote what to my knowledge is the first scholarly monograph on the Distracted Boyfriend meme. I’ve lectured on meme history and network culture at Princeton University, the University of Amsterdam, American University, and other venues. I’ve appeared on shows and podcasts like Real Time with Bill Maher, PBS NewsHour, and Slate’s ICYMI, and my analysis has been quoted in The Washington Post, POLITICO, The Atlantic, CNN, The New York Times, The Guardian, and other outlets. I am represented by Matt McGowan at the Frances Goldin Literary Agency and have a book forthcoming on the history of memes.

I am currently Creator-in-Residence at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a global affairs think tank in Washington, DC, where I work on democracy and technology. If you are a scholar or reporter researching meme-related stuff, I’d love to talk!

Feel free to email me using the address at the bottom of this page if you have questions, musings, or ideas for collaboration.