Adam Szetela earned his Ph.D. in English from the Department of Literatures at Cornell University. Before Cornell, he was a visiting fellow in the Program on the Study of Capitalism at Harvard University.

He is the author of That Book Is Dangerous! How Moral Panic, Social Media, and the Culture Wars Are Remaking Publishing, which was published by MIT Press and distributed by Penguin Random House on August 12, 2025.

His book has been hailed as “fiery and insightful” (The Washington Post), “engaging” (The Economist), a “cutting debut” (Publishers Weekly), and an “absolutely vital piece of work” (The Times).

He also writes for The Washington Post, The Guardian, Newsweek, and other publications. Among other places, his writing has been honored by the Society for Features Journalism.