Cynthia Miller-Idriss

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

ABOUT CYNTHIA MILLER-IDRISS

Cynthia Miller-Idriss is an award-winning author and scholar of extremism and youth radicalization. She is the founding director and chief vision officer in the Polarization & Extremism Research & Innovation Lab (PERIL) at American University in Washington, D.C, where she is also a Professor in the Schools of Public Affairs and Education. Dr. Miller-Idriss is a 2025 Andrew Carnegie Fellow and a member of the College of Fellows at the University of Tübingen. She is a Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation Entrepreneur and was the inaugural Creative Lead for the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation’s Residency Programme on Social Cohesion in Berlin. She serves on the international advisory board of the Center for Research on Extremism (C-REX) in Oslo, Norway and on the U.S. board of Diverting Hate. She regularly testifies before the U.S. Congress and briefs national and international intelligence, security, education, and other agencies on trends in domestic violent extremism and strategies for prevention and disengagement.A globally-recognized expert on youth extremism and preventative interventions, Dr. Miller-Idriss is the author, co-author, or co-editor of seven books, including Man Up: The New Misogyny and the Rise of Violent Extremism (2025) and Hate in the Homeland: The New Global Far Right (2022), both from Princeton University Press. In addition to her academic work, Dr. Miller-Idriss writes frequently on extremism, youth radicalization, democratic resilience, and education for mainstream audiences. She is an opinion columnist at MS Now, and her essays have been published widely, including in The Atlantic, Foreign Affairs, The Washington Post, The New York Times, Politico, CNN, The Guardian, The Boston Globe, Le Monde, The Hill, USA Today, and more. She appears regularly as an expert source and political commentator, with regular media appearances on CNN, PBS News Hour, NPR’s All Things Considered, MSNBC, and other appearances on CBS Mornings, NBC\'s The Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, and global media in over a dozen countries. Dr. Miller-Idriss is committed to sharing research findings publicly, and writes and speaks regularly to mainstream audiences globally. She often serves as an advisor or consultant for organizations, foundations, or legal teams in need of expertise on radicalization, youth, and violent extremism.For speaking enquiries, please contact Molly Grote at PUP Speaks (M••••••••@press.princeton.edu). For questions about PERIL, email p••••@american.edu or visit See for more.