Hormuz: A Psychedelic Ride through a Geological Wonder
Originally published in Kinfolk Islands in September 2022, pgs. 74-85. The Strait of Hormuz gets a bad rap. Sandwiched between Iran, Oman and the United Arab Emirates in the Persian Gulf, this
Muscat: Where the Arab World Meets the Indian Ocean
Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on August 27, 2019. All photos by author Alex Shams. In Muscat’s souq, Arabic, Baluchi, Urdu, Hindi, and Malayalam mix freely, alongside a variety
Learning the Language of Jesus Christ
Originally published by Roads and Kingdoms on November 2, 2015. Just a few hundred feet west of the church built atop the site where the Christian faithful believe Jesus was
From City to Slope in Iran
Originally published in Kinfolk Travel in September 2021, pgs. 146-153.
Feats of Strength and Street Politics in Tehran – مواقع القوة وسياسات الشارع في طهران
Originally published in Journal Safar in September 2021 as part of Issue VI: Power. On the nights leading up to Ashura, the streets of Tehran turn a thousand shades of
Looking A Tyrant In the Eye: Iran’s Long Struggle for Freedom and Justice
Originally published in TIME magazine on March 14, 2026. Translated to Spanish and published in Nexos Mexico. I knew he was watching. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s portrait is everywhere in Iran.
Poetry fills Tehran streets as Iranians adapt Nowruz rituals to Corona restrictions
Originally published by Ajam Media Collective on March 24, 2020. This is the second article in a series about how Iranians are adjusting their lives as they enter the second
Becoming Iranian-American
I took Yara Elmjouie on a tour of Tehrangeles’ less well-known spots for an AJ+ documentary about Iranian-Americans entitled “Becoming Iranian-American“. There’s the Garment District downtown, It’s All Good House
The Ghosts of Christmas Past
The city of Bethlehem wants the world to know it’s more than a Biblical theme park.
Inside Mexico’s deep and unexpected legacy of Iranians
The Iranian presence in Mexico dates back centuries, but became even more pronounced when the Shah of Iran sought refuge there after he was overthrown in 1979. Originally published on
Alex Shams is a writer, journalist, and anthropologist with a PhD from the University of Chicago. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Shams frequently writes about Iran, the Middle East, and the Iranian-American community from which he hails.
He is editor-in-chief of Ajam Media Collective, a platform focused on culture, society, and politics in West and Central Asia. He previously worked as a journalist and researcher in the Middle East, based in Iran, Lebanon, and Palestine, and has carried out research in Iraq and Pakistan as well.
He is currently writing a documentary focused on the US/Israeli wars on Iran in 2025-6 and a political thriller TV series.
He has curated several artistic residencies focused on bringing together artists and scholars from across West and South Asia, including at the 2020 Lahore Biennale, the 2025 Pakistan National College of Arts Triennial, and the Indus Conclave.
He received his master's from Harvard University and his bachelor's from the University of Southern California. His articles are archived on this site.