Prelims

Half Title Page

Social Media Influencing in The City of Likes

Title Page

Social Media Influencing in The City of Likes

Dubai and the Postdigital Condition

By

Zoe Hurley

Zayed University, UAE

United Kingdom – North America – Japan – India – Malaysia – China

Copyright Page

Emerald Publishing Limited

Howard House, Wagon Lane, Bingley BD16 1WA, UK

First edition 2023

Copyright © 2023 Zoe Hurley.

Published under exclusive licence by Emerald Publishing Limited.

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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-1-80262-756-5 (Print)

ISBN: 978-1-80262-755-8 (Online)

ISBN: 978-1-80262-757-2 (Epub)

Dedication

To my children Max, Eliot and Ruby and their father, Peter Flynn

List of Figures and Tables

About the Author

Zoe Hurley is an Assistant Professor at Zayed University, Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Originally from London, she has taught in Malaysia, Kuwait and Brunei and is currently located in the United Arab Emirates. Her work focuses on social media in relation to power, gender, visuality and the postdigital condition. She has published articles in leading academic journals, including Feminist Media Studies; New Media + Society; Social Media & Society; Visual Communication; Information, Communication & Society and Postdigital Science and Education.

Acknowledgements

This monograph builds on my conversations with several influential people. Professional insights come from long talks with social media influencers and marketeers, including Alex Maloof, Maria Khoriaty, Elizabeth Kalarickal and Bader Ali Habib. The book's photographs were taken by my talented colleague Richard Cawood. Michael Bowles was an astute reader of the monograph. Thank you to Petar Jandrić, Chief Editor of Postdigital Science and Education, who has been an important mentor in the field of postdigital theory. I appreciate the support of my family who have lived in Dubai, including Ursula Walsh, Jonathan, Razz, Daniel and Alya Hurley, as well as my own children Max, Eliot and Ruby and their father Peter Flynn who are still there with me. I am thankful to my friends who visited me in the emirate, including Emily Harper, Bethu and Peter Thompson, Eleanor Field, Caitriona O'Mahony, Tasha Eve, Matt Haikin, and Nathalie Coppin. Huge shoutout to Katy Mathers, the commissioning editor at Emerald Points and the publishing team who have been so supportive throughout the process. Finally, thank you to Dubai itself: the intriguing cityscape that keeps on changing and refuses to be captured within a single frame.