The Influencer Ethnography Research Lab (IERLab). Investigating influencers & socio-cultural issues in the Asia Pacific & around the world. Housed at Curtin University.
We’re launching into 2026 with a brand new season of the IERLab Podcast! All episodes from Season 3 are now available across our Spotify, YouTube and our website ✨
Across 12 episodes, we’ll be exploring the phenomenon of child Influencers across APAC, gaining insights from our researcher guests focused on different demographics and specific country contexts.
Find out more about the IERLab Podcast & access all seasons here:
ierlab.com/ierlab-podcast
We’re pleased to share a new Special Issue in Global Media and China is out now! Guest edited by Prof Crystal Abidin, “The Future of Wanghong” features six articles from authors whose foci cover the cultures and economies of wanghong.
Find more information and links to all articles in this Special Issue here:
https://ierlab.com/gmac2025/
Publishing in October (pre-orders open!): “Child Influencers: How Children Become Entangled with Social Media Fame” by IERLab Founding Director Prof Crystal Abidin.
For more information on this book & to pre-order a copy, visit:
https://www.wiley.com/en-ie/Child+Influencers%3A+How+Children+Become+Entangled+with+Social+Media+Fame-p-9781509568031
New publication in M/C Journal: “The Platformed Discourse of ‘Fans’ in the Chinese Creator Market“ by Prof Crystal Abiding & Dr Jia Guo.
Developed from IERLab report, “Platformed Creator Discourse in Chinese Markets” (2023), this article takes the platformed discourse of “fans” in the Chinese creator market as its focus to reveal that major platforms view fans as “resources” which wanghong leverage to achieve monetisation.
Find the open access article here:
https://doi.org/10.5204/mcj.3162
IERLab Alum Dr Chen Guo has just released her book, Digital Media and the Daily Lives of China’s Senior Citizens (2025, Routledge)
Open access now available here: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003616733
IERLab is pleased to share our latest report, ‘The Role of Influencers in Misinformation and Sexualised Content in the Asia Pacific Region’, by Prof Crystal Abidin, Dr Jin Lee, Dr Jia Guo, Yuka Takao, Soomin Hong, Darcy Morgan, and N. L. Hong-Phuc.
This report was commissioned by Google Trust & Safety and provides an understanding of how Influencers can inadvertently amplify misinformation and set norms around sharing sexual content online in the APAC region.
We’re pleased to share a new Special Issue in Social Media + Society is out now! Guest edited by Prof Crystal Abidin, “Child Influencers in the Asia Pacific Region” features scholarship on various iterations of child Influencers across creator types, genres, and platforms.
Find more information and links to all articles in this Special Issue here:
https://ierlab.com/sms2025/
IERLab recently welcomed Dr Zhen Ye to join us for a Read & Greet session to explore her paper “Multichannel networks in China’s livestreaming industry: Failing industrial lore and limited intermediary roles amidst platformization” (2025).
IERLab Research Student Janey Umback has written a blogpost recapping this Read & Greet session here: https://ierlab.com/2025/07/10/recap-read-greet-research-in-motion-mess-mistakes-and-the-making-of-an-article/
We are excited to announce a new PhD opportunity to commence with us in 2026 at Curtin Universityi!
EOI deadline: 18 Aug 25 (please get in touch sooner rather than later if interested!)
Enquiries: via Dr Hao Zheng’s Curtin email only.
More info & how to apply: https://research.curtin.edu.au/higher-degree-by-research/higher-degree-by-research-project-opportunities/
(Search the project title: ‘Queer Influencer Cultures in East Asia’)
Recordings from the Virtual Influencers in the Asia Pacific symposium are now live!
This event explored the impact, iterations, and industries of virtual influencers in the Asia Pacific region.
Find more information about this event and watch all recordings here:
https://ierlab.com/virtual-influencers/
