Mediating Gender in African Social Media: Representation, Commodification, and Sexuality

Through African case studies, this book explores how gender and sexuality are articulated on social media.

While the representation of gender in mainstream media has been studied for many decades, this book fills a gap by focusing on social media platforms like Facebook, X, Instagram, and Tik Tok, and examining representation, commodification, and sexuality on these platforms. The contributors hold a mirror to society and reflect on the issues in our current world of empowerment, where sexuality and gender preferences are respected, and sexual rights are protected by constitutions in progressive democracies. Through their research, Shepherd Mpofu, Kealeboga Aiseng, and the contributors strive to alter the male gaze, commercial benefits of commodification, and African culture as benefited and influenced by patriarchal societies.