Bingyi Wang

A close community

I love how interdisciplinary, fun, and friendly people are here, like a bunch of different weeds that have grown together by accident. Sometimes when there is no module, colleagues organise our own meetings, share theoretical approaches, or just have a ‘don't cry alone session’. 

Supportive lecturers

I like the fact that our programme has a lot of freedom for research, but the staff are still very supportive, especially my supervisors, who are very attentive and responsible for the progress of my research.

Studying in London

Studying at Goldsmiths has ensured that I have a free and organic lifestyle in London, but it has also been like an anchor that has held me in one place, allowing me to challenge myself to see just how much I can actually do in a field that I love.

I love living in London, usually I work in various quiet and lovely cafes or Senate House in central, which is the University of London's shared library.

Researching female influencers

I'm currently researching female influencers, anti-productivist cultural production and e-commerce on social media with an emic-etic approach.

As an influencer myself, I use digital/auto-ethnography and data analysis to see how influencers on RedNote produce culture challenging the productivist ideology in contemporary China, how do they articulate female subjectivity, and how the process is mediated by platform infrastructures, algorithmic visibility and monetisation imperatives of stakeholders. 

My research offers a critical intervention into platform studies and feminist media theory by situating female influencers as both agents and artefacts of a rapidly transforming digital economy, which negotiates individual values and lifestyles in society.