In this valuable work, Ayish delivers the improbable - a rich analytical volume driven by primary research on the visible-yet-elusive community of popular online content generators - from Gazan journalist Moataz Azaiza and Lebanese chef Abir El-Saghir to the Saudi creative behind animated girl Kadosha and the first Miss UAE Mahra Lutfi. Published fifteen years after the spark of the Arab uprisings, this seminal study is a substantial examination of how the subsequent generation of Arab youth forge identities online and utilize their accounts and platforms to negotiate their roles as catalysts for social and political empowerment in their respective communities and milieus.

Adel Iskandar, Associate Professor and Director of Centre for Comparative Muslim Studies (CCMS), Simon Fraser University, Canada

This is a timely, rigorous study of Arab youth in the digital age, drawing on a mixed-methods approach and bringing a leading scholar's command of Arab media studies to reflect on the key question of how young Arabs fashion identity, belonging, and agency within globalized digital platforms. The author rejects simplistic binaries, arguing that Arab content creators are neither passive subjects of algorithmic power nor mere imitators of Western trends. Instead, Ayish highlights how Arab youth reimagine their (digital) identities without severing ties to history or place, providing an important contribution to ongoing debates on Arab youth and the digital public sphere. This book will be an invaluable source for scholars, students, and policymakers who seek to understand how Arab youth are shaping the Arab world's narrative from within.

Noha Mellor, Professor of Media, University of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates