January 19, 2018 - Philippines - Media practitioners and university press organizations held a Black Friday protest against the curtailment of the freedom of the press by the Duterte administration. J Gerard Seguia/Zuma Press/Press Association. All rights reserved.Georgina* is a transgender digital marketer for a boutique public relations agency in the heart of Manila's business district. A resourceful SEO specialist, 28 year-old Georgina spends her office hours driving traffic to her clients’ pages, even skilfully hiding fake ad links to lure clicks.
But Georgina’s 9-to-5 job shows only a fraction of her real value in the digital arena. Georgina is an online influencer – except, unlike the photogenic jetsetters who flood Instagram and YouTube with glossy fantasies of an aspirational lifestyle, she is carefully, completely anonymous.
Georgina maintains half a dozen Twitter and Facebook accounts with over a million organic followers in total. Each page boasts a particular brand of content, from lovesick romantic quotes to “inspiring” platitudes to viciously snarky memes. Her legions of followers are quick to like, repost, and retweet her entertaining posts.
