Communication Doctoral Candidate Nora Suren Awarded MIT Predoctoral Fellowship

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Nora Suren, a doctoral candidate in communication, has been awarded an MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (SHASS) Diversity Predoctoral Fellowship from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for the 2024-25 academic year. The fellowship provides access to MIT’s resources and facilities while Suren joins SHASS as a fellow to finish her dissertation.

Suren’s research focuses on social media cultures, influencer activism and the platformization of creative labor. Using digital ethnography and in-depth interviews, she explores issues of identity, femininity and social advocacy in digital spaces. Her work contributes to understanding the complex interplay between identity-based visibility, labor and activism on social media platforms. She will be affiliated with MIT’s Women’s and Gender Studies Program and the Comparative Media Studies/Writing Department during her tenure.

Suren’s dissertation, “Navigating Double Oppression Online: How Alternative Content Creators Maintain their Ideological Integrity under Algorithmic Bias and Turkish Authoritarianism,” offers critical insights into the experiences of what she calls “alternative creators,” such as women and LGBTQ+ influencers, who operate under conditions of political repression in Turkey. These creators champion progressive ideologies while navigating censorship, algorithmic bias and identity-based discrimination. By studying alternative creators in Turkey, Suren expands the current scholarship beyond Western contexts, providing essential perspectives on digital labor under authoritarianism and political precarities. 

“MIT has been an incredible environment for intellectual growth and exploration. The opportunity to connect with scholars across disciplines and to immerse myself in cutting-edge conversations on media, identity and technology has truly enriched my research,” Suren shares. “I’m deeply grateful for this fellowship, as it has allowed me to focus on completing my dissertation and amplify the voices of marginalized creators in my work while offering a unique transnational perspective on social media activism.”

Suren also remains closely connected to her role as a fellow at the Global Technology for Social Justice Lab (GloTech) at UMass Amherst, where she has investigated the impact of technology on marginalized communities in the Global South. 

“GloTech has been a pivotal part of my academic journey,” she says. “Even while at MIT, I continue to engage with the lab’s mission and collaborate on projects that align with my passion for technology’s role in social justice.”