Charles Ladia is an assistant professor of speech communication and rhetoric at the Department of Speech Communication and Theatre Arts, University of the Philippines Diliman, where he earned his BA (Speech Communication) degree. He obtained his Master of Public Management from the UP Open University (2018) and is currently pursuing PhD in Political Science at UP Diliman. His research interests and advocacy include public addresses, political rhetoric, civic education and engagement, and youth and gender movements in the Philippines and Southeast Asia. He has presented his research at various local and international conferences and has represented the country in different youth exchange programs and research fellowships.

Dr Bertha Chin taught classes in media theory, advertising, and digital culture at various higher institutions in the UK before returning to Kuching. She obtained her PhD in Media and Cultural Studies from Cardiff University. She has published extensively in the fields of fan studies, celebrity studies, crowdfunding, and social media. She is a board member of the UK-based Fan Studies Network and, in 2017, set up an Australian and Asian chapter of the network for fan studies scholars based in Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. She is one of the few Asian scholars on the editorial board of the prestigious International Journal of Cultural Studies and Celebrity Studies, as well as the Journal of Fandom Studies and Transformative Works and Cultures. Bertha is also a member of the Asian Media and Cultural Studies Research Network. She consulted for various independent films, web series, and gaming projects on social media and audience engagement, one of which was developed into a series for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation while she was in the UK.

Kai Franco is a marketing and social media specialist in Sydney, Australia. She works for a local spirits distillery while pursuing a full-time Media and Communications master’s degree at Macquarie University.