To be appreciated and respected by our peers is a human need, and we put a lot of time into pursuing this goal. Popularity and influence have traditionally been difficult things to measure, but social media introduced a variety of metrics that seemed to indicate prestige – our numbers of friends, followers, views, comments and likes. These numbers could lead to opportunities and rewards in the real world. But that system can be easily manipulated, with everything from views on YouTube to followers on Instagram susceptible to fakery.
The ability of people and businesses to buy the illusion of success is a sign of a broken system, and some social media platforms are now stepping up measures to combat the problem. Beginning this week, Instagram stated that it will ban "inauthentic likes, follows and comments from accounts that use third-party apps to boost their popularity". Meanwhile, the co-founders of Twitter have been expressing regret that their platform has contributed to the numbers race. "I think showing follower counts was probably ultimately detrimental," said co-founder Ev Williams. "It really put in your face that the game was popularity."
What influencers can gain
That game is an addictive one, with a strong cyclical element. Big numbers attract attention, which inflates those numbers further, attracting yet more attention, all assisted by the algorithms that power the social media platforms. For people, an obsession with accumulating likes, follows and comments could be related to self-esteem, but there can be financial rewards, too. As businesses realised that a new breed of online "influencer" wielded considerable marketing power, those influencers began to command large sums of money for promoting products or denigrating competitors, with the sums rising in proportion to their perceived influence.
On one end of the scale, a restaurant in Milan currently offers free dishes to anyone with more than 1,000 Instagram followers who promotes the restaurant. On the other, someone with a million Twitter followers can command as much as $20,000 (Dh73,450) for a single promotional tweet. If you've got the numbers, "influencing" can be lucrative – but with real popularity very difficult to achieve, people inevitably opt for shortcuts.
“A lot of people have visible influence,” says Jonathan Gebauer from marketing consultants The Social Ms, “but that doesn’t translate into real influence, because they’ve simply bought their followers. It’s easy to impress people with big numbers, but the numbers are never correct. What you’re seeing is a representation of reality, not reality itself.”
The black market for fake followers, views and likes has grown substantially over the years, to a point where more than a billion accounts across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram are bots simulating the actions of real people by following, liking and commenting. If you have the money to spend, those bots can be harnessed to do your bidding and make you appear to be the flavour of the month, and this kind of activity has become endemic.
A recent investigation by The New York Times uncovered a firm called Devumi, which sold millions of fake followers to people and businesses. Several celebrities had their follower numbers artificially inflated by black market purchases. "It's fraud," admitted one Olympic sportsman after owning up to his purchase. "People who judge by how many likes or how many followers – it's not a healthy thing."
And yet the need to be perceived as important continues to seduce people into artificially boosting their numbers. Earlier this month, an American musician by the name of Jered Threatin achieved notoriety after managing to book a European tour for his band on the back of faked social media activity. When it became clear to him that you can’t actually fake an audience in a room, his plan began to unravel. The band’s performances to empty venues proved financially ruinous for Threatin, but the debacle was an illustration of how online numbers can, at least for a while, be an effective smokescreen.
Other issues that arise
Gebauer believes that the act of misreporting your numbers and misrepresenting your popularity leads to far more widespread problems relating to trust. “For example, if businesses are honest to potential investors about their numbers, it makes those numbers seem smaller than they actually are.
“I was told by one investor that they expect the numbers to be 20 per cent lower than they’re told in the pitch!”
In other words, everyone's at it – and this misrepresentation goes all the way to the top, with Facebook itself coming under fire for reporting statistics that are clearly at odds with reality. One study found that the firm claimed to reach more people in certain demographics and locations than actually exist. Last month a lawsuit was filed claiming that Facebook had inflated its video viewership metrics, leading businesses to spend more money on the platform in the mistaken belief that it would yield more revenue.
Few businesses can afford to throw good money after bad based on guesswork. "We spend enormous amounts of time trying to understand, analyse and explain the [different metrics] between Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, Pinterest, Pandora and YouTube," said Procter & Gamble's Mark Pritchard earlier this year in a speech calling for greater transparency. This summer, the multinational Unilever questioned the role of influencers in marketing and called for fraud to be weeded out.
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“Social media platforms are starting to realise how fundamentally soulless and empty many of their metrics are,” says digital marketing expert Marcus Sheridan. “Finally they’re being scrutinised a bit and they’re having to clean up shop. We’ve got entire businesses and brands built on vanity metrics and sandy foundations. Transparency and authenticity have to be the metrics going forward.”
But how do you measure popularity authentically, in a way that can’t be undermined or meddled with? This will be an ongoing question for social media firms to address. Even if bot activity can be stamped out, there’s the additional problem of “engagement pods”, where large groups of people agree to promote each other to give the illusion of popularity, skewing everything from political debate to musicians’ fan bases. The most effective solution would be for us to stop being impressed by large numbers, and to shed our inherent need to be perceived as popular. But these things are hard-wired into us, and will forever be a weakness that no amount of technology could ever compensate for.
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
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%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3EDiet%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%0D%3Cbr%3E7am%20-%20Protein%20shake%20with%20oats%20and%20fruits%0D%3Cbr%3E10am%20-%205-6%20egg%20whites%0D%3Cbr%3E1pm%20-%20White%20rice%20or%20chapati%20(Indian%20bread)%20with%20chicken%0D%3Cbr%3E4pm%20-%20Dry%20fruits%20%0D%3Cbr%3E7.30pm%20-%20Pre%20workout%20meal%20%E2%80%93%20grilled%20fish%20or%20chicken%20with%20veggies%20and%20fruits%0D%3Cbr%3E8.30pm%20to%20midnight%20workout%0D%3Cbr%3E12.30am%20%E2%80%93%20Protein%20shake%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20intake%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204000-4500%20calories%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESaidu%E2%80%99s%20weight%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20110%20kg%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStats%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Biceps%2019%20inches.%20Forearms%2018%20inches%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Which honey takes your fancy?
Al Ghaf Honey
The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year
Sidr Honey
The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest
Samar Honey
The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments
The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
Pox that threatens the Middle East's native species
Camelpox
Caused by a virus related to the one that causes human smallpox, camelpox typically causes fever, swelling of lymph nodes and skin lesions in camels aged over three, but the animal usually recovers after a month or so. Younger animals may develop a more acute form that causes internal lesions and diarrhoea, and is often fatal, especially when secondary infections result. It is found across the Middle East as well as in parts of Asia, Africa, Russia and India.
Falconpox
Falconpox can cause a variety of types of lesions, which can affect, for example, the eyelids, feet and the areas above and below the beak. It is a problem among captive falcons and is one of many types of avian pox or avipox diseases that together affect dozens of bird species across the world. Among the other forms are pigeonpox, turkeypox, starlingpox and canarypox. Avipox viruses are spread by mosquitoes and direct bird-to-bird contact.
Houbarapox
Houbarapox is, like falconpox, one of the many forms of avipox diseases. It exists in various forms, with a type that causes skin lesions being least likely to result in death. Other forms cause more severe lesions, including internal lesions, and are more likely to kill the bird, often because secondary infections develop. This summer the CVRL reported an outbreak of pox in houbaras after rains in spring led to an increase in mosquito numbers.
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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How it works
A $10 hand-powered LED light and battery bank
Device is operated by hand cranking it at any time during the day or night
The charge is stored inside a battery
The ratio is that for every minute you crank, it provides 10 minutes light on the brightest mode
A full hand wound charge is of 16.5minutes
This gives 1.1 hours of light on high mode or 2.5 hours of light on low mode
When more light is needed, it can be recharged by winding again
The larger version costs between $18-20 and generates more than 15 hours of light with a 45-minute charge
No limit on how many times you can charge
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
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Miguel Cotto world titles:
WBO Light Welterweight champion - 2004-06
WBA Welterweight champion – 2006-08
WBO Welterweight champion – Feb 2009-Nov 2009
WBA Light Middleweight champion – 2010-12
WBC Middleweight champion – 2014-15
WBO Light Middleweight champion – Aug 2017-Dec 2017
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
LIVING IN...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
