Digital Intimacies
Queer Men and Smartphones in Times of Crisis
Published on 19. March 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
232 pages
978-1-350-38178-0 (ISBN)
Description
Queer men's cultures of intimacy have long been sites of fierce contestation. Indeed, debates have raged for decades over issues such as monogamy, safer sex, sexual racism and gay marriage. This open access book explores these debates, intensified by the introduction of the smartphone in 2008, whilst exploring further questions.
Through interviews with a diverse group of 43 queer men about their smartphone mediated intimacies, Digital Intimacies reveals that queer men use their smartphones, not simply to arrange intimate encounters, but more specifically to gain a sense of control over the parts of their intimate lives that make them feel most vulnerable. For instance, some use messaging apps to gain a sense of control over intimate conversations that they feel too vulnerable to have in person. Others use the 'block' function on dating apps to feel in control of the racism and transphobia they are vulnerable to on these apps.
Digital Intimacies therefore illuminates not only hitherto underexplored aspects of queer men's cultures of intimacy but crucially also brings into view previously obscured cultural dynamics, gaining insight into the historical moments in which they occur.
The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by UKRI.
Through interviews with a diverse group of 43 queer men about their smartphone mediated intimacies, Digital Intimacies reveals that queer men use their smartphones, not simply to arrange intimate encounters, but more specifically to gain a sense of control over the parts of their intimate lives that make them feel most vulnerable. For instance, some use messaging apps to gain a sense of control over intimate conversations that they feel too vulnerable to have in person. Others use the 'block' function on dating apps to feel in control of the racism and transphobia they are vulnerable to on these apps.
Digital Intimacies therefore illuminates not only hitherto underexplored aspects of queer men's cultures of intimacy but crucially also brings into view previously obscured cultural dynamics, gaining insight into the historical moments in which they occur.
The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by UKRI.
Reviews / Votes
Digital Intimacies offers a conceptually sophisticated and politically timely contribution to the digital media studies, queer theory, and cultural studies ... Compelling and necessary read. * Studies on Asia * Rather than simply cataloguing the opportunities and challenges that mobile phones present for gay men's intimacy, Digital Intimacies provides an insightful dual framework of vulnerability and control that illuminates the intricacies of digital intimacy within the context of post-neoliberal times. * Lik Sam Chan, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong * This is an important and deeply affecting book. It not only illuminates the ways in which the smartphone is changing experiences and practices of intimacy among queer men, but also locates vulnerability at the centre of a new understanding of intimate life. Situated against the devastating crises of contemporary capitalism - including Brexit, the Covid-19 pandemic and the Windrush scandal - Digital Intimacies: Queer Men and Smartphones in Times of Crisis represents nothing less than a bold and original attempt to define the contours of a post-neoliberal conjuncture. Social research at its finest. * Rosalind Gill, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK * This book represents an essential contribution to the study of queer men and their complex relationships with their smartphones, as well as to broader discussions about digitally-mediated desires and politics. It is meticulously researched and deftly blends theory with the foregrounding of lived experiences, offering profound insights into the intersections of technology, identity, and our global crisis ordinary. * Shaka McGlotten, Purchase College, State University of New York, USA *More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Target group
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 156 mm
Thickness: 13 mm
Weight
357 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-350-38178-0 (9781350381780)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Jamie Hakim is Lecturer in culture, media and creative industries, King's College, London, UK. His previous book Work That Body: Male Bodies in Digital Culture was published in 2019.
Ingrid Young is Senior Lecturer in the Centre for Biomedicine, Self and Society at the University of Edinburgh, UK.
James Cummings is Lecturer in Sociology at the University of York, UK. James is the author of The Everyday Lives of Gay Men in Hainan: Sociality, Space and Time (2022).
Ingrid Young is Senior Lecturer in the Centre for Biomedicine, Self and Society at the University of Edinburgh, UK.
James Cummings is Lecturer in Sociology at the University of York, UK. James is the author of The Everyday Lives of Gay Men in Hainan: Sociality, Space and Time (2022).
Content
i. Acknowledgements
1. Queer Men's Smartphone Mediated Intimacies in the Post-Neoliberal Conjuncture
2. Vulnerability and Control
3. Race, Racism and Digital Intimacies
4. Trans-masc Digital Intimacies
5. Safer Space and Collective Intimacies
6. Pandemic Digital Intimacies
7. Conclusion
8. Appendix 1: Methods
9. Appendix 2: Participant Demographic Information
Bibliography
Index
1. Queer Men's Smartphone Mediated Intimacies in the Post-Neoliberal Conjuncture
2. Vulnerability and Control
3. Race, Racism and Digital Intimacies
4. Trans-masc Digital Intimacies
5. Safer Space and Collective Intimacies
6. Pandemic Digital Intimacies
7. Conclusion
8. Appendix 1: Methods
9. Appendix 2: Participant Demographic Information
Bibliography
Index