Brooke Erin Duffy
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- January 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780300218176
- eISBN:
- 9780300227666
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300218176.003.0006
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Media Studies
This chapter examines the way by which the fulltime social media producers articulated their work styles: they lauded the flexibility and autonomy of their pieced-together careers while drawing ...
More
This chapter examines the way by which the fulltime social media producers articulated their work styles: they lauded the flexibility and autonomy of their pieced-together careers while drawing attention to some of the less glossy features of the independent work-style. Indeed, the social media professionals detailed careers marked by a chaotic pace of work, periods of insecurity, and the demand to be ever-present to both audiences and advertisers. These individuals thus engage in aspirational labor, albeit of a different sort: they labor persistently—and at times, invisibly—to maintain their status in the midst of a “political economy of insecurity,” where neoliberal ideologies and practices shift organizational risks and responsibilities onto the individual.Less
This chapter examines the way by which the fulltime social media producers articulated their work styles: they lauded the flexibility and autonomy of their pieced-together careers while drawing attention to some of the less glossy features of the independent work-style. Indeed, the social media professionals detailed careers marked by a chaotic pace of work, periods of insecurity, and the demand to be ever-present to both audiences and advertisers. These individuals thus engage in aspirational labor, albeit of a different sort: they labor persistently—and at times, invisibly—to maintain their status in the midst of a “political economy of insecurity,” where neoliberal ideologies and practices shift organizational risks and responsibilities onto the individual.
Brooke Erin Duffy
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- January 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780300218176
- eISBN:
- 9780300227666
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300218176.003.0007
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Media Studies
This chapter reveals the extent to which social media producers must reconcile the tensions between labor and leisure, between the internal self and external publics, between authenticity and ...
More
This chapter reveals the extent to which social media producers must reconcile the tensions between labor and leisure, between the internal self and external publics, between authenticity and self-promotion, and between creativity and commerce. It is these same patterned contradictions that configure the system of aspirational labor that has been discussed throughout this book. Thus, while blogging/vlogging/Instagramming is framed in the popular imagination as individualized self-expression, social media producers instead tend to approach these activities with the commitment and purpose of full-time, paid employment. In addition to scheduling and producing textual material, staging photos, and promoting content across the vast social media landscape, these aspirational laborers worked vigilantly to build and maintain “relationships” in both online and offline contexts.Less
This chapter reveals the extent to which social media producers must reconcile the tensions between labor and leisure, between the internal self and external publics, between authenticity and self-promotion, and between creativity and commerce. It is these same patterned contradictions that configure the system of aspirational labor that has been discussed throughout this book. Thus, while blogging/vlogging/Instagramming is framed in the popular imagination as individualized self-expression, social media producers instead tend to approach these activities with the commitment and purpose of full-time, paid employment. In addition to scheduling and producing textual material, staging photos, and promoting content across the vast social media landscape, these aspirational laborers worked vigilantly to build and maintain “relationships” in both online and offline contexts.
