Marginalized internet practices hold generative power underestimated by scholars
Evidence
It is my hope that everyone who picks up this book will acquire a valuable insight into internet celebrity culture, beyond the populist claim that these are merely frivolous, vain, or meaningless practices on the internet. Indeed, one of my key scholarly ethics is the belief in “subversive frivolity,” wherein practices or objects that are usually brushed off or discarded as marginal, inconsequential, and unproductive hold generative power that is underestimated and under-visibilized because they thrive just under the radar. — Crystal Abidin, Internet Celebrity, 57
Categorization
- DEFINE: Introduces the author’s concept of ‘subversive frivolity.’
- XREF: Resonates with the reader’s other work on attention and small gestures of care that society dismisses; relevant to the reading purpose ‘small acts of decorum toward corpses matter more than practical logic.’ — connects to: Critics of internet utopianism can overcorrect and dismiss legitimate net activism — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update: Celebrity, Publicity,…, 787; Practices dismissed as frivolous hold underestimated generative power; The early internet’s value lay precisely in sheltering niche subcultures from mainstream attention (+1 more)
Broader Connections
- Practices dismissed as frivolous hold underestimated generative power
#corroborates(0.98) - The early internet’s value lay precisely in sheltering niche subcultures from mainstream attention
#exemplifies(0.72) - Pre-Web internet fostered play and identity experimentation, not marketable self-presentation
#exemplifies(0.72) — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 493 - Critics of internet utopianism can overcorrect and dismiss legitimate net activism
#qualifies(0.70) — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 787