Open-ended social media platforms let non-mainstream individuals attain popularity.

Evidence

In some online spaces, social media allow for people who fall outside the norms of mass culture to become popular, such as the quirky YouTube comedian Miranda Sings or the feminist fashion blogger Tavi Gevinson. … Compared to sites like Facebook that constrain self-­presentation within a rigid profile structure, Instagram provides users with a fairly open-­ended social media tool, suggesting that individuals could choose to represent themselves using a range of techniques. — Alice E. Marwick, Instafame, 5

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the longer debate on whether social media democratize fame or reproduce existing celebrity hierarchies. — connects to: Social-media popularity amplifies high-school popularity into mainstream celebrity — Alice E. Marwick, Instafame: Luxury Selfies in the…, 52; Social media’s design rewards visibility and self-promotion with social status. — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update: Celebrity, Publicity,…, 39; Traditional and social media differ by institutional gatekeeping versus open reciprocity — Crystal Abidin, Internet Celebrity: Understanding Fame…, 55 (+5 more)

Related

• Social-media popularity amplifies high-school popularity into mainstream celebrity (similarity 0.87)
• Everyone can attain fame before a small networked audience rather than mass fame (similarity 0.84)
• Internet celebrity now spans many distinct forms beyond intentional self-branding (similarity 0.79)
• Social media platforms reward visibility and attention as measures of social status (similarity 0.78)
• Microcelebrity status on Instagram can arise without an obvious platform or talent (similarity 0.78)
• Instafame means having a relatively large follower count on Instagram (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Social media’s design rewards visibility and self-promotion with social status. #corroborates (0.85) — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 39
• Everyone can attain fame before a small networked audience rather than mass fame #qualifies (0.85)
• Social media can build professional status without conventional business accomplishments #corroborates (0.85) — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 718
• Traditional and social media differ by institutional gatekeeping versus open reciprocity #corroborates (0.80) — Crystal Abidin, Internet Celebrity, 55
• Online mockery of outsiders can convert into mainstream fame opportunities #expands (0.80) — W. David Marx, Blank Space, 286
• Early tech-clique advantage on Twitter eroded once mainstream celebrities arrived #qualifies (0.80) — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 208
• Social-media popularity amplifies high-school popularity into mainstream celebrity #qualifies (0.75) — Alice E. Marwick, Instafame, 52
• Offline fame and celebrity, not content quality, drive most follower growth #qualifies (0.75) — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 261