Media & Communication · Digital & Social Media
A topic within Digital & Social Media, itself one of 11 topics in that field and part of Media & Communication.
Assumes you know the vocabulary.
Mythologies of Creative Work in the Social Media Age: Fun, Free, and 'Just Being Me'
Duffy & Wissinger · 2017
Argues platforms sell aspiring creators a mythology of glamorous, self-expressive work that obscures the unpaid labour and constant self-branding…
+1 more at this level
Primary sources and full treatments.
The Platformization of Cultural Production: Theorizing the Contingent Cultural Commodity
Nieborg & Poell · 2018
Argues platforms restructure cultural production around their own infrastructures and metrics, turning creative work into a contingent commodity…
3 works
Duffy & Wissinger
Argues platforms sell aspiring creators a mythology of glamorous, self-expressive work that obscures the unpaid labour and constant self-branding actually required to succeed, especially for women.
link checked 17 Sept 2026Caplan & Gillespie
Argues YouTube's opaque, tiered demonetization system turned creators from independent producers into a precarious workforce managed by rules the platform can change unilaterally and without explanation.
link checked 17 Sept 2026Nieborg & Poell
Argues platforms restructure cultural production around their own infrastructures and metrics, turning creative work into a contingent commodity whose value depends on constantly shifting platform rules.
link checked 17 Sept 2026