Description
Book SynopsisInstagram is at the heart of global digital culture, having made selfies, filters and square frames an inescapable part of everyday life since it was launched in 2010.
In the first book-length examination of Instagram, Tama Leaver, Tim Highfield and Crystal Abidin trace how this quintessential mobile photography app has developed as a platform and a culture. They consider aspects such as the new visual social media aesthetics, the rise of Influencers and new visual economies, and the complex politics of the platform as well as examining how Instagram's users change their use of the platform over time and respond to evolving features. The book highlights the different ways Instagram is used by subcultural groups around the world, and how museums, restaurants and public spaces are striving to be 'Insta-worthy'. Far from just capturing milestones and moments, the authors argue that Instagram has altered the ways people communicate and share, while also creating new approaches to marketing, advertising, politics and the design of spaces and venues.
Rich with grounded examples from across the world, from birth pictures to selfies at funerals,
Instagram is essential reading for students and scholars of media and communication.
Trade Review“[It] will be [a] valuable reference [book] for students in the field of media and cultural studies. [It] may also inspire researchers and practitioners in related fields to understand how culture is created and modulated on platforms, and how culture can be studied in the platform environment.”
Media, Culture & Society
“Leaver, Highfield, and Abidin’s book tackles a timely and complex topic with precision and clarity. An essential overview of Instagram as a far-reaching, multifunctional platform, the authors deftly map out the ways in which Instagram permeates our daily lives. By providing engaging examples throughout the book, the authors give life to their arguments while leaving room for readers to consider important questions for themselves.”
International Journal of Communication
Table of ContentsAcknowledgements Introduction
Chapter One: Platform
Chapter Two: Aesthetics
Chapter Three: Ecologies
Chapter Four: Economies
Chapter Five: Cultures
Chapter Six: Lifespans
Chapter Seven: From the Instagram of Everything to the Everything of Instagram
Appendix: Instagram Timeline References Index
