Field insurgency in lifestyle journalism: How lifestyle journalists marginalize Instagram influencers and protect their autonomy

Abstract

While Facebook and Twitter have received significant scholarly attention for their role in shaping the journalistic field, Instagram has received sparse attention in comparison. The present study examines how lifestyle journalists ( n = 63) from Austria and the United States perceive Instagram influencers operating in relation to the journalistic field. Instagram influencers, empowered by the digital medium, would seem to be in direct competition with lifestyle journalists in terms of content. Through the theoretical lenses of boundary work and field, this study argues that lifestyle journalists—long relegated to the periphery of the journalistic field—discursively leverage the presence of influencers to protect their autonomy within the field while pushing influencers to its boundaries.

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