Keywords = Mass Media
sociology

Instagram as a complementary technology to Neoliberalism

Volume 25, Issue 2, Winter 2025, Pages 35-64

https://doi.org/10.22034/jsi.2025.2034705.1731

Farshad Goudarzi

Abstract This article explores the social network Instagram as a part of neoliberal power technologies. Accordingly, five different readings of Instagram as a part of the neoliberal organization have been presented. The method of this article is documentary and the study of scientific texts related to the research topic. The findings of this article are based on the views of theorists such as Nick Sernichek, Janis Varoufakis, Byung chul Han, Zygmunt Baumann, Jean Baudrillard,  and etc. The story of five readings: "Instagram as a space for the accumulation of virtual capital", "Instagram as a virtual tool", "Instagram: the crisis of freedom and transparency", "Instagram: celebrity and self-branding", and "Instagram is a manifestation of the postmodern state and the fluidity of life". Also, the results of this article show that Instagram, as an ideological space, seeks to promote neoliberal values and has a structural position in the cultural and economic arena in neoliberal organizations.