a tumblr book: platform and cultures

by Allison McCracken, Alexander Cho, Louisa Stein

This book takes an extensive look at the many different types of users and cultures that comprise the popular social media platform Tumblr. Though it does not receive nearly as much attention as other social media such as Twitter or Facebook, Tumblr and its users have been hugely influential in creating and shifting popular culture, especially progressive youth culture, with the New York Times referring to 2014 as the dawning of the “age of Tumblr activism.”
 
Perfect for those unfamiliar with the platform as well as those who grew up on it, this volume contains essays and artwork that span many different fandom; platform structure and design; race, gender and sexuality, including queer and trans identities; aesthetics; disability and mental health; and social media privacy and ethics. An entire generation of young people that is now beginning to influence mass culture and politics came of age on Tumblr, and this volume is an indispensable guide to the many ways this platform works.

Genres: Nonfiction, Internet

404 pages, Hardcover

Published October 26, 2020

Reviews

[alienticia]

this one's a good introduction to tumblr's specific dynamics and communities. we can see how it was very much a product of its time (with the whole web 2.0 optimism wave) and how it shaped many of the social network discussions and drama that we see on twitter and tiktok today. i just wish we had more comments about the whole porn ban of 2018, even though almost all of the essays were collected before that. anyway! good to know that platforms are ever-changing.

[Cat]

useful refresher

[Karla Dee]

wow the Larries always fascinate me but I also found out that there is a space for users for mental health and it reminded me of ED twitter.

Shipping was another topic i didn't know was a thing. There was a Lesbian couple tons of people followed after they dated online then IRL. When they broke up tumbler users claimed they could never belle in love and such. Dedication is what a lot of these users have...strong community bonds like the Art community, or mental health.

WOW yes. the Larries always fascinate me but I also found out that there is a space for users for mental health and it reminded me of ED twitter. Yes this gives users a space to talk about their mental health but there is also a chance he conversation could be detrimental to their health and they need more than social media support.

[Raven]

3.5 stars. A very interesting dive into tumblr by researchers who are also tumblr users themselves, mostly written in accessible language and covering a wide range of tumblr communities (not just fandom)