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Post #48 - Applying Henry Jenkins' Theory to Instagram


Henry Jenkins' is responsible for introducing the Convergence and Participatory cultural theory. This theory explains that media spreads across platforms due to the active participation of fans. Audiences do this through comment sections, repost ability, and access to sharing the content. Social media platforms like Instagram offer all of these features, making it a great platform to advertise on. Including interactive features on promotional material, audiences can become involved and encouraged to be active participants of the content and other forms of promotion done by the producer. Rather than all promotion being done by the company, audiences are enabled to spread the content and create things such as fandoms. 
I have thoroughly considered this ideology and have heavily implemented it into my process. To do this, I have been promoting my content on Instagram due to its vast opportunities to apply this theory. Hashtags are a major convention on Instagram and are also a great way to create active audiences. This is because they often include command words like "watch out", or "stay tuned." These words encourage audiences to take action and spread the word across other platforms. This may result in a large amount of fans coming together to share the content or simply leave a comment on the post to start conversations amongst one another. 


Speaking of leaving comments, fan engagement is a huge factor of creating active participants. When fans leave comments, they often spark conversation and lead to the sharing of several people's opinions regarding the content. This aids in spreading the product and reaching more viewers, increasing the chances of recognition and success. This also leads to the creation of fandoms. Fandoms are groups of people who discuss and share an interest in the same piece of media. Fandoms often share opinions on content publicly allowing that content to reach more people. My comment sections on posts include comments made by the interviewee, Alexis Grantham, and fellow small production company, Bakerybrothers. Alexis expressed excitement of her feature on the post, which has the potential to spark further excitement in other consumers. The comment made by Bakerybrothers also expresses excitement whilst constructing credibility for my company. This is due to the synergy done by Bakrybrothers and I which brought fans of her products to me. By commenting on my post, other creators and consumers may see it and develop a sense of trust in me and my company. With that being considered, comment sections are a remarkable way to create active participants which is supported by Henry Jenkins' participatory theory. 

Another way I have applied this theory to my Instagram posts is by establishing a sense of community within my posts. I have done this through constant presence of the colors red and gold which represent the community of Hudson High School. This allows consumers to understand that they share a common interest with other viewers, which may be that they are part of the same community. This encourages them to share opinions with one another and introduce other fans and continue to create a large fan base where my content is spread across platforms. 



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