Vernacular performance, indexical shift, and algorithmic self: A precariat’s rise to fame on Douyin

This paper explores the strategic manipulation of indexicality for fame-making in algorithmic media. It presents a case study of a precariat’s rise to fame, focusing on how he turned the tide to officially become a ‘superstar’ on the Chinese video-sharing app Douyin as viewers shamed him for his allegedly unintelligible language. Drawing upon the sociolinguistic notions of indexicality, enregisterment, stance, and the concepts of platformisation and algorithmic self in media studies, we show that the shift from shame to fame was enabled by his algorithmic awareness, metapragmatic reflexivity, and strategic contextualisation of linguistic persona. Also, these self-presentation strategies are deeply embedded in the political economy of new media, especially nationalism underlying Douyin’s ‘New Farmer Initiative’. By locating fame at the nexus of language, technology, and political economy, this paper reveals the close links between media algorithms and state ideologies and has implications for understanding enregisterment and self-presentation in algorithmic media.