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2025/26 School of Chinese Research Student Seminar

學者變身網紅：學術型內容創作者在中國社交媒體平台上的數字實踐

Aca-influencers in China: Constructing Influencer Personae of Chinese Intellectuals on Social Media

Abstract:

本報告聚焦中國蓬勃的網紅經濟中社交媒體平台上的學術型內容創作者 (aca-influencer)，並將其分為兩類：一、將線下文化資本延伸至線上的資深學者；二、將網絡影響力轉換為不同機遇形式的學界新人。他們的數字實踐反映出中國網紅經濟、數字勞動、平台治理，以及文化資本之間縱橫交錯的關係。採用民族誌方法結合半結構訪談，向二十位不同領域的網紅（包括六位學術博主）採集資料，他們活躍於小紅書、嗶哩嗶哩、抖音、微博等中國主流社交媒體平台，且全網粉絲量均在五萬以上，並運用紮根理論、主題分析和多案例研究，以詮釋數據。結果表明，驅動用戶成為博主的動機中，推力（push）與拉力（pull）並存，包括熱情、娛樂興趣、自我表達、身份優勢、市場潛力、生存需求等九個核心動機。此外，網紅學者的人設建構是動態的、持續變化的過程：媒介平台作為促進學者文化資本轉型的積極中介，不同類型的學者在人設塑造、帳號運營、平台互動中表現出截然不同的策略。

In the context of Chinese platformization and a rapidly growing wanghong economy, this talk focuses on the “academic-turned social media influencers” (aca-influencers), a subgroup of social media influencers (SMIs). This study examines the factors that drive users to become SMIs, how they strategically co-construct their intellectual personas, and how cultural capital influences their digital practices. Using a mixed-method design, this research conducts ethnographic observation and semi-structured interviews with twenty SMIs (including six aca-influencers). Data are analyzed through grounded theory, thematic analysis, and a multi-case study framework. The findings indicate that a combination of pull and push factors drives these SMIs, encompassing both intrinsic motivations (such as passion, self-expression, and market opportunity) and extrinsic pressures (survival needs and an unstable environment). SMIs face challenges in China’s platform ecosystem, where algorithmic “black box” creates a “flexible prison,” and Multi-Channel Networks act as ambivalent intermediaries that both facilitate and exploit them. The study further conceptualizes “aca-influencers” as a distinct category and classifies them into two: (1) established scholars, who extend their offline cultural capital to digital platforms; (2) early-career scholars, who convert their online visibility to different forms of career opportunities and economic capital. Overall, digital platforms are not neutral spaces; although they reconfigure intellectual authority, they also reinforce the traditional hierarchy.