| The expansion of digital technology has redefined the concept of the anchor.The emergence of the virtual anchor and the tireless emotional labour of the fans behind it suggest a new mode of communication and culture.The question of how virtual images evoke real emotions in fans,and how they differ from real idols in their perceptions,has become a concern for cultural research.Based on the theory of emotional labor by Arlie Hochschild and Thomas J.Nigro,this research adopts the methods of ethnography and in-depth interview,this paper analyzes the emotional labor mechanism of the virtual fan community,tries to understand and explain the daily media practice of the public in the digital age,and probes into the possibility of the fans resisting alienation and obtaining emotional liberation.The first chapter focuses on the modernity of emotion,describing the social motivations behind the emergence of fan emotional labour and setting the context for exploring the mechanism of fan emotional labour.The second chapter delves into the process of constructing the emotional labour of the "Jia Xin Sugar" group,finding that the group carries out emotional labour in a circle-like manner with the external support of "platform availability",and that the construction and operation of its fan organisation shows obvious "self-organisation" characteristics.Chapter 3 explores the action logic of fans’ emotional labour based on the results of the interviews,and finds that,compared to the fans of real anchors,"Jia Xin Sugar" uses virtual symbols to highlight their subcultural identity and strengthen this identity in the process of interaction with the outside world,while The final chapter analyses the new forms of capital exploitation and capital circulation behind the emotional labour of virtual anchor fans,as well as the possibility of resistance practices and disembedding of fans in the process,from a macro perspective,and ponders the "alienation" behind it.The chapter also considers the "alienation" behind this process.The virtual nature of the anchor is not nothing,but a reflection of the digital indigenous generation’s imagination and experience of cyberspace.An exploration of the emerging youth subculture helps us to understand the social mindset of the youth group,and to see the intergenerational changes in lifestyle and spirituality behind the maturation of digital technology. |
