“I just want to enjoy what I’m reading:” Understanding postdigital agency through adults’ everyday reading lives and participation in algorithmic cultures

• In Event: Activism, Agency, & Algorithmic Cultures in and on Digital Platforms

Abstract

This paper explores postdigital agency in algorithmic cultures through case studies of three young adults' participation in TikTok-based BookTok. Examining how users navigate platform logics and balance consumption and production, the study investigates how participation in algorithmic cultures shape reading lives and agency. Findings highlight how users, at varying engagement levels, resist affective capitalism, reclaim agency, and negotiate between personal enjoyment and platform-driven pressures, contributing to evolving critical digital literacies in the algorithmic age.

Authors

• Christian Ehret, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

• Bronwen Low, McGill University

• Anita Hagh, McGill University