cultural capital and dominance in the weblog economy

elizabeth lane lawley * rochester institute of technology * association of internet researchers 2003

Mapping Bourdieu to Weblog Contexts

Field: This is the easiest to define, since "weblogs" are increasingly easier to identify based on technical criteria. Jill Walker has written a fairly broad definition of what constitutes a weblog for the upcoming Routledge Encylopedia of Narrative Theory.

Habitus: Basic patterns of activity (such as those described in Walker's definition) are a starting point, but a more detailed sociological assessment of patterns and expectations (rules) is still required to clearly define habitus.

Cultural Capital: Most clearly expressed through links, and associated "Page Rank." A growing number of tools (Technorati, Blogdex, etc) now track links in a way that makes the measurement of this form of capital possible.