Impression management of South Korean sports stars through image-based social media

Abstract

This study used netnography and interviews to explore the sociocultural significance of South Korean sports stars’ impression management using social media. The study investigated Instagram, a widely used image-based social media platform. Through netnography, the study analysed Instagram content, and then it conducted interviews with stars for deeper interpretation. The results showed that the impression management strategies used are multifaceted. Some stars use social media to maintain personal connections, through which they create intimacy by sharing details from their daily lives and engaging in ‘self-expression’ to empathize with and relate to fans, which in turn helps them promote sponsored products or companies. Others intentionally create distance by uploading posts related to their economic and sociocultural capital. Sports stars also engage in ‘role model’ and ‘modesty’ strategies by presenting themselves as good examples on and off the field and uploading posts that promote their humility, appealing to South Korean social values.