“A tyranny of technology”: The logic of Instagram in forming the photojournalistic professional persona through performed authenticity

Authenticity in photojournalism as documentary evidence differs from Instagram-created authenticity as “sincere” self-presentation that equates self-branding with self-expression. Self-branding tactics can consolidate or compromise authenticity standards in photojournalism rooted in factuality, reality, and truth value. Yet, the rise of self-branding through performed authenticity by and of photojournalists on Instagram has not attracted scholarly interest. In this study, I undertake an automedial close reading of the persona performances of two established photojournalists. I probe (1) how Ed Kashi and Sebastian Rich engage with Instagram logic’s capitalist and commercial imperatives to construct an Instagram-mediated work persona through performed authenticity and (2) how they articulate the impression of authenticity in their Instagram portfolios. Kashi and Rich’s persona work does not necessarily conflict with the traditional identity roles, norms, and practices of photojournalism when they claim, pose, and promote authenticity as professional photojournalists on Instagram. The reading indicates that Kashi and Rich capitalise on their existing reputations to create an authentic, notable, and sometimes intimate image of their digital work-life-selves. They perform authenticity in ways that seem authentic yet are managed “safe enough” for the authenticity myth of photojournalism and the photojournalists themselves.