Investigation of the tradition of alikely in network society with a netnographic approach

In this study, it is aimed to reveal the place of the minstrel tradition in the network society by examining the representation of the minstrel tradition in the new media. With this study, how the minstrel tradition builds itself in the digital environment and its counterpart in the network society are examined. The tradition of minstrelsy still exists in the local cultural environment. The tradition of minstrelsy is also included in the digital culture environment in the form of transferring locally produced content to new media and producing original content for the digital environment. In the past, tradition has experienced various form and content changes by moving from rural to urban in parallel with the social movement. In this study, the forms of existence in the network society and the changes in its own structure were examined by representing the tradition of vaccination to digital cultural environments with a spatial change. For this reason, Youtube, Instagram and Facebook social media platforms, blogs and websites were determined as a research area within the scope of new media. In addition, digital interviews were conducted with the minstrels through various applications (Zoom and Hangout). It has been researched what the minstrelsy tradition corresponds to and how it is received in the newly formed network society, whose current volume is constantly expanding. In this way, studies have been carried out to define the effect of spatial changes in the tradition of minstrelsy and to understand it in a holistic way. In order to develop the identification process, netnography method was used in this study to examine the representation of the minstrel tradition in the network society. The advantages and disadvantages of the minstrel tradition in the latest versions of the mass communication systems were determined and the usage areas of the channels of the mass communication systems were defined from various perspectives. The tradition of minstrelsy was examined within the scope of Lasswell and Carrey communication models, and studies were carried out to reveal the characteristics of conveying the message and keeping the society together by creating a ritual. Three types of representations of the minstrel tradition in the new media have been examined. First; The representations of the old producers-masters of the tradition in the new media, secondly, the representations of the local minstrels who are subject to the tradition and their products in the new media, and thirdly, the representations of the new generation minstrels in the new media were examined. While examining the local minstrels in the context of the place and audience during the transfer of the products of the minstrel tradition, the way they exist in the new media through the social media accounts of the old minstrels and their relations with their followers on the social media platforms are tried to be revealed. In addition, the subject of the research has been discussed from different perspectives, with the subject of individuals who put forward new formations and new products that perform or disseminate within the framework of the tradition of minstrelsy in the new media. By examining both the minstrels, the new performers and their followers, the cultural structure of the minstrel tradition, which provides the communication of the society and creates a social ritual, is discussed with its different aspects. With this research, a better understanding of the tradition of minstrelsy in today's world, the transformation brought by the digital world and the function of this transformation in traditional structures have been revealed. Keywords: Tradition of minstrel, ethnography, Netnography, digital culture, network society, new media,