The presentation practices of class and identities in virtual public space: A field study on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook

This research on public sphere, publicity, class and identity as concepts directly related to social life aims to determine how self-presentation is positioned in the case of Generation Z as the newest generation participating in social life and production as a life course in post-capitalist societies where publicness is virtualized. This new form taken by the act of publicity between real and virtual public spaces has been read through the individuals belonging to Generation Z. At the same time, issues such as the structure of communication on social media channels, the political economy of these channels, how they provide a virtual existence as identity spaces, and the individuality of Generation Z were examined. For this purpose, the research was conducted with semi-structured interviews with 20 participants determined by the theoretical sampling method. As a result of the research, the problematizations regarding the concepts that constitute the theoretical foundations of the study were analyzed in the light of the data obtained; problems such as the daily life practices of Generation Z, how social media channels correspond to a place in these practices, how the members of the generation evaluate their class position, whether they perceive the generation as a social identity, their view of the public sphere and the dynamics on the basis of which they perform the act of publicity, and whether a sharp distinction can be made between class and identity. As a result of the analysis of the data obtained, the concepts of "intra-generational alienation" and "cyber-entropy" were introduced to the literature. Keywords: Generation z, Identity, Public sphere, Self-presentation, Social media