Mass-produced romance: BookTok society and the homogenisation of literary culture
Abstract views: 250
,
PDF downloads: 178
Abstract
This study examined how BookTok reinforces literary homogenisation through algorithm-driven virality, applying Adorno's concept of the culture industry. Analysis of survey data shows that 78% of users frequently encounter repetitive tropes, such as ‘Enemies to Lovers’ and ‘Fake Dating’, while 66% report that these patterns influence their reading choices. Additionally, over 70% of viral BookTok recommendations promote mass-market romance novels, mainly works by bestselling authors such as Colleen Hoover and Emily Henry. In contrast, books with experimental narratives or by underrepresented authors remain marginalised. BookTok's algorithm amplifies high-engagement content, creating a self-perpetuating cycle of popularity that aligns with Adorno's critique of cultural standardisation. This study highlights how BookTok prioritises commercial viability over literary diversity, narrowing reader exposure. However, this trend could be reversed by intentional interventions like influencer-led book marketing and algorithmic changes. This study highlights BookTok's significance in influencing reading habits and highlighting ways to promote literary diversity by connecting the platform's influence to more extensive discussions on digital literary consumption.
References
Adorno, T. W., & Bernstein, J. (1991). The culture industry : selected essays on mass culture. http://ci.nii.ac.jp/ncid/BA52716519
Arimbi, D. A. (2017). Women in Indonesian Popular Fiction: Romance, Beauty, and Identity Politics in Metropop Writings. In J. van der Putten, M. Arnez, E. P. Wieringa, & A. Graf (Eds.), Traditions Redirecting Contemporary Indonesian Cultural Productions (pp. 247-273). Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
Balling, G., & Martens, M. (2024). BookTok Helped us Sell it: How TikTok Disrupts publishing and fuels the #Romantasy Boom. Convergence the International Journal of Research Into New Media Technologies. https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241301271
Bimo, S., & Bhandari, A. (2023). Algorithms, aesthetics and the changing nature of cultural consumption online. AoIR Selected Papers of Internet Research. https://doi.org/10.5210/spir.v2023i0.13397
Brinkmann, S., & Kvale, S. (2018). Doing interviews. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781529716665
Çakirkaya, M., & Afşar, Ö. A. (2024). Bibliometric and content analysis of viral marketing in marketing literature. Cogent Business & Management, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2024.2364847
Circana. (2022, August 11). Romance is the leading growth category for U.S. print books this year, NPD says. Retrieved from https://www.circana.com/intelligence/press-releases/2022/romance-is-the-leading-growth-category-for-us-print-books-this-year-npd-says/
Clark, M. (2023). Viral influence: How BookTok reshaped publishing. Journal of Digital Culture and Media, 15(3), 45–60. https://doi.org/10.xxxx
Crystal, A. (2018). Internet Celebrity: Understanding Fame Online. European Journal of Communication, 33(6), 696–697. https://doi.org/10.1177/0267323118814646a
Currenti, M. (2023). TikTok as a marketing tool in the hands of publishers. Logos, 34(1), 24–37. https://doi.org/10.1163/18784712-03104056
De Melo, A. (2024). The influence of BookTok on literary criticisms and diversity. Social Media + Society, 10(4). https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051241286700
Dera, J., Brouwer, S., & Welling, A. (2023). #BookTok’s appeal on ninth‐grade students: An inquiry into students’ responses on a social media revelation. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 67(2), 99–110. https://doi.org/10.1002/jaal.1303
Doyle, O. A. (2024). Algorithms and the “Anti-Preference”: A quantitative investigation of “Reaching the Wrong Audience” on TikTok. Berkeley Undergraduate Journal, 38(1). https://doi.org/10.5070/b3.39970
Franks, M. A. (2006). An-aesthetic Theory: adorno, sexuality, and memory. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2886644
Fu, Q., Fu, J., & Wang, D. (2022). Deep Learning and Data Mining for Book Recommendation: Retrospect and Expectation. International Conference on Computer Research and Development, 60–64. https://doi.org/10.1109/iccrd54409.2022.9730317
Gao, F. (2022). Adorno’s Cultural Industry Theory in the environment of Internet Development. Wireless Communications and Mobile Computing, 2022, 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/2047038
Guehring, K. (2023). From BookTok to Bookshelf: Algorithms and Book Recommendations on TikTok. [MA Thesis, The University of Bergen]. https://bora.uib.no/bora-xmlui/handle/11250/3072775
Guiñez-Cabrera, N., & Mansilla-Obando, K. (2022). Booktokers: Generating and sharing book content on TikTok. Comunicar, 30(71), 119–130. https://doi.org/10.3916/c71-2022-09
Hendytami, N., Rijal, N. K., & Prinanda, D. (2022). Homogenisasi Budaya dan Pengaruh Teknologi: Korean Wave Sebagai Budaya Global. Jurnal Noken Ilmu-Ilmu Sosial, 7(2), 205–218. https://doi.org/10.33506/jn.v7i2.1766
Horkheimer, M., Adorno, T. W., Noerr, G. S., & Jephcott, E. (2002). Dialectic of enlightenment : philosophical fragments. In Stanford University Press eBooks. https://ci.nii.ac.jp/ncid/BA59862224
Hödl, T., & Myrach, T. (2023). Content creators between platform control and user autonomy. Business & Information Systems Engineering, 65(5), 497–519. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12599-023-00808-9
Jackson, K. G. (2020). Simone Murray: The Digital Literary Sphere: Reading, writing, and selling Books in the Internet era. Publishing Research Quarterly, 36(1), 194–195. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12109-019-09709-w
James, G. E. (2023). The BookTube/BookTok Phenomenon: Analyzing reading habits of Young readers in the Digital age. https://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou166716860703574
Jerasa, S., & Boffone, T. (2021). BookTok 101: TikTok, Digital Literacies, and Out‐of‐School Reading Practices. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 65(3), 219–226. https://doi.org/10.1002/jaal.1199
Kerr, T., Ndimande, B., Van Der Putten, J., Johnson-Mardones, D. F., Arimbi, D. A., & Amalia, Y. S. (2019). Urban Studies: Border and Mobility. In Routledge eBooks. https://doi.org/10.1201/9780429507410
Kolo, C., Roth, A., & Haumer, F. (2024). Social media influencers as content creators in the creative economy. Journal of Creative Industries and Cultural Studies – JOCIS, 11(2), 52-82. https://doi.org/10.56140/JOCIS-v11-6
Lau, N., Srinakarin, K., Aalfs, H., Zhao, X., & Palermo, T. M. (2024). TikTok and teen mental health: an analysis of user-generated content and engagement. Journal of Pediatric Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/jsae039
Leontowitsch, M., Wolf, F., & Oswald, F. (2022). Digital (in)equalities and user emancipation: Examining the potential of Adorno’s maxim of Mündigkeit for critical intergenerational learning. Frontiers in Sociology, 7. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2022.983034
Li, W., Ai, P., & Ding, A. (2023). More than just numbers: How engagement metrics influence user intention to pay for online knowledge products. SAGE Open, 13(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440221148620
Luthfiah, Y. R., Assiddiqi, H., & Permanaludin, U. (2023). Ideal romance formula in the movie script of emma (2020) and persuasion (2022): comparative literature. Saksama, 2(1), 25–42. https://doi.org/10.15575/sksm.v2i1.24820
Martens, M., Balling, G., & Higgason, K. A. (2022). #BookTokMadeMeReadIt: young adult reading communities across an international, sociotechnical landscape. Information and Learning Sciences, 123(11/12), 705–722. https://doi.org/10.1108/ils-07-2022-0086
Meydan, C. H., & Akkaş, H. (2024). The role of triangulation in qualitative research. In Advances in library and information science (ALIS) book series (pp. 101–132). https://doi.org/10.4018/979-8-3693-3306-8.ch006
Shen, Y. (2021). An Analysis of Current Mass Media Phenomenon from the Perspective of Theodor W. Adorno’s Popular Music Criticism. Advances in Journalism and Communication, 09(04), 123–129. https://doi.org/10.4236/ajc.2021.94010
Shepperd, J. (2021). Theodor Adorno, Paul Lazarsfeld, and the Public Interest Mandate of Early Communications Research, 1935–1941. Communication Theory, 32(1), 142–160. https://doi.org/10.1093/ct/qtab009
Stephenson, J. (2023). Culture and sustainability. In Springer eBooks. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-25515-1
Teel, Z. A., & Lund, B. (2024). BookTok Community Building: Dissecting fangirl behavior on TikTok. Proceedings of the Association for Information Science and Technology, 61(1), 1102–1103. https://doi.org/10.1002/pra2.1198
Thums, K., Artelt, C., & Wolter, I. (2020). Reading for entertainment or information reception? Gender differences in reading preferences and their impact on text-type-specific reading competences in adult readers. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 36(2), 339–357. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-020-00486-1
Vouillamoz-Pajaro, N. (2024). Intertextualidad y literatura infantil. El diálogo entre textos en el estudio del álbum ilustrado. Ocnos Revista De Estudios Sobre Lectura, 23(2). https://doi.org/10.18239/ocnos_2024.23.2.466
Copyright (c) 2025 Jurnal Studi Komunikasi
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Jurnal Studi Komunikasi is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
The authors agree to the terms of this Copyright Notice, which will apply to this submission if and when it is published by this journal (comments to the editor can be added below).
