The “Exchange Rate” of Celebrity Capital: Zelensky’s Political Crossover and the Dynamic Construction of Persona
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The “Exchange Rate” of Celebrity Capital: Zelensky’s Political Crossover and the Dynamic Construction of Persona

Guanming Fu 1*
1 University of Nottingham Ningbo China
*Corresponding author: hnygf1@nottingham.edu.cn
Published on 19 August 2025
Journal Cover
LNEP Vol.116
ISSN (Print): 2753-7056
ISSN (Online): 2753-7048
ISBN (Print): 978-1-80590-331-4
ISBN (Online): 978-1-80590-332-1
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Abstract

In the context of the mediatization society, the cross-field of celebrity capital has become increasingly prominent. The transformation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky from a comedian to a political leader provides a typical case for this phenomenon. This study focuses on Zelensky as the research subject and employs the case analysis method, combined with Bourdieu’s field theory and Marshall’s persona theory, to explore the conversion mechanism of celebrity capital in the political field and its influencing factors. The study finds that the “civilization president” persona constructed by Zelensky through the TV series “Servant of the people” significantly enhanced the “exchange rate” of his celebrity capital in the political field. The strategic use of persona naturalized this image and successfully transformed celebrity capital into symbolic capital. At the same time, the intervention of media meta-capital changed the evaluation standards in the political field, making persona a new source of power, and this transformation process exhibits obvious dynamic characteristics, requiring continuous adjustment of the persona as the domain boundaries change. This study not only reveals the key role of persona in capital conversion, confirms the disruptive influence of media logic on traditional domain rules, but also expands the dynamic perspective of celebrity capital research, providing new ideas for understanding image politics in contemporary political communication. At the same time, it also points out that this capital transformation may bring about domain rule alienation, which deserves further exploration.

Keywords:

Mediatization, celebrity capital, field theory, persona, Zelensky.

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Fu,G. (2025). The “Exchange Rate” of Celebrity Capital: Zelensky’s Political Crossover and the Dynamic Construction of Persona. Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media,116,38-44.

References

[1]. Driessens, O. (2013) Celebrity capital: redefining celebrity using field theory. Theor Soc 42, 543–560 (2013).Abidin, C. (2018). Internet celebrity : Understanding fame online. Emerald Publishing Limited.

[2]. Bourdieu, P. (1993). The Field of Cultural Production: Essays on Art and Literature. Cambridge: Polity Press.

[3]. Marshall, P., Moore, C., & Barbour, K. (2019). Introduction: A Short History of the Public Self. In Persona studies an introduction, 1-12.

[4]. Blumler, J. G. and Kavanagh, D. (1999). “The Third Age of Political Communication: Influences and Features.” Political Communication, 16, 209-230.

[5]. Elliott, A. & Boyd, R. (2018). Celebrity and contemporary culture: A critical analysis of some theoretical accounts. Routledge handbook of celebrity studies. Taylor & Francis Group. 3-25.

[6]. Bourdieu, P. (1989). Social space and symbolic power. Sociological Theory, 7(1), 14–25

[7]. Driessens, O. (2013) The celebritization of society and culture: Understanding the structural dynamics of celebrity culture. International Journal of Cultural Studies. 16 (6), 641 - 657.

[8]. Collins, J. (1998). Language, Subjectivity, and Social Dynamics in the Writings of Pierre Bourdieu. American Literary History, 10(4), 725–732. http: //www.jstor.org/stable/490144

[9]. Global Times (2022). https: //baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1726835354424128106

[10]. The paper. CN (2019). https: //www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_3329923

[11]. Abidin, C. (2018). Internet celebrity: Understanding fame online. Emerald Publishing Limited.

[12]. Swartz, D. L. (2013). Symbolic power, politics, and intellectuals: The political sociology of Pierre Bourdieu. Chicago: Chicago University Press.

[13]. Couldry, N. (2003). Media meta-capital: extending the range of Bourdieu’s field theory. Theory and Society, 32(5–6), 653–677.

[14]. Franssen, G. (2019). Sincerity and authenticity in celebrity culture: introduction. Celebrity Studies, 10(3), 315-319.

References

[1]. Driessens, O. (2013) Celebrity capital: redefining celebrity using field theory. Theor Soc 42, 543–560 (2013).Abidin, C. (2018). Internet celebrity : Understanding fame online. Emerald Publishing Limited.

[2]. Bourdieu, P. (1993). The Field of Cultural Production: Essays on Art and Literature. Cambridge: Polity Press.

[3]. Marshall, P., Moore, C., & Barbour, K. (2019). Introduction: A Short History of the Public Self. In Persona studies an introduction, 1-12.

[4]. Blumler, J. G. and Kavanagh, D. (1999). “The Third Age of Political Communication: Influences and Features.” Political Communication, 16, 209-230.

[5]. Elliott, A. & Boyd, R. (2018). Celebrity and contemporary culture: A critical analysis of some theoretical accounts. Routledge handbook of celebrity studies. Taylor & Francis Group. 3-25.

[6]. Bourdieu, P. (1989). Social space and symbolic power. Sociological Theory, 7(1), 14–25

[7]. Driessens, O. (2013) The celebritization of society and culture: Understanding the structural dynamics of celebrity culture. International Journal of Cultural Studies. 16 (6), 641 - 657.

[8]. Collins, J. (1998). Language, Subjectivity, and Social Dynamics in the Writings of Pierre Bourdieu. American Literary History, 10(4), 725–732. http: //www.jstor.org/stable/490144

[9]. Global Times (2022). https: //baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1726835354424128106

[10]. The paper. CN (2019). https: //www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_3329923

[11]. Abidin, C. (2018). Internet celebrity: Understanding fame online. Emerald Publishing Limited.

[12]. Swartz, D. L. (2013). Symbolic power, politics, and intellectuals: The political sociology of Pierre Bourdieu. Chicago: Chicago University Press.

[13]. Couldry, N. (2003). Media meta-capital: extending the range of Bourdieu’s field theory. Theory and Society, 32(5–6), 653–677.

[14]. Franssen, G. (2019). Sincerity and authenticity in celebrity culture: introduction. Celebrity Studies, 10(3), 315-319.

Cite this article

Fu,G. (2025). The “Exchange Rate” of Celebrity Capital: Zelensky’s Political Crossover and the Dynamic Construction of Persona. Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media,116,38-44.

Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.

About volume

Volume title: Proceeding of ICIHCS 2025 Symposium: Exploring Community Engagement: Identity, (In)equality, and Cultural Representation

ISBN: 978-1-80590-331-4(Print) / 978-1-80590-332-1(Online)
Editor: Enrique Mallen, Nafhesa Ali
Conference website: https://2025.icihcs.org/Newcastle-Upon-Tyne.html
Conference date: 29 September 2025
Series: Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media
Volume number: Vol.116
ISSN: 2753-7048(Print) / 2753-7056(Online)

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