Gofrag.ru – A Comprehensive Examination of a Russian‑Language Platform for Fragmented Media Distribution and Community Interaction
Gofrag.ru, Runet, short‑form media, user‑generated content, digital culture, content moderation, algorithmic recommendation. 1. Introduction The past decade has witnessed a proliferation of platforms dedicated to short‑form visual content, ranging from global services such as TikTok and Instagram Reels to region‑specific sites like VK Shorts and Yandex Video. In the Russian‑speaking digital ecosystem, Gofrag.ru (hereafter Gofrag ) emerged in late 2022 as a niche aggregator of “fragments”—brief, looping visual units typically lasting 1–5 seconds. Despite its modest size (≈ 3.2 million registered accounts by mid‑2024), Gofrag has become a focal point for meme creators, animation hobbyists, and sub‑cultural communities. gofrag ru
¹Department of Media Studies, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia ²Institute of Information Systems, Saint‑Petersburg Polytechnic University, Saint‑Petersburg, Russia ³Center for Digital Culture, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia Gofrag