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Theory of the Has#tag by Andreas Bernard
Intriguing exploration of an ubiquitous symbol

IN THIS slim but weighty book on the hashtag, Andreas Bernard examines a symbol that has become so immersed in our culture that it has broken away from the computer screen into areas such as fiction, fashion and graffiti.

He charts its remarkable rise from its beginnings in the analogue world cataloguing books to the early days of the internet, where blogs and websites used social tagging to organise subjects.

Social tagging on websites and blogs and hashtags on Twitter and Instagram reflects the desire to connect a post with others designated with the same hashtag and with the organisation of statements and documents focused on a desire to trend.

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