Skenekudos

Skenekudos is a term that has emerged in online discourse as a neologism to describe a form of public praise or acknowledgment surrounding a performance, action, or appearance. The coinage is not widely standardized, and its precise meaning varies by community.

Most commonly, skenekudos refers to praise that is perceived as performative: comments, likes, or endorsements intended not solely to reward merit but to signal alignment with a group, trend, or persona. In this sense it intersects with concepts such as social signaling and virtue signaling, though proponents may distinguish it by its association with a specific event or scene.

Contexts range from entertainment and arts criticism to political or social-media discussions. In online videos or live streams, viewers may issue skenekudos by rapidly posting positive remarks immediately after a performance, sometimes regardless of actual quality. In other settings, participants may give skenekudos to promote creators, movements, or individuals in order to magnify perceived legitimacy.

Scholarly discussion is limited; observers view skenekudos as a phenomenon of online culture that can influence perceived merit and feedback loops, potentially dampening frank critique. Because there is no fixed definition, the term can be used loosely to describe a spectrum from genuine appreciation to strategic praise.

See also: social capital, performativity, virtue signaling, online discourse.