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Class and Social Status and How It Is Portrayed in Social Media…

- - - - https://youtu.be/WyXzz6PQh-c
        
        This video does a great job of breaking down what an influencer is and the whole phenomenon behind them. Despite this, the video only highlights influencers and celebrities who are white and middle-class or higher. Kim Kardashian and Selena Gomez are included among many others. While the influencers featured are a great example of the reach and power one holds in this community, there are a select few shown.
        
        Instances with several of these top social media influencers over the past few years have caught the eye of the Federal Trade Commission.
        
        The FTC has released specific guidelines for influencers and celebrities when it comes to promoting advertisements, and have made it clear that they are keeping their eye out for anyone who is not publicly documenting these paid or gifted promotions on all social media platforms.
        
        In the past, the FTC has sent out warning letters and even taken legal action against well known companies like Lord & Taylor, as well as the video game lottery website "CSGO Lottery".
        Brown, J. (2017). How to comply with FTC social media ‘influencer’ rules. Retrieved from https://adage.com/article/digitalnext/fall-afoul-ftc-social-media-influencer-rules/311113/
      - https://youtu.be/D033geqN7_g
        
        In this video, Simon Huck, a brand broker, says that "celebrities with 40, 50, 60 to 100 million followers can have posts that range from 200 to 500 thousand to 1 million dollars for one instagram post." For the majority, this number is something to only dream of. While it is great for the brand, and great for the one who is getting paid, it promotes an unrealistic lifestyle.
- - - - Fully concealing the body, the “Soundsuits” serve as an alien second skin that obscures race, gender, and class, allowing viewers to look without bias towards the wearer’s identity.
- - - - While these platforms serve as a great way to use ones voice and promote equality, there is an overwhelming amount of the same type of people that we see. These people are often young middle and upper middle class white males and females from a metropolitan area. They have access to everything from education to luxury material goods. How they rose to their place of popularity varies, but nevertheless creates a huge discrepancy when it comes to class and social status representation. Everyone has access to Instagram or Facebook, but not everyone lives the same way as these curated lifestyles are portrayed.
        
        The concept of "The Other" ties in well with this cultural issue.
      - "When the lower class is depicted in the media, it is generally a statistic, portrayed as a result of their own life choices, or twisted to fit into the social issue frame of the media's story. When the truth is left out of the media, people in out society bear the consequence."
        Burke, K. (2014). Media portrayal of individuals in the lower class and its effects on attributions of educational hardships. Retrieved from https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=1162&context=comssp
- - - - Class representations that were relevant during the 1950’s revolved around the rise of white-collar jobs and relocation of families to the suburbs. The white suburban middle-class family was the ideal representation on sitcoms.
        
        I Love Lucy, for example.
        
        Jumping to the 1990's, we are finally starting to see a more accurate depiction of individuals and families shown on television. Sitcoms like "Roseanne" became popular and clearly highlighted a more accurate socioeconomic status for a majority of people.
        
        "This show began to highlight the fact that class could no longer be an overlooked issue. This show gave an accurate portrayal of family and financial problems a working class family faced every day."
        Skidger. (2013). Class and how it is represented on television. Retrieved from
        https://classrepresentationsitcoms.wordpress.com/2013/05/11/class-how-it-is-represented-on-televisionsocial/
        
        "The preference of the mass media is the audience that networks, cable producers, and advertisers are aiming to please. The content the majority continues to watch will be what is played and popular. Current TV is filled with pure entertainment- laughs, emotional connection, advertising exposure, and we are aware that what we are seeing is not real."
        The media today is advertisement driven, and often sells a false reality. While there is no shortage of diverse actors and actresses, we still see the same types of people portrayed in their stereotypical social statuses.
- - - - Though it may seem like the norm, for so many it is far from their train of thought. Most of these influencers target consumers from the middle class and above. While there is no shortage of diversity on social media platforms, the overwhelming majority of people highlighted in a positive light are white and educated, with access to a plethora of resources and opportunities.
        
        This curation of a lifestyle creates false narrative while simultaneously reminding those of a lower social status of what they do not have access to. Continuing the conversation about how social classes are represented and portrayed on social media is imperative, and is important to be aware of as avid consumers.
        
        I am definitely not bashing or speaking of these influencers in a negative light because more often than not, they are using the power they possess on social media for good. They share their stories of hard work, determination and where they come from. Therefore they give back and encourage those who follow them to do the same.