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Unit 1 Mind Map Introduction to Social Media Influencers & Digital…

- - - - Users views and clicks as social capital, can become a source of income for the creator once they completely turn themselves into a brand/corporation (pp. 6)
      - producing attention and creating passive labourers out of viewers, which can interest brands and lead to deals/profit
    - - Audience vs. Community
        
        audience - spoken at, focus on star
        
        community is spoken with, focus is shared among members
    - - describes interacting/seeing an online microcelebrity in real life
        
        What kind of privacy concerns and new opportunities does this interaction have for both microcelebrity and the consumer?
    - - three functions
        
        identity of internet itself
        
        identity of humans using internet
        
        identity framed by what one does on the internet
  - - - Neoliberalism
        
        A set of economic policies but it moves beyond that
        It is so deeply entrenched in our everyday lives that it has become hegemonic. By Scholars is aptly described as a dominant political rationality that serves to uphold global capitalism. It “moves to and from the management of the state to the inner workings of the subject, normatively constructing and interpellating individuals as entrepreneurial actors” (Rottenbern, 2018).
        
        Waves of Neoliberalism
        
        1st Wave (1970's - ???)
        Following an economic crisis as a set of policies, mostly in the West, interested in increasing “efficiency” through corporatization and privatization. This was done by taking away government control over industry.
        
        2nd Wave
        
        individual internalization of neoliberal traits” (11), including economic efficiency and ethical (self-responsible) citizenship.
        
        If individuals could self-govern, their freedoms would give the market and by extension allow it to flourish – will save use from economic crisis.
        
        Despite the term liberal does not mean they are left of centre. They are often interwoven with conservatism ideology.
        
        Hegemonic/Ruling through consensus
        
        The ruling class presents their interests as everyone’s interests (despite anything else
        
        Power is decentralized
        
        The interests of the ruling class become common sense
        
        Not enforced with the use of force
        
        Idological safe harbours
        
        circulates in media cultures
        
        Neoliberalism as Governing Rationality
        
        Moral imperative: citizenship is framed as a privilege to those whose contributions are deemed valuable or full of potential under capitalism (Ong, 2006).
        
        Shapes all aspects of human life: the expansion of rationality into all aspects of life (Brown, 2015).
        
        Human capital: recasts all people into human capital whose inherent value is tied to their contributions to the market (Rottenberg, 2018).
        
        Independence: Dependence is a moral failing within a society built on independence.
        
        Social Capital: social media are an important tool for accumulating social capital.
    - - a symbolic construct
    - - brands have extended to both "rely on and reflect" our "social and cultural relations"; branding becomes about culture so that marketing lands with an audience
        
        it is different from commodification (as "the literal transformation of things into commodities"); branding involves commodification, but is "broader" and again, focused on culture
        
        offers two considerations:
        
        economic exchange as organized in and by cultural meanings
        
        and the reverse, in brand culture: cultural meaning as organized by economic exchange
        
        this highlights the complex relationship of the feelings of authenticity in branding
        
        1 more item...
        
        brands engaging with the public in the name of authenticity is a tactic, "assumed" and potentially "exploited"
    - - this is still "powerful" in being the way that we construct our identities
- - - - Influencers vs Microcelebrities
        
        relatability is a form of tacit labour
        
        Tacit Labour:
        
        Relatability as a form of “tacit labour”: embodied and unseen work done with the intent of seeming natural or effortless
        
        “An expression of contrived authenticity and reflexivity (Abidin, 2016, p.1)
        
        Back Channeling
        
        influencers are unattainable with attempt to authenticity fails
        
        Commodity Activism
        
        microcelebs were accessible to everyday people; aspiriational
  - - - examines the concepts of microcelebrity and expected reciprocity in online communities
        
        acknowledges ASMR as built upon elements of the attention economy
        
        creating an "attentional debt" between creator and viewer
        
        highlights the role of platform affordances in this attentional debt and how ASMR often falls victim to demonetization thus:
        
        YouTube itself profits off bringing viewers to the platform but also...
        
        requires the community to figure out other means of supporting themselves or their favourite creators
        
        e.g. Patreon, a website where followers can make monthly donations to creators
        
        3 more items...
      - microcelebrity is something a person does, not necessarily something they are (Maddox, 2021, citing Marwick 2015)
  - - - Venture Labour
        
        A term originating from New York's Silicon Alley where individuals were expected to attend parties as a form of networking so they could form connections and advance their career. In the online space this is seen through marketing yourself on social media platforms.
      - Emotional Labour
        
        Relational Labour
        
        Communication between a celebrity and their fans that is ongoing and builds a relationship between the celebrity and fan. Performing this labour is common in the music industry as by creating relationships with their fans, musicians gain a stable audience who will financially support their labour.
        
        A sociological theory developed by Arlie Hochschild describing the labour of managing others emotions required in certain workplaces, and environments
- - - - Twitch
        
        Livestreaming platform.
        
        owned by Amazon
        
        Prodominatly gaming streamers but offers various life streamers (i.e. ASMR, Just Chatting, Music/Performing Arts, etc.)
        
        Live Streaming
        Live broadcasting of oneself over the internet in real time for an online audience
        Sneft noted how 'Camgirls' were some of (if not) the 1st livestreamers
      - Structring Logic
        (Twitch as a Space)
        
        different backgrounds or spaces help set the terms for the kinds of spatial and emotional access a stream has to offer → sets up a certain expectation for how performances of, in this ease, gender should play out.
        
        Typical / Imagined Female streamer :
        
        ASMR, Just Chatting, Music/Performing Arts, cooking, make up, camgirl, Hot Tub streaming
        
        Erotic or Hobbits work
        
        Often viewed as illegitimate (especially female gaming streamers)
        
        Heavy emphasis on intimacy
        
        Bedroom, living room, bathroom
        
        Typical / Imagined Male Streamer
        
        Gaming/E-Sports
        
        Non erotic, and far less intimate (seen as more legitimate)
        
        Serious work
        
        Seperation from intimate/domestic spaces
        
        Sometimes remove never show their faces, body, or home
        
        Office space, garage, green screen
        
        In choosing a specific location for a content house, the physical properties of the house are paramount as they allow for certain content to be made and can be used to send a message or set a mood for viewers.
        
        spaces that appear on camera, the overlapping interfaces on the screen, the community spaces that form around a streamer, as the space of Twitch as a broader platform
        
        Mis-En-Scene
        Controlling and careful crafting of everything placed in front of the camera - I.e. - set design (furniture, props, background) clothing, makeup, lighting, acting/presentation style, etc.
      - Bedroom Culture
        McRobbie and Gardner (1976)
        
        feminist research and the bedroom as a space for identity-making and resistance, particularly for young girls.
        
        research situated girls’ cultural practices within the private space of the bedroom where they were free to pursue cultural goals. (EX. – learning how to kiss, make up techniques, talking about boys, etc.) -
        Boys went outside and played and was how they informed their identity vs for girls that was happening in their bedrooms. (boys did it more in public vs. girls did it in private)
      - Livestreaming as Performance
        
        Expectation
        
        Space and Gender
        
        Very gendered in forms of labour and space
        
        Very pervasive discriminatory attitudes to women on the platform
        
        Intimacy
        
        Sense of being invited into the personal life of the streamer, including their space and personal thoughts
        Expectation is set for both male and female streamers but is not equal. Different level is also expected depending on genere/category of streaming
        Common ways of establishing intimacy:
        
        filming in domestic space
        
        revealing face or body (non sexually) on camera
        
        insights into personal thoughts and life of streamer
        
        showcasing of personal items that tie to and help form streamers identity (i.e. - action figures/stuffed animals, books, music and game collections, awards, etc.)
        
        Invitation to socialize and converse with streamer
        
        Eroticism
        
        Sexual or Erotic performance to gratify audience
        Higher expectation of this when:
        
        Streamer is female
        
        romantic/sexualized or passionate mis-en-scene such set in bedroom space, bed is visible in shot, low/romantic lighting (red, pink, purple), etc.
        
        In categories/ genres such as ASMR, Just Chatting, or CamGirl
        
        Different kinds and level of expectation set between male and female streamers and category of streams - which are also often gendered
  - - - Content Houses
        
        Hype House
        
        A content house located in Los Angeles. Created by Chase Hudson to exist as a collaborative space for TikTok stars to create content and grow their brands. The house has strict guideliens about what can and cannot happen in the house.
        
        A house, usually a mansion, shared and lived in by influencers with the purpose of using the space to create both individual and collaborative content.
- - - - Types of internet celebrity
        
        DIY Celebrity
        
        Using access to technology and online platforms, DIY celebrities skip the corporate and hierarchal barriers to celebrity and create content with the tools available to them. DIY celebrities marked the beginning of a democratization of celebrity where anyone seeking fame had a greater chance of finding it.
        
        Microcelebrity
        
        Originally coined by Theresa Senft to describe camgirls who broadcasted themselves to the internet in the early 2000s. Microcelebrities use online platform as a way to draw attention to and create a self-brand. Microcelebrities perform relational labour by interacting with their fans through platforms, creating a relationship between the consumer and the microcelebrity.
        
        Alice Marwick (2013): microcelebrity involves “the presentation of oneself as a celebrity regardless of who is paying attention” (114)
    - - Wanghong
        
        A Chinese term that translates to "red on the internet." In China, the colour red is associated with popularity and wanghong is used to describe individuals who are able to draw attention, and most importantly, make money on the internet through celebrity.
      - Tarento
        
        A Japanese term for people who are "famous for being famous" without any ties to the entertainment industry.
  - - - A term used largely in East Asian countries to describe celebrities who are manufactured with the purpose of infiltrating the popular culture. Examples can be seen in the K-Pop industry, where parent companies such as Blockberry Creative and HYBE Corporation will find talented artists and use them to form K-Pop groups. These parent companies often control the social media and public facing output of these artists to maintain their success.
    - - Celebrities created by participating in reality television shows where the personalities of ordinary people shine in dramatized and staged environments. Though starring in legacy media, viewers feel a deeper connection.
    - - An everyday person becomes famous and their private life becomes public. However, many times this everyday life is not authentic or widely considered "normal." Because of the largely unfiltered look into the lives of these celebrities, the emotions portrayed are more sincere and gripping for viewers. However, not anyone can be an ordinary celebrity, as there has to be something inherently unordinary for audiences to generate interest.
- - - - A relationship formed by consuming content by a celebrity to the point where the feeling of a personal relationship between the consumer and celebrity is created, despite the consumer not actually knowing the celebrity
- - - - Three core pillars of working Influencers
        
        Self - Branding
        
        Presenting content/work and the self as a commodity for sale online - the idea of "selling your world online" (Bishop, 2022)
        
        Authenticity
        
        Optimization
        
        "the process of measuring, engineering, altering and designing elements of digital cultural goods to make them more searchable discoverable, usable and valuable in both economic and cultural senses. (Morris, Prey, and Nieborg as cited in Bishop, 2022)
        Development of content curated to perform well (high visibility, engagement, clicks, etc.) specifically it's given social media platform SEO and algorithm (i.e. - Instagram, Tik-Tok, Twitter, etc.)
- - - - Interchangeable concepts that describe basically the same job – yet they are used by different political and economic actors to maintain power hierarches.
        
        Concepts are Gendered as well as positive and negative connotations
        
        Content Creator: Masculine & Positive connotation
        
        Hardworking
        
        Creative/Artistic
        
        Authentic/Genuine
        
        Entrepreneur
        
        Trustworthy
        
        Distinguished
        
        Motivated by their vocation as an artist
        
        High quality Content
        
        Term orginated from YouTube and adopted by multiple social media platforms. Platforms heavily invest in this term
        
        Influencer:
        feminine & negative connotation
        
        Untrustworthy
        
        Overpaid
        
        Famous for nothing
        
        Lazy
        
        Fake/inauthentic
        
        Calculated & deceptiove
        
        Motivated by commercialization
        
        Low quality (placating) content
        
        ex. Fyre Festival
        
        Platforms distance themselves and avoid using this term
    - - (Not) Getting Paid to do What You Love: Entrepreneurial Wishes and Career Dreams
        (2017)
        
        Aspirational Labour
        
        Aspirational labour as an Ethos & Practice
        
        "As both a practice and a worker ideology, aspirational labour shifts content creators' focus from the present to the future, dangling the prosect of a career where labour and leisure coexist. Indeed, aspirational laborers expect that they will one day be compensated for their productivity" (Duffy, 2017, p.4)
        I.E. - Influncers working for free now on social media in the hopes that they get noticed by a big company who hires them for a salary position
        
        “the assurance of future visibility drives aspirational labour economies and ideologies” (Duffy)
        
        Limits of Aspirational Labour
        
        Digital Idealism ignores the reality that it is very hard to break into and succsseed - the vast majority of them cannont break in or sustain influncer/content creator status
        
        Ex – studies have shown that ‘fexi-work’ or independent work has done little to disrupt gender inequality (work, compensation)
        
        historically male dominated industries such as tech or gaming where women remain underrepresented in almost every role at almost every company.
        
        "a mode of (mostly) uncompensated, independent work that is propelled by the much-venerated ideal of getting paid to do what you love (Duffy, 2017, p.4)
        
        Aspirational Labour & Gender
        
        “construction of women as especially communicative digital consumers has found a welcome home in the social media economy” (p.41).
        
        Aspirational Consumption
        
        "Status induced consumerism that routes self expression through the market place" (Duffy, p.7, 2017)
        
        Belief that you can improve your social class by buying the right things (expensive and desirable) – Idea came out of the 1800s. ‘Keeping up with the Jones’. EX) the newest iPhone when it is released
        
        Traditionally women were told to buy things for the home that would elevate social status.
        
        Women seen as consumers and their husbands as breadwinners (The myth that, men make money and women spend money)
        
        Systems of capital accumulation are complex and not necessarily just about accumulating material goods/money but instead about social standing.
        
        The Entrepreneur
        
        Considered to be the bench mark of successes in contemporary culture. (Duffy, 2017, p.2)
        
        Successful creators are held up as examples of the merits of a career in social media. While they may no longer be operating on the same kind of hope that prospective influencer is, they still uphold the ethos by preaching the importance of “doing what you love: and investing in yourself. (ethos)
        
        Long history of women online and controlling online destinations (Ex. camgirls).
        
        Digital Optimism the internet could be a liberating place for women, particularly when thinking about consumption as a form of cultural production as a way to disrupt gender inequality.
        
        "Do What You Love" Ideology
        
        The notion that your work should be akin to your passion. Very common in creative industries (such as influencers/content creators) and usually promises "idyllic professional destinations, characterized by autonomy, flexibility, and above all, the potential for self acutalization"
        However it hides the inequalities of class, ability and education while continuing to perpetuate gender disparity in media industries. - Bottom line is not everyone has access to 'Do what they love'
        
        Three Narratives of Social Media Production
        
        creativity as accidental entrepreneurship EX.) mommy blogging.
        
        Meaning uncertainty (in volatile labour market)
        3.Breaking into the creative industry
        
        Neoliberalization of the Market
        
        The Market
        
        An Alterned System of Production
        
        The Information Economy
        
        Precarious Workers
        
        precarity, insecurity and individual responsibility
        
        "the progressive movement of organizations toward flexible specialization and decentralized production" (Duffy)
        
        Successful creators are representative of an "emergent class of innovators empowered by technologies that up-end traditional hierarchies of influence and expertise” (Duffy, 2017, p.15).
        
        Independent workers, contract workers, gig workers,1099 workers, contractors etc.