Post by Stephanie Rokusek on Aug 6, 2014 1:32:46 GMT
When I first started this class, I had no idea what to expect when the topic was about Celebrity and Fame. I didn’t know if we would just be picking out different celebrities and how they got to be where they are now, or how it was going to work. We covered so many more things, that I had never even thought about. Now when I see different shows and celebrities on the TV, I have a greater curiosity then I did before.
The first big topic I took away from this class was considering how social media works with people who tend to be shy or have a lower self-esteem. The questions asked were, does it give these people an opportunity to build networks with other people that they wouldn’t normally get? Or, has it just been another type of media, and it doesn’t really affect them at all? In the article we read by Ellison, it stated, “these tools may enable connections and interactions that would not otherwise occur” (2007). The article makes it seem like having Facebook and other types of social media, makes it easier and more beneficial for people who tend to have a lower self-esteem. Majority of the class did in fact agree with the article as well. The typical statements being made are that shy people can look for friends who share the same interest, in that sense it’s an equalizer. Other comments said it gives people the opportunity to make friends and become more accepted.
I did a little research on this, and from what I read, Facebook, for example, can do just as much harm to their self-esteem as it can do good. They spend a lot of time worrying about what other people might be posting about them. They might also continuously monitor their Facebook walls and delete the unwanted posts and pictures from other users. Which it does make sense, but I had just considered the positives to shy people using Facebook, not the negatives.
The next topic I took away was celebrities and tweeting. The question asked was why do celebrities tweet? Why is Twitter such a popular medium for celebrities? I think Twitter is such a great medium for celebrities for a few reasons. The first one being, they can gain support for anything on a daily basis. Second, it’s a medium that can allow them to contact with who they want to, and when they want to. Third, it gives them complete access or not so complete access to their fans. The celebrity is in complete control. This is different compared to Facebook for example. On Facebook they typically have fan pages; and an assistant or someone in that status usually runs these fan pages. Another positive to celebrities running their own Twitter is, whenever they have downtime they are typically going to reach out to their fans. That gives satisfaction to both the celebrity and the fan, in my opinion.
When I did some research on this I found that celebrities love to share the short 140 character blurbs to their fans. They like keeping their fans “in the know” about what is happening in their lives, on a day to day, or sometimes an hour-to-hour basis. It’s also a good way to help sell their merchandise, or get their fans to buy tickets to shows, concerts, etc. They are not only using it for communication, but also for marketing purposes. But it makes sense, why wouldn’t they?
However, there are some celebrities who do in fact choose not to use Twitter, and pretty popular ones at that. Just to name a few, George Clooney, Tina Fey, Jennifer Lawerence, and Mila Kunis. When George Clooney was asked by Esquire magazine why he didn’t get a Twitter he stated, “Because first of all, the worst thing you can do is make yourself more available, right? Because you’re going to be available to everybody.” Esquire also asked Mila Kunis and she said, “It frightens me. It does.” Since these popular stars aren’t getting into the social media hype, it makes me wonder if they connect with their fan base, and if they do, how?
The final topic I took away from this class was dealing with para-social interactions and children. The question that was asked was should parents limit access to TV shows and movies to limit the PSI and relational development with fictional characters?
Basically, what is happening in the modern day is TV shows and movie companies are marketing to young children. This is a brilliant idea for them, but it doesn’t work so well for the parents and guardians. This is because it doesn’t just end with the TV show or movie. This means now there is going to be merchandise all over Wal-Mart, Target, you name it with the child’s favorite fictional character plastered all over it. It could be a blanket, a towel, their favorite gummy snacks, a new doll that you can dress to be just like the character, and the list goes on and on.
And it doesn’t just stop with the kids wanting all the new things, they will most likely start acting like the character as well. They will say what the characters say, they will sing what the character sings, and so on. So does this mean parents should limit the use of the TV? In my opinion, yes parents should. In modern day, kids rely on the stimulation of the TV and electronics. They don’t want to go play outside, they just want to sit inside and watch all TV all day. If parents limited the amount of TV the children could watch, I don’t think the PSI levels would be so dominant. Which then means, the children wouldn’t be so obsessed with the latest TV show or movie.
Finally, how does the element of celebrity or fame influence, enhance, or deteriorate our current culture? The celebrities are definitely a major influence in modern culture. What they wear, eat, watch, read, do is all recorded and monitored through social media. They are always being watched, and this is because society wants to know and be like them. Society is also developing para-social relationships with these celebrities everyday. Thus influencing our society.
These three topics don’t come to close to covering everything that we discussed in this class. Although, they were what were most interesting to me. Like I said before, I had no idea how much went into “celebrity and fame” and I have definitely developed more of an interest into how it all works out!
The first big topic I took away from this class was considering how social media works with people who tend to be shy or have a lower self-esteem. The questions asked were, does it give these people an opportunity to build networks with other people that they wouldn’t normally get? Or, has it just been another type of media, and it doesn’t really affect them at all? In the article we read by Ellison, it stated, “these tools may enable connections and interactions that would not otherwise occur” (2007). The article makes it seem like having Facebook and other types of social media, makes it easier and more beneficial for people who tend to have a lower self-esteem. Majority of the class did in fact agree with the article as well. The typical statements being made are that shy people can look for friends who share the same interest, in that sense it’s an equalizer. Other comments said it gives people the opportunity to make friends and become more accepted.
I did a little research on this, and from what I read, Facebook, for example, can do just as much harm to their self-esteem as it can do good. They spend a lot of time worrying about what other people might be posting about them. They might also continuously monitor their Facebook walls and delete the unwanted posts and pictures from other users. Which it does make sense, but I had just considered the positives to shy people using Facebook, not the negatives.
The next topic I took away was celebrities and tweeting. The question asked was why do celebrities tweet? Why is Twitter such a popular medium for celebrities? I think Twitter is such a great medium for celebrities for a few reasons. The first one being, they can gain support for anything on a daily basis. Second, it’s a medium that can allow them to contact with who they want to, and when they want to. Third, it gives them complete access or not so complete access to their fans. The celebrity is in complete control. This is different compared to Facebook for example. On Facebook they typically have fan pages; and an assistant or someone in that status usually runs these fan pages. Another positive to celebrities running their own Twitter is, whenever they have downtime they are typically going to reach out to their fans. That gives satisfaction to both the celebrity and the fan, in my opinion.
When I did some research on this I found that celebrities love to share the short 140 character blurbs to their fans. They like keeping their fans “in the know” about what is happening in their lives, on a day to day, or sometimes an hour-to-hour basis. It’s also a good way to help sell their merchandise, or get their fans to buy tickets to shows, concerts, etc. They are not only using it for communication, but also for marketing purposes. But it makes sense, why wouldn’t they?
However, there are some celebrities who do in fact choose not to use Twitter, and pretty popular ones at that. Just to name a few, George Clooney, Tina Fey, Jennifer Lawerence, and Mila Kunis. When George Clooney was asked by Esquire magazine why he didn’t get a Twitter he stated, “Because first of all, the worst thing you can do is make yourself more available, right? Because you’re going to be available to everybody.” Esquire also asked Mila Kunis and she said, “It frightens me. It does.” Since these popular stars aren’t getting into the social media hype, it makes me wonder if they connect with their fan base, and if they do, how?
The final topic I took away from this class was dealing with para-social interactions and children. The question that was asked was should parents limit access to TV shows and movies to limit the PSI and relational development with fictional characters?
Basically, what is happening in the modern day is TV shows and movie companies are marketing to young children. This is a brilliant idea for them, but it doesn’t work so well for the parents and guardians. This is because it doesn’t just end with the TV show or movie. This means now there is going to be merchandise all over Wal-Mart, Target, you name it with the child’s favorite fictional character plastered all over it. It could be a blanket, a towel, their favorite gummy snacks, a new doll that you can dress to be just like the character, and the list goes on and on.
And it doesn’t just stop with the kids wanting all the new things, they will most likely start acting like the character as well. They will say what the characters say, they will sing what the character sings, and so on. So does this mean parents should limit the use of the TV? In my opinion, yes parents should. In modern day, kids rely on the stimulation of the TV and electronics. They don’t want to go play outside, they just want to sit inside and watch all TV all day. If parents limited the amount of TV the children could watch, I don’t think the PSI levels would be so dominant. Which then means, the children wouldn’t be so obsessed with the latest TV show or movie.
Finally, how does the element of celebrity or fame influence, enhance, or deteriorate our current culture? The celebrities are definitely a major influence in modern culture. What they wear, eat, watch, read, do is all recorded and monitored through social media. They are always being watched, and this is because society wants to know and be like them. Society is also developing para-social relationships with these celebrities everyday. Thus influencing our society.
These three topics don’t come to close to covering everything that we discussed in this class. Although, they were what were most interesting to me. Like I said before, I had no idea how much went into “celebrity and fame” and I have definitely developed more of an interest into how it all works out!
