Written by: Biplov Jung Khadka - 23017, Grade XII
Posted on: 27 January, 2023
Celebrities are always utilizing social media, and their admirers become acquainted with them through their usage of social media. Some celebrities nowadays share things that are a little bit too much, and celebrities often demotivate their supporters indirectly as a result of their posts. Celebrities may swiftly influence their fans via social media since it is the quickest way to communicate and convey their sentiments to the rest of the world in a matter of seconds. Some posts are not well-thought-out, and as a result, they may have a negative impact on others; yet, some posts may be quite beneficial to others and may even encourage individuals to become better people. But on the other hand, celebrities may use social media to influence their fans; they can communicate about how they feel, what they're doing, encourage their fans, and more. Fans on social media may see some posts where they are engaging in harmful behaviors (like, smoking, drinking, etc.) and which fans are likely to follow.
Celebrity news dominates our local newspapers and publications, our favorite television shows, and even our Facebook news feeds. However, in recent years, there has been a shift in how people are classified as ‘celebrities’. Above all, this shift is linked to the rise in popularity and spread of social media. The "demotic shift," powered by reality television and the internet, has converted any regular Joe into a "celebrity" who is widely discussed in the media, according to Graeme Turner (2004). As a result, a new breed of ‘digital celebrities’ has emerged, with a slew of popular “bloggers, vloggers, and ‘Instafamous’ personalities” among them (Djafarova & Rushworth, 2020, p. 2). The rise of internet micro-celebrity is a fascinating phenomena that has recently gained a lot of attention. The spike in attention originates from the realization that digital superstars' powers extend beyond social media and the online world. While social media has traditionally been marketed as ‘more egalitarian and democratic than mainstream media in the sense that all users [may] equally engage and produce content,’ this is no longer the case. After several years of operation, it is clear that certain users stand out from the crowd and, with their enormous following and number of ‘likes’, modify the egalitarian concept (van Dijck & Poell, 2013, p. 6). Because these ‘superusers’ have such a large following, their online identities are frequently utilized for purposes other than self-promotions, such as promoting a product or supporting a charity. This may be shown in the instance of the ‘Instagirls’, one of the most well-known groups of superusers.
