PORTFOLIO 1
Celebrity in the Digital Sphere
Introduction
Nowadays, the celebrities play an important role in the society and celebrities were developed by the stakeholders who had the capacity to influence the media. However, the power of those stakeholders has deteriorated over the past decade (Krieken, 2012). The academic inquiry into the notion of celebrity culture exhibits a variety of predispositions especially as involves the personality of individuals. Intimately, the influence of celebrity epitomizes the recent changes in attitudes, communication models, media, and content (Turner, 2013). This essay will review understanding celebrity and the promotion and presentation of the self , the relationship between the celebrity and social media will also be explained.
Summary of readings
The study of celebrity personalities in the film and entertainment industry is a subject of increasing interest nowadays. The shift in affluence, increase in the number of celebrities, ethnicity studies and gender are all components of the upsurge in celebrity studies. Imperatively, celebrity and stardom are different concepts as used in the film and entertainment industries respectively (Redmond & Holmes, 2007). The main argument presented by the author is that social media has transformed the fashion and celebrity industry to what the society communicates. The readings explore the manner in which social media influences the discourse of self and compares it to the various model that was utilized for the purpose of developing celebrities in the past. The social media has beaten the television by becoming the leading platform upon which celebrities are developed currently.
Critical thinking
Goffman’s assertions are concurrent with social interactions that align the personality of individuals depending on the roles they play in life(1959). Moreover, Goffman alludes that individuals are capable of identifying their roles and identity which is significant to personality, identity and celebrity status due to social interaction. He points outs that the constructs of performance, appearance, manner, setting, and the stage are indispensable to the study of personality and celebrity studies (Inglis, 2010). Notably, social media has completely transformed communication and advertising in this case. The celebrities are highly visible through the media, and their private life will attract greater public interest than their professional life. Ubiquitously, notable celebrities have used social media communication methods to increase their fan base, while actively updating their fans on personal progress, events, and shows. Currently, social media plays a critical role regarding facilitating self-discourse. In consequence, it has progressively developed into the platform upon which celebrities are made.
At the same time, ease of access has facilitated the dominance of social media, which means that the society can access social media through a broad range of portable devices such as laptops, phones, and tablets amongst others. Therefore, the information conveyed by an individual about themselves can be transmitted across the global in a matter of seconds and feedback will be issued on a real time basis. Thus, social media plays a crucial role regarding facilitating the development of celebrities in the contemporary world. Consequently, research in the media environment is cognizant to the ability to comprehend the salient nature the media and celebrity status. In effect, individuals are more concerned with the attitude people confer of them through social media platforms rather than communicating their real personalities through their actions and communication. In fact, celebrities are turning away from television and film to posting videos online; status reports on Facebook, pictures, and videos on Instagram, and tweets and links on Twitter(Marshall, 2010).
Case study
The celebrities often use social media to post some photos or words to create a positive image in order to have a communication with their fans and to attract potential fans. The celebrities have both positive and negative influences on the public, one suitable example of my idol, Yifeng Lee who is the super star in China can explain this opinion. He always post some handsome selfie or positive words on the social media, so his has more than 30,000,000 followers, each news about him is preaching up him. However, on the 27th, May, the news media reported that Yifeng Lee drove a Lamborghini and crashed into the pier, which resulted an accident at 3 a.m. In this accident, he drove the car without a license plate and he left the site without the permission of the place, which means that he was violation of the Chinese traffic law. The online users and his fans had a heated discussion about this accident when the news reported, a lot of online users thought his behavior had negative influence on the public and made comments to insult him. Finally, the police made a fair punishment on him and he did an apology statement to the public on the social media. If the accident is happened to a common person, the news may be reported but it will not have a high degree of concern. Thus, it can be seen that celebrities should do everything carefully because they are almost transparent to the public and their positive behaviour can encourage people while negative behaviour may have detrimental influence on the public.
Conclusion
In conclusion, sociology plays an integral role in identifying the behaviour of celebrities and the perception of the public towards celebrities, it is important to consider the personality and distinct psychological constructs of the individual. Notwithstanding, the notion of stardom and celebrity status has been in existence. However, the salient changes in the presentation, personality, status, and, ambivalence of celebrities changes every day. Moreover, the cultural, political, and social aspects of celebrity also offer intangible influence on the future of celebrity studies to the public discourse, which means that celebrities are increasingly more influential in the society.
References
Inglis, F., 2010. A Short History of Celebrity. 1st ed. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Krieken, R., 2012. Celebrity Society. Illustrated ed. London: Routledge.
Marshall, D., 2010. The promotion and presentation of the self: celebrity as a marker of presentational media. Celebrity Studies, 1(1), pp. 36-48.
Redmond, S. & Holmes, S., 2007. Stardom and Celebrity: A Reader. 3rd ed. New York: SAGE.
Turner, G., 2013. Understanding Celebrity. 4th ed. New York: s.
