Youtube is one of the most popular streaming platforms on the internet. Its biggest stars have several million people who tune in each week to their videos. Many of its stars have the opportunity to use their fame to create other products. Beauty gurus create cosmetic lines, many write books, create gear with their taglines, and over all have many products that they have been able to create thanks to their internet celebrity. With the following they have amassed, it would be foolish not to use their Youtube platform to promote their products. So then why do so many of their viewers become annoyed or upset when these channels take time to promote their products during their videos? The same issue arises when channels are sponsored by companies like Audible, Loot Box, and Crunchyroll.
This topic is really great and very relatable for todays social media. I personally belive if that you have such a large platform of people to advertise, or promote something its a great opportunity, but on the opposing side people might feel they are doing this advertising for their own benefit. – jaimen8 years ago
Justified aggrievances have been raised of the sparse –or narrowly stereotyped depiction– of Asians in the entertainment media. While recently there’s been slow traction in seeing Asian faces in traditional filmic and televisual roles, Hollywood has been reluctant in portraying multi-dimensionally complex Asian characters. But with the accessibility of YouTube, content production has been much more democratized, allowing particularly Asian-American vloggers to present multi-faceted personas. YouTube allows Asian-American personalities to channel their aspirations, without the consent of the gatekeepers standing watching at the Hollywood studio system. In many ways, Asian-American vloggers are using YouTube as a Third Space. Rejecting traditional forms of media and tritely scripted clichés, they are finding an alternative space through YouTube in expressing the diverse complexion of Asian-American identities.
This piece would absolutely soar if the writer was able to land some interviews with a few vloggers. Even by email would be great -- hearing from them directly would be a sure-fire way to elevate this past your average think-piece. – bloom8 years ago
I would be very interested in seeing this topic put together and agree with bloom that a collection of interviews could potentially bring this piece to the next level. – derBruderspielt7 years ago
Shortly after the 2016 presidential election, the London-based School of Life's prolific YouTube channel (founded by popular philosopher, Alain de Botton, in 2008) released a video titled "Why Socrates Hated Democracy," outlining how the founder of Western philosophy opposed the idea of putting too much political power in the hands of the unqualified masses. On inauguration day, they released "Why Hegel knew there would be days like these," reminding their viewership of the dialectical nature of history, thereby assuring that this current dark chapter is not the beginning of the apocalypse, but rather a necessary antithesis on the way to a balanced synthesis. A week later came "Thoreau and Civil Disobedience," recounting the all-too-familiar horrors of the Polk administration to highlight the democratic necessity of resistance to morally dubious political policy.
Discuss how this unofficial trilogy of videos (as well as any relevant inclusions that may follow, presumably over the next four years) resists the current state of American demagoguery. How do they contribute to the over-saturated pool of political discourse? Are they effective at breaking through the noise and conveying their messages? How has the [not-so-]subtle refraining from using Trump's name and face (aside from the occasional comic interlude video, such as "What America is Getting for Christmas," which is not treated with the same degree of seriousness as the others) aided in the potency of their rhetoric? In the climate of anti-intellectualism that many commentators have noted as being central to alt-right ideology, does the invocation of history's greatest thinkers do anything more than preaching to the choir, without making any significant impact in those in need of conversion? Can their presence on YouTube allow them more potential for change than what is available in old media? Does The School's firm lack of political neutrality in these videos impact the way we view the rest of their catalogue, most of which being entirely apolitical in nature?
Interesting de Botton's agreement with Socrates, Hegel, and Thoreau appear after the election... That's as disingenuous as Trump claiming, before he won, that the election was rigged, only to be silent on the issue afterwards. Also, de Botton's contradiction: democracy is bad because it can elect a Trump, but good because it can oppose a Trump. This is like saying Trump's alleged philandering is bad but Bill's was okay. Last, Trump seems less a Polk (warmongering sectarian) than a Jackson (status quo-fighting populist). The judge barring the immigrant travel ban seems to be Trump's first Nicholas Biddle. Great topic, btw. Objectivity has been AWOL since Nixon, may he rest in piss. – Tigey8 years ago
YouTube has become one of the largest vlogging platforms online. Some of the biggest YouTube stars such as Casey Neistat have over 5 million subscribers and garner over 1 million views in just one day. After watching videos every day about someone's day to day life for months on end, how does one not feel like they personally know the vlogger, even consider them a friend? Is this mindset healthy?
I am all too familiar with this. I frequently watch a channel called Just Kidding News while at work and it is difficult not to feel a sort of bond with these people, despite the fact that they have no idea who you are. But is this any different than those who frequently watch TMZ? The gossip alone is evidence of this happening in Hollywood; "Did you hear about Brangelina getting a divorce?" People think they know these stars.
Is it healthy? I would suggest that if one has an active social life, sure. If one's source of interaction between others is solely coming from this medium, however, that is when it becomes a problem. Very, very interesting topic and I believe it is one that should be addressed due to the ever-increasing popularity of this medium and the possible adverse effects it could have. I would suggest implementing examples of psychology if a claim was to be made here. Good Luck to whoever grabs this. I look forward to reading it.
-Brad – Brad Hagen8 years ago
This is an interesting topic, and I feel it coincides with similar topics involving how people portray 'celebrities'. With YouTube as popular and widespread as any other form of media entertainment, it is no wonder that the more popular users are being treated like movie stars. Like the movies, YouTube has become a place where people escape from reality by watching others do things they want to do or wish they had the ability to do. It is unhealthy in the movies, and I feel it is quickly becoming the same with vlogging. At least with movies, actors/actresses take breaks between acting, and can escape the limelight. With vlogging, however, most of these people have to be constantly producing media in order to maintain the status quo, therefore making them more visibly accessible to the public. Couple that with the fact that you can more readily access a vlog than you can movie, you can see how these vlogging stars are more popular then some movie stars. – MikeySheff8 years ago
I think this can also be dangerous. Because some fans might feel entitled to know everything about vloggers and boundaries might be crossed. – seouljustice8 years ago
These are called parasocial relationships and I'm pretty sure that there's a decent amount of research out there on them! – phaasch8 years ago
I think it is impossible to pin down an answer for all. Each individual would make sense of their experience with a vlogger, wildly popular or not, based on their own circumstances. I must say some could get a lot out of such an interaction, however lop-sided it may seem, like courage, solace, inspiration and entertainment. Besides, friendships are very much possible in form of exchange of comments and messages where fans get in touch with their idols and what not. Of course it is impossible for anyone to reply every single comment (complaint/compliment/sharing) they get, which is pretty much the case for most of us. How many friends do you have on your social media accounts and how many do you actually talk or respond to? It's just the matter of perspective and although it is fascinating to ponder upon topics like this we really should avoid making blanket judgments that rule out possibility for good things to happen. – rubynvm8 years ago
Since you mentioned Casey Neistat, he talked about this one-sided, always appearing happy type of relationship in one of his latest videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVnI_2JgXGY. – KennethC8 years ago
It might also be interesting to explore if such celebrities feel a responsibility to act a particular way once they have a large audience who assume they can predict their actions and if this leads to restricting, rather than empowering, a vloggers future explorations of their own craft. This may be particularly relevant here as their roles are often be portrayed as "This is the real me," rather than "I am pretending to be this character." – trevajc8 years ago
Today, many U.S. politicians are extending their public reach through Twitter accounts, and many other public figures are using Twitter as a platform to voice their opinions about those politicians. I think it would be interesting to explore the extent to which these Twitter presences affect broader public opinions of politicians. This topic could be applied to any current political figure or situation, but I think it could be particularly interesting to focus on Election 2016, given the consistent media attention devoted to tweets both by and about Trump, Clinton, and the other candidates throughout the process.
I think this would be interesting to talk about! Because of social media, certain candidates have become memes, and their reputations have gone up/down. One example is Tim Kaine; many tweets have described as a "soccer dad" which made him seem more affable. – seouljustice8 years ago
Although, this day and age are technologically advanced, the thought of candidates trying to extend their reach through twitter is very strange. This would be an article I would like to read about. – OrangeCitris8 years ago
Great topic. I'd love to see a chart showing numbers and trends of tweets reacting to some of the major bombshells, such as news of Hillary receiving debate questions prior to facing Sanders and Trump. Also, we may have seen another major shift in U.S. political strategy: Obama, a relative unknown, was elected president in 2008 and 2012. In 2016, Trump - a businessman with no public service track record - won the U.S. presidential election. In 2020, Waldo (of "Where's Waldo" fame) might be facing The Invisible Man for the Dem nod. No history it seems is better than bad history, ala the history of the Clintons as perceived by many U.S. citizens. The apparent new mantra: don't tweet 'til elected, don't tweet 'til elected. – Tigey8 years ago
Great topic. It is doable to collect all tweets talking about Trump and Hilary using Twitter stream API during a time. To gain a basic feeling of these comments, we can use machine learning to do sentiment analysis, and see whether people think them positively or negatively. – cicirao8 years ago
Don't forget Turkey's Erdagon deftly handling his country's uprising with Twitter. It is a powerful tool that allows politicians to bypass mainstream media. It seems as if whoever rules on Twitter wins. – Munjeera8 years ago
According to NBC news, Yahoo recently confirms of a new whopping number in the 2014 security breach that took place hacking 500 million users personal information. Analyze the importance of personal Information in the different companies that require you to submit all your sensitive data. Do you think companies should pay the extra dollar for tighter security, or wait til they endure a massive breach and risk having to pay out as a consequence.
This is a very important topic to consider given the many breaches that have happened in the past few years. Millions of online users have been violated after taking a huge risk of trusting these big companies with their personal information. Would tighter security ensure safety from hackers? – Jai Modo8 years ago
With web series like Carmilla and the Lizzie Bennet Diaries both being very successful, what does it say about how these shows are visually created? These stories are usually told from one room, looking into a camera. By directly addressing the audience and only being able to retell events occurring outside of the room does it enhance the story telling or hinder it? How does it shape how the stories are told? Why are they so popular?
This is a great question as it focuses on how much money is spent on glitz and glamour in media. It shows how a read and authentic narrative trumps all that because these web series stars are connecting with people. – Munjeera8 years ago
I think there's a lot to work with here. From a filmmaking perspective, you get to compare and contrast the multi-camera and multi-location format with the fixed camera format of web series. I think that this form of storytelling has a lot in common with radio plays, which are making a comeback thanks to the popularity of podcasts and a comparison of those styles might help as well, though it's possible that would bloat the article. Obviously you'd want to reach out to the creator of a web series but it might also be good to talk to a film studies professor. – CoreyB8 years ago
The crowd-funding platform, Patreon (founded in 2013), has become widely used among a variety of different kinds of web-based artists, but perhaps most prominently among YouTubers. Those who subscribe to numerous channels have likely noticed recent plugs to become a patron by pledging money to support new content – many of you may have surely already become patrons to some. Being a medium that is only now truly beginning to carve out its cultural importance, the significance that Patreon has had in this YouTube paradigm shift cannot be understated. More and more artists are now being enabled to support themselves financially off of their web videos, which has allowed them the time and freedom to devote themselves fully to this work without needing day-jobs, and therefore the quality of their work has been able to increase. This has proven to be of particular importance since the recent changing of the rules for traditional YouTube Partnerships, to which the vast majority of creators have agreed that they are no longer being benefited, thus leading them to sign up for Patreon accounts.
Discuss the brief history of the company so far, the intricacies of its business model, and the influence it has had in developing and cultivating YouTube as a new artistic frontier. How is this method of fundraising reminiscent of past models of artistic patronage (from the Medici family of Renaissance Florence to the Nielsen rating system that has dictated the success and failure of television programming since the late 1940s), and how is it unique to the new online ecosystem that it is inhabiting? What might its rising success and bold legitimising of YouTube artistry mean for the future of conventional media channels, such as film, television, and print? Might there be long-term consequences to this format if it continues to expand at its current rate?
Given how new all of this is, and how rapidly the changes are occurring, it is especially interesting to analyse the implications of what has already happened in these early stages to attempt predictions at where it might lead.
Sounds like a great category which will add to the platform. Also, the juxtaposition of traditional art with a new medium is also brilliant. Original thinking on your part. – Munjeera8 years ago
