A2- Media Power - Bronte Mikel
Question:
Celebrity endorsements on social media are generally seen as a good way to boost
sales within a business. However, these endorsements are often misleading the
public into purchasing products for profits and inturn changing audience identities.
Discuss.
Arguing:
That the false representations which celebrity endorsements pursue has a
negative affect on consumer behavior which effects the way one inevitably
transforms themselves off social media and into society.
Methods:
1. Ethnography
2. Content analysis
3. Survey
Key Theories and concepts:
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False representation – misleading or fraud information, which is,
communicated through social media platforms. This is seen especially with
fitness, beauty and other healthy and lifestyle products through celebrity
endorsements.
Uses and gratification – Is a theory to help understand why people use
certain social media platforms to satisfy their needs. Katz Et Al (2016)
describes that ‘uses and gratification theory suggests that factors such as
ones social and physiological circumstances, motives and expectations
influence media use and effects’.
Exploitation – Of advertising in social media works to increase the appeal of a
product, without regard of the actual quality of the product.
Consumer behavior –
Celebrity – A public figure that is well known for their talents, beauty, or
credibility or has achieved fame.
Social media identity-with today’s generation, maintaining a social media
identity is something that is extremely important. Elaborating on this point,
will explore issues through online engagement and editing of photographs,
things audience says on social media platforms to gain more likes and things
that users share in order to get a response from people. Exploring issues with
why people want to look and feel different to normal everyday life online and
if people change their identity online purposely.
Foucault’s ’Technologies of the self’ – considering how we use media to
construct our identities as works of art.
- Construct different dimensions of ourselves – facebook, Instagram,
twitter
- Navigate different social contexts
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Often celebrities become famous even though they lack talent
Socially constructed by promotional industries
Not all celebrities are created equally
Fandom is defined as – identity-forming, interactive spaces where fan
members are characterised not only by their affect and engagement with
the source text but also by the way it’s represented.
Introduction: 250 words
For the purpose of profit making, celebrity endorsements are constantly
untilised on social media platforms to achieve business goals. However, the
reality of this is falsely represented through business products by using
celebrities to transform social networks and audiences for monetary gain. Social
media elites are saturated by media platforms daily, which are now used to
manipulate consumer behaviors through different forms of marketing
techniques. Constantly being subjected to celebrity’s lives through social media
has a detrimental effect on ones own identity. Click Et Al. (2015) explains that
the process of identification with media figures and celebrities as one in which
people temporarily abandon their own identities and social roles, by
imaginatively projecting their consciousness onto the media image. These online
developed relationships with celebrities, are based on desires to develop in
themselves qualities they admire in celebrities, highlighting that media figures
have persuasive influence over audiences’ values and actions. This discussion
will draw upon concepts of uses and gratifications theory along side with
Michael Foucault’s technology of the self to by using different methods of content
analysis and survey to explore how social media platforms use celebrity
endorsements to pursue negative applications of consumer advertising which
effects the way one inevitably transforms their behaviors off social media and
into society.
Body: 1800 words
Paragraph 1
- How celebrity endorsements boost sales revenue for business through different
social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
- The engagement and influence of celebrities on audience behaviors.
- Content of advertising persuasive communication to trick buying habits.
- Increase of consumer’s desire.
Paragraph 2
- Explains the uses and gratifications theory.
- Draws upon concepts of media influence, consumer behaviors, audience
powers.
- How the addiction to social media platforms has changed the way advertisers
manipulate products.
Paragraph 3
-Talk about Foucault’s ’Technologies of the self’ – considering how we use media
to construct our identities as works of art.
- Draw on self and identity.
- Online engagement and social media identity.
- The reasons why people portray themselves online differently in order for
gratification, recognition, hiding or acceptance.
- Circulating social forces in mass media.
- Negative effects it has on people.
Paragraph 4
- Exploitation of media users by media platforms and advertising agencies or
monetary gain.
- Detrimental side effects of identity due to easy false representations of many
aspects.
- Changed the way society constructs itself according to what is acceptable on
social media.
- Why false representations through celebrities is unlawful to society.
References and quotes:
Boyd, D. 2014, ‘Identity: why do teens seem strange online’, Its complicated
the social teens New Haven, Yale University press, Connecticut, pp. 29-53.
- ‘Public figures, journalists and anyone in the limelight must regularly navigate
disconnected social contexts simultaneously, balancing what they say with how
their diverse audiences might interperate their actions.’ (Pg. 31)
- ‘When teens interact with social media, they must regularly contend with
collapsed contexts and invisible audiences as part of everyday life’. (Pg31)
Click, M.A., Lee, H., Holladay, H.W. 2015, ‘You’re born to be brave; Lady
Gaga’s use of social media to inspire fans’ political awareness’,
International journal of cultural studies, Missouri USA.
- ‘Celebrities create a sense of closeness through social media by disclosing what
appears to be personal information, using language and cultural references to
create or increase affiliation with fans, and publicly acknowledging fans and
responding to their concerns’. (Pg. 5)
- ‘Sandvoss asserts that the meanings fans find in celebrities and media content
stems not from the object of fandom itself but from the fans who use it to
examine and extend their senses of self.’ (Pg. 3)
Zipporah, M., Mberia, H. 2014, ‘The Effects OF Celebrity Endorsement in
Advertisements’, International Journal of Academic Research in Economics and
Management Sciences, Vol 3, No.5. Nairobi, pp178- 188.
‘According to (Black Jay et al, 1995) the psychologists study learning to consider how
people interpret the events and stimuli around them, fashioning of their actions
according to their individual understandings. These understandings, thoughts,
expectations and perceptions are known as cognitions that is mental process. This
involves decision -making and language.’ (Pg. 185)
Sheldon, P. & Bryant, K. 2016, ‘Instagram: motives for its use and relationship to
narcissism and contextual age’, Computers in human behaviours, University of
Alabama, Huntsville, pp89-97.
- ‘Uses and gratification theory Is that people are active in choosing and using media
based on their own needs’. (pg90)
Marwick, Alice E. Status Update, edited by Alice E Marwick, Yale University Press,
2013. ProQuest Ebook Central,
http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/UTS/detail.action?docID=3421330.
- ‘ Following a celebrity on social media affects the attitude of consumers towards
the celebrity’s endorsments positively and negatively. As aforementioned in data
analysis, the results show that following a celebrity endorser on social media has an
effect on consumer brand awareness’. (pg64)
Conclusion: 200 words
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Sum up results findings from my methodologies.
Sum up main body points.
DISCUSS - PRESENTATION
How your going to do assignment
What are you producing – essay?
What key concepts and what methodologies will you be doing?