Abstract
The main purpose of this paper is mainly to lay emphasis on the trend that social media influencers have created through semi-naked selfies. The first part of the paper introduces us to the evolution of social media how it has created a booming effect on individuals giving them a voice in this modern era. The second part of this paper focuses on the self -representation on social platform how social media influencers are self-branding themselves into creating ‘micro-celebrity’ a new concept out of them touching into the economic aspect present. The discussion will be based on the economic side presented to us through social media celebrities and also making us question their authenticity. The main concept that will be discussed will be about how the semi-naked selfies culture trend has boosted social media influencers self-esteem and empowering of them to be more confident in their own skin but at the same time, it makes us question whether the unwatched life is not with living.
Keywords: online identity , influencers, selfies, sexuality, micro-celebrity
Introduction:
Social media as a revolutionary term is viewed as being an essence of life to user-generated content(Neiburger, 2010). The advent of web 2.0 has changed the meaning of communication in itself as it is has expanded and evolved in many different spheres. According to Yadav(2013), famous social media sites such as Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest has generated great value as they are the one which has given meaning out of common people life giving them the title of being ‘influencers’. They are viewed as micro-celebrity as they have power over the ‘ordinary people’. Pondering over it, ‘micro-celebrity’ is often associated with self-branding as it helps in the construction of one’s online identity (Page,2012). The future will be made up of micro-celebrities creating new trends in order to acquire a position in society, today it may be semi-naked selfies who knows what tomorrow will it consist of. The eminent role played by influencers in this particular creation of semi-naked selfies trend has been given rise to the economic aspect related to it but along with it, there is this notion of empowering women and building up their self-esteem making them self-made celebrity through selfies.
The booming evolution of web 2.0 has led to a rise in social media platforms and how it gave a chance and a voice to common people to become a micro-celebrity and to new trends in this modern era:
In this dynamic digital era, this evolution has created a major shift in the paradigm from web 1.0 to Web 2.0 that is from spectatorship to the opportunity to express themselves (DesAutels, 2011). According to O’Reilly(2005), ‘…a set of principles and particles that tie together a veritable solar system of ties…’ With this change, we have the availability of various social media platforms such as Instagram, facebook, youtube, twitter and so on. Hence this did give rise to new media concepts which have emerged and had a prominent place nowadays. With convergence, there is a participatory culture which is impactful as it the one giving the opportunity to common people to become social media influencers(H.jenkins, 2006). With it, there is ’prosumerism’ which comes into place that is the consumer can become is no longer restricted to its private sphere they are the one in power and are giving this chance that is the voice to become who they want to be. According to Pfeiffer(2010), new media is viewed as being an improved version of old media in order for it to evolve. This poignant shift from old media to new media is present as here there is the shift from photography to selfie which is the new media trend. In addition to this, how user-generated content have personalised this selfie culture in their own way giving rise to semi-naked selfies.
The notion of self-representation and online identity of social media influencers.
Online identity is considered as a social construct whereby the individuals who create it have to base themselves on their values, lifestyles and even stereotypes present in society. It fluctuates according to the environment an individual is present in(Hartley, 2013). Highlighting the importance of social media platforms, it is is to be noted that self-representation of an individual which starts with the notion of self which makes it more personalised. According to Thumim(2012), ‘…used to refer to activities of participating audiences in digital culture along with self and presentation of self…’ this is to depict that self-representation in the online sphere may be easily mediated on social platforms. When we talk about online identity there is something which is prominent in today’s time which is online theft and fake identities which is mainly on the rising. There is both online and offline Identity theft. According to OECD(2009), Identity theft is an illegal activity which creates multiple crimes as it misuses personal information and their private information such as ISPs, phone companies and so on. The most current issue will be the continuous presence of fake accounts. One social media platform which is Instagram which is filled with influencers with self-presentation of themselves through selfies (Kang, 2019). We are made to acknowledge that there are two types of accounts one whereby they post their perfect life in a way and the other fake accounts which to depict their imperfection making the audience question their authenticity through the selfies that they actually post as it is correlated to the way they represent themselves in the online sphere.
The micro-celebrity trend created by social media influencers have created this urge to obtain more likes by posting semi-naked selfies tapping into self-branding concept :
Objectivity prompts us to acknowledge that there is this correlation present between micro-celebrity concept and the basic notion of self -branding. Bearing in mind that it is more about through an influential being on social platforms promoting a product for a company through selfies with the product (Khamis,2016). For instance, Influencers such as Victoria secret model, Candice Swanepoel, post semi-naked selfies and even pictures with the product in order to raise gain the attention of the audience about the product that they are selling they have to expose themselves. The focus is more driven towards the economic aspect through self-branding of social media influencers through semi-naked selfies and pictures. It has indeed become so prevalent. According to Thomson (2006), it is through a micro-celebrity strong public identity that there is self-branding. It is an economic tactic by social media who promise wealth to common users hence encouraging this trend of influencers who in order to promote a product will eventually post semi-naked selfies and pictures as part of their work. As shown in the picture here emphasis may be laid on the semiotics of identity which forms part of the self-branding concept. According to Berger (2011), who points out that the way we advertise helps us in shaping our identities in the online sphere and the way we project ourselves the image that one to be perceived with. In addition to this, it is easier for others to perceive the influencer for who they are and for what product they are representing. The economic aspect present comes in the form of ‘affective labour’ as they perform time-consuming and not necessarily profitable kind of labor (Raun, 2018). By acknowledging the role of selfie culture which helps in promoting self -esteem plays a significant position.
The trend of semi-naked selfies on social media platforms by influencers also known as micro-celebrity :
The common term would be ‘selfie culture’ which is viewed as taking a digital portrait of one and sharing them on social media sites such as integrals and facebook(Saltz, 2014). Selfie is a simple projection of oneself. Its creation has generated multiple effects over audience in general as though it has helped in empowering women and their self-esteem (Alblooshi, 2015). Hence it has played a crucial role in making individuals feel good in their own skin without any stereotypes. According to shin (2017), self-esteem plays an important role in evaluating the self-worth of an individual. Social media influencers the one in power exert this selfies trend on their followers for instance; which is in fashion right now is semi-naked selfies. It can be said that selfies as a social construction as it is made according to the online normsTheir followers will follow their trend in order to fit and in order to feel validated in a way and not excluded in this online community. Receiving more likes based upon their physical appearance increase the self-worth of a woman(Chang, 2019). This selfie concept, in particular, will entice women of low self-confidence as it is an open gateway for them to feel that they belong to this online community. This is considered as one of the reasons why there is the culture of semi-naked selfies and pictures is actually in fashion as women will be mimicking their social media influencers by posing like them and taking both selfies and pictures as them even though there is this possibility that it might become an obsession.
We have to acknowledge that even though selfie culture has helped in boosting the confidence of individual but in excess or abusing of it will have a negative effect. According to Varnali (2015) ‘…the trend of taking selfies, as well as the use of social media to mediate their internal interaction to fulfill their self-esteem needs…’ which is justifiable due to an influence of posting selfies have become an addiction. Also, it is to be noted that selfie-taking has a direct linked to online identity and its self-representation. The role of gender in shaping selfies is an important perception to be taken into consideration as when we talk about semi-naked selfies it about both sexes and not limited to only one gender (Boursier,2018). In the online sphere, selfie expectancies have a tendency to evoke sexual self-attractiveness for the male gender and promote self -presentation for both sexes. Moreover, since in its the digital era there is the notion of digital footprint which will be persistent it is about both sexes to co-exist and over-exposure of semi-naked selfies may have a detrimental effect for professional career afterward. There is self -made celebrities who practice the semi-naked selfies for fame.
The online selfie celebrity culture cornering around exposing one’s body trend have helped in the creation of self-made celebrity through selfies. According to Brooks (2017), Kardashian is viewed as being the elite celebrities ‘…promote images of flawless beauty via body augmentation, makeup and frequent posting of selfies…’ excessive posts of her selfies and pictures had a potent influence on the rise in selfies in general. These two posts on Kim Kardashian platform on Instagram highlights her semi-naked selfies trend and naked pictures along with it. The relations of photography with an exposed or semi-naked body can accept different shapes and recording traditions (Ferenc, 2018). This is illustrated in the following pictures of the Kardashian family who expresses their body style as influencers through semi-naked selfies and pictures. This online selfie celebrity culture makes us question whether the unwatched life is not worth living, it makes us ponder more over other the authenticity of the lives of the celebrities(Gameson, 2011). It makes us wonder over the authenticity present in the influencers life, we as audience are presented with an ideal illusion of them through semi-naked clothes exposing their flawless physical appearance. The other side of the coin is masked in the online environment as we are limited only to the appearance they project.
This is shown to highlight the importance laid upon self-made celebrity
The aim of social media influencers is to gain followers who will along with them propagate this new selfie culture which is semi-naked selfies and pictures.As the one in power, they are the one who will influence the public in representing themselves as an image of them following the same steps as them. They aim to obtain the economic aspect out of it that is a living out of it and also to become more popular than they already are. This ultimately does have an impact on their online identity and the way they represent themselves, however, as shown above, semi-naked selfies may be for representing companies brand such as Victoria secret.Further studies will be made to examine semi-naked selfies about both genders as infleuncers .
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Hi DRamen,
I really appreciate how your paper talks about social media influencers’ posting semi naked pictures in order to get more likes and how it is related to the economical aspect. I agree with the statement you mentioned in your paper, “It makes us wonder over the authenticity present in the influencers life, we as audience are presented with an ideal illusion of them through semi-naked clothes exposing their flawless physical appearance.” I believe that this ideal illusion of influencers exposing their flawless appearance might affect users in a negative way as users might feel imperfect according to the influencer’s standard of beauty.
In your paper, you also mentioned that there’s another side to the coin which is not found on social media and I completely agree with it. My paper also talks about social media and its impact.
Take a look and do share your thoughts about it
https://networkconference.netstudies.org/2019Curtin/2019/05/07/is-social-media-a-benefit-or-a-harm-to-the-society/
Thanks
ABhackaurally
Hi ABhackaurally,
Thanks for having a look at my conference paper, i completely agree with your comment whereby ‘influencers exposing their flawless appearance might affect users in a negative way as users might feel imperfect’. I agree with this perspective whereby audience are made to feel insecure and inferior compared to those influencers who project an ideal image.
Did you ever feel that way? i mean did you feel physically insecure while viewing influencers online?
Please do let me know about your point of view!!
Yes i will check out your paper no worries.
Hello DRamen,
Thank you for your reply. To answer your question, I never felt insecure while viewing influencers online. However, it sometimes appears to me that they are living the “perfect” life and then i have this question which pops in my mind for a moment “How do they have it all together?” It’s just a matter of a moment before I realise that their lives on social media is how they want to portray it and not how they are living it. Hence, it happens to me quite a few times where i find myself questioning the fairy tale in which they are living on social media.
I would love to hear your opinion about it. Do you find yourself questioning the lifestyle of influencers or feel insecure about yourself upon seeing them being perfect always ?
Kind Regards,
ABhackaurally
Hey ABhackaurally,
Thank you for your reply. To answer your question, well , i never felt inferior or insecure while viewing influencers on social media because for me personally nobody is perfect and when you view them you can sense that it’s façade because they are solely portraying how the are enjoying their lives and having fun.
But i would like to know whether you agree with me that these social media influencers are the one who actually set the trend here i focused mainly on semi-naked selfies trend but what about plastic surgery trend ? do you think this does have a huge impact on their audience?
Kind Regards,
Devanee
Hi Devanee,
Well, I am a third-year design student, through the promotions that you did through Instagram and Facebook I’ve got to know about this specific online conference.
I enjoyed reading your conference paper which was based on one of my favorite concept which is social media influencer but you have used a more technical term here which is micro-celebrity. My query about your conference paper would be mostly how you actually come up with this conference title, Is it because of something you have observed or is it from personal experience?
As a social media user, I agree with your point that social media do help to boost the self-esteem of girls and does have an impact on their identity representation in the online sphere but in my perspective, I would basically want to know more about why you have tackled only one of the specific gender?
Hi Tina,
Thanks for viewing and commenting on my polls stories on instagram and facebook and i am grateful for your contribution.Actually i did come up with this title after a lot consideration because my aim was voice out the social media influencers impact on us users.But above all my main focus was driven towards these three main keywords in specific which is micro-celebrity, semi-naked selfies ,nudity.
well, i have targeted one gender in specific because there was more articles concerning semi-naked selfies concerning female influencers rather than male gender but i did point out at the end of my paper that i will need to do further research about both genders.
But i need to know your opinion ,don’t you agree with me that even though we say there are equality between female and male genders the gap nevertheless is still present?
for instance i found more articles about semi-naked selfies of social media influencers of women more.
Hello devanee,
I would like to thank you first of all for replying to my comment and sharing your point of view with me. To answer your question, i do agree with your point of view that there has been more critics which have been raised upon women semi-naked selfies rather than males models or even influencers who post shirtless pics.This controversy in specific have been occurring for quite a lot of time that people normally will point finger and criticise a women way of expressing themselves on social media platform as this may have an impact on their career life afterwards. What is your point of you on this subject in particular?
Tina
To answer to your question , for me personally posting of semi-naked pictures on social media will have an impact on their career indeed. Nowadays what recruiters of companies is actually doing is checking out their online profile on social media before interviewing them so see if they are actually fit to represent the company’s image.
Devanee
Hi Devanee,
Your paper is actually an interesting one. You have highlighted the importance of how nowadays people who are addicted to social media tend to post semi-naked selfies to obtain more likes on their profiles and the fact how indeed for some individuals this trend has become an obsession for them. You have also mentioned how selfies have helped to boost the selfie culture in a way and also the dangerous part. Overall I enjoyed reading your paper.
My paper talks about online daters who project a fake identity of themselves in line with online dating. Please do check it out : https://networkconference.netstudies.org/2019Curtin/2019/05/06/fake-identity-through-online-dating-applications/
Kind regards,
KRamdenee
Hi KRamdenee,
Thanks for viewing my paper and actually commenting on my paper.
well, indeed my aim was to actually lay empathise mostly upon the fact that selfie culture has a positive impact that is boosting one self -confidence but it can also becomes an addiction whereby someone may actually lose their identity in the process.
There is this ideology that with selfie identity individuals have the tendency to lose themselves that is they feel self-conscious to an extent that they will use filters to make feel beautiful in their own eyes.
Yes i will check out your paper no worries!!!
Hi Devanee, i
have seen your promotional video and polls for your conference paper on instagram and facebook which you have used in order to promote your conference paper.
Well, i have found your paper really interesting and enriching as it actually fits in the modern era where influencers are governing social media platforms. In addition to this your ttile ‘Social media influencers post semi-naked selfies to get more likes introducing the practice of ‘micro-celebrity’ trend’- the way that you have combine three major elements that is micro-celebrity trend, semi-naked selfies, identity is innovative.
i like how you used self-made celebrities such as Kim Kardashian to back up your argument and you used pictures to actually illustrate your points.
What i would like to how why in specific have you targeted female gender ?
Hi Thanjelie ARan,
First of all, i would like to thank you for actually reading my conference paper and commenting on it. Well to be honest with you, even though we say that we are living in a era where man is equal to woman.There is geographic restriction which comes into place for instance in countries like Saudia Arabia women cant drive. Now if we apply my paper into this they wont even have the right to actually post semi-naked selfies online to follow the social media influencers trend.
What i want to portray is basically that there were more articles targeting female gender
in specific for posting semi-naked selfies.However, in my conclusion i did point out that further research will be done upon both genders.
Hi Devanee,
I have read your paper which I found informative and it has been described in a detail way to illustrate your arguments.What I would like to know mostly when you talk semi-naked selfies cultures trend boosted social media influencers which I completely agree with you as without us common people they would have gain such fame.
Furthermore , I like the self-branding aspect which you pointed out I agree with it being more into economic aspect more about money making nowadays.
However, do you agree with me that social media influencers do have a negative impact on their audiences ?
Hi Susan,
First of all i would like to thank you for reading and commenting on my paper.
yes, i talk more about the the positive side whereby it helps in building the confidence of people.But obviously i agree with you that social media influencers do have a negative impact on their audiences for instance there are some social media influencers who actually promote body shaming.It does a negative effect on teen’s body image.
Do you feel that this could lead to eating disorders for teenagers and adolescents who will want to pose semi-naked selfies just like their influencers?
Feel free to tell me more!!!!
Hi Devanee,
To answer your question, yes i do believe that this might lead to eating disorder owing to the fact that these children and adolescents will be made to feel uncomfortable in their own skin.For instance if one of them is skinny , she will be more likely to be drawn to curvy models such as Kylie Jenner and Kim Kardashian. They will not learn how to love themselves as they will indulge themselves in following the trends and will do it so as for them to fit in. Do you agree with my thoughts?
-susan
Thanks for your reply, i agree with you that adolescents will indulge themselves in following the trends in order to fit in maybe among their group of friends.
Hellloo devanee,
was reading your blog I thought I give a few feedbacks! I really appreciated the way you presented your conference paper. It was well presented and overall I enjoy reading it
Hi steffi,
Thanks for reading my paper and commenting on it!!!
Hi Devanee,
I have read your paper which I found really informative. To be honest what really drawn my attention to your paper was the title of your paper
Which I found really nice ‘Social media influencers post semi-naked selfies to get more likes introducing the practice of ‘micro-celebrity’ trend.’
I had actually done an essay which taps into the following semi-naked selfies cultures. But you used this concept and have mixed up identity along with influencers trend along with it.
I am actually a logistics students and learning about Web 2.0 concepts which comes along such as convergence and participatory culture which is actually something i learn in depth through your conference paper.
One question that I would like to point out more is about appearance versus reality which is something prominent in the social media sites do you agree?
Hi Donatella,
Thanks for reading and commenting on my conference paper!!! I am actually glad that you enriched yourself through my paper with web 2.0 concepts.
Well, to answer your question we all know that most micro-celebrities share an idealised version of themselves on social media, cherry-picking only the best images, thoughts and experiences to share with the world. But some Instagram ‘influencers’ have taken this concept to the extreme. They bombard their followers with images that are so far from reality that they can sow seeds of doubt in some people’s minds, leading them to strive for unrealistic beauty standards.
Hi there DRamen,
Wow, the title of your paper instantly drew me in and made me want to read! I think, like many people, my entire feed is full of half-naked selfies every single day, so I was really interested to hear your take and analysis on this phenomenon. I completely agree with you that these influencers use these photos to gain attraction, and in return economic aspect. I also like how you delve into the authenticity of these photos, considering that they are in an effort to gain something in return, whether it be fame or money.
I definitely think it would have been worthwhile to also look into male examples of this, as well as female, to get a broader overall picture, and possibly give insight into why women face such extreme beauty ideals.
Throughout the paper, you refer to these influencers as micro-celebrities, but then include pictures of women such as Kim Kardashian, who I would consider a celebrity. How did you decipher between which influencers you consider micro-celebrities and just plain, full celebrities?
It’s so crazy to see the ways in which Web 2.0 and social media have changed the landscape of society in so many ways. I looked into how it affected activism. Feel free to check it out – https://networkconference.netstudies.org/2019Curtin/2019/05/05/web-2-0-effect-on-societys-engagement-with-activism/#comments
Alice 🙂
Hi AMcAuliffe,
Thanks of all, i would like to thank you for reading my conference paper and sharing your point of view and feedbacks with me.
Well, to answer your query concerning how i did decipher between micro-celebrities and influencers.
Micro-celebrities has a direct co-relation with marketing fields for instance self- branding.The main benefit of using micro-influencers to promote your brand is their relatively affordable cost in comparison to mega-influencers. According to a report by Influence.co, micro-influencers with between 2,000 and 100,000 followers charge roughly between $137 and $258 per Instagram post whereas an influencers is an individual who has the power to affect purchase decisions of others because of her authority, knowledge, position or relationship with her audience.
I hope i help you more in understanding the difference between micro-celebrity and plain influencer!!!
I would certainly like to know whether you would viewed the phenomenon of semi-naked culture trend as an obsession for adolescents to fit in the norms by mimicking there favourite influencers?
I will check out your paper no worries !!
Devanee
Hi again,
Thanks for your response, and for defining the difference between micro-celebrities and influencers. By your definition does this mean somebody could be both a micro-celebrity and an influencer?
And in response to your questions, I have definitely witnessed the phenomenon of semi-naked culture trend, but I wouldn’t be able to pinpoint if this obsession comes down to mimicking their favorite influencers or mimicking their peers.
Alice 🙂
Hi Alice,
Thanks for your constructive feedbacks.To answer your question , we are the one who give the chance to a normal being to become micro-celebrity and an influencer.My point is without us the audience they are nothing for me as we are the one ,who supports them, comments on their feeds and even watch their lives occasionally!!!
Best regards
Devanee
Hi DRamen, Your paper gave some really interesting ways to consider the impact of the display of semi-naked influencers. It’s important to look at the trends that come and go and the way that they impact our society and culture.
I think it’s really interesting how we can, as a society, develop different feelings or levels of acceptance towards different types of nudity. For example, we have become so used to seeing half-naked women on our social media sites, as you mention, yet when mothers post breastfeeding photos they are often removed from social media sites after being reported by people who are apparently offended by this.
What do you say to the polarizing nature of different types of nudity on social media?
Hi Cesarina,
I would like to thank you for reading and commenting on my paper!!
I agree with your comment and i personally think that it actually depends on the culture of the society whereby in some countries nudity is completely legal such as Netherlands, Croatia ,Florida and so on however it might be geographically restricted in countries like Saudia Arabia it might be against the culture of the country itself.
There has been many debates raised upon breastfeeding photos and for me there isn’t any ‘inappropriate content’ its just a mother sharing her experience with her followers. Instagram has long been criticiSed for its attitude toward nudity, especially if it’s female. It only allows images of female nipples in photos of breastfeeding or mastectomies. It allows nudity in artwork—but only if it’s sculptures or paintings, not photographs. Even that is inconsistently enforced, with some posts being censored, and some not.
Hi Devanee,
I enjoyed reading your paper. You’ve raised some interesting points about the trends of micro-celebrities and their semi-naked selfies.
Indeed, we’ve all become acclimatized to the semi-naked selfie. It’s part of our everyday experience as soon as we dive into our social media apps and this has led to a normative pattern of the visual self-presentation to be increasingly sexualized. Whether it’s Kylie Jenner promoting diet pills in her underwear or social media users (teenagers) mimicking the Kardashian naked selfie, we’re living in an age where women have never felt more pressure to look good naked and be endorsed for doing so online. Still being considered as a gendered object and practice, selfies have always had an impact on the identity and behavior of the individual. Do you think that this phenomenon of posting semi-naked or perfect selfies have brought women ; women of color, plus-size women or trans women to use Instagram as a platform to spread the message of genuine beauty and diversification?
Hi SPeroo,
I would like to thank you first of all for reading and commenting on my paper.
well , to answer your question, i personally think that we have to view both side of the coins of your question. Because the phenomenon in question of posting semi-naked or perfect selfies have this tendency to make plus-size women to have body complexes leading to eating disorder and this might have a detrimental effect on their mental health.However, objectivity prompts us to acknowledge that this actually might be an actual step for trans women to make a step forward and expressing themselves.
I would like to point out that there is the ‘ gender swapping filter trend’ on snapchat
according to Rose Dommu, a staffer for LGBTQ magazine Out, wrote that the filter “makes a joke out of transitioning.”
Regards Devanee
Hello Devanee,
Your paper was such a delight to read. Exposing this naked trend that is going around on the web 2.0 is important. Your example on the Kim Kardarshian one was on point and it really makes us ponder upon the authenticity and real life of these influencers. In old times, women’s body were perceived as art however now with evolution of technology, it’s been butchered due to these due to the micro-blogging trend. Your topic reflects one of the main key points in my conference paper and it is one of the main reasons too why China doesn’t follow the west and has put internet censorship across the country. Freedom of speech vital but in this perspective, the citizens are equally correct to avoid such influences to preserve their identity. I do want to know your opinion about the freedom of speech on the internet and whether the control is too trivial on the web 2.0 which encourages girls to post naked selfies and continue this trend.
Hello KRagoo,
Thanks for reading and commenting on my conference paper.I agree with your opinion about one of the main reasons why china doesn’t follow the west and has put internet censorship across the country.
I believely that the people of the country should have freedom of choice and expression that is to be and feel free to express their opinions on different social media platforms such as facebook just like we have in the western countries.
Hey DRamen,
What an awesome paper. You have some great references and dive into some key points regarding influencers and what they are posting to their followers.
At the start of your paper you discuss the evolution of Web 2.0 and its allowance for users to not just spectate, but to express themselves, join in. I totally agree with this. Users can now not only just take a glimpse into these ‘influencer’ lifestyles, but they can even become one. More micro-influencers are being created every day. As for the posting of semi-naked pictures, they all seem to do it. It’s normalised. We are all so accustomed to viewing such images that we don’t even bat an eyelid when someone else does it.
Take Jem Wolfie for example, a fitness Instagram influencer with over 2 million followers, usually half naked. Her post mainly consists of sexualised images of her playing sport or promoting brands. However, she has a private site for her “wolfie gang” where private content is posted to paying members and I can only imagine it is more risqué than what her normal Instagram page is showing. Has the web 2.0 made an easy access path for people to view semi-naked pictures or even caved a path for the viewing of almost pornographic content?
Thanks,
BMaddison
Hello BMaddison,
Thank you for giving me feedbacks on my paper.
To answer your question, i firmly believe that web 2.0 hasn’t imposed much restriction on us users, we have used and personalised it in our own way. It’s actually quite subjective i would be saying because there are nudes pictures which are displayed on instagram for instance and it is viewed as a from of self- expression and mostly as an art . nowadays.But i do agree agree through semi-naked pictures and selfies there has been more and more nudes content available online and instagram has this option whereby if the audience find the pictures too exposing they can report it as being appropriate.
Hello,
I read your paper and finds it very interesting. You cite the social media influencers, who you named as ‘micro-celebrities’.
You cite using bodies for the promotion of products and also for greater fame but I may disagree a bit with you on this part.
There are various body-positive influencers on Instagram who share naked pictures because of the honesty they want to display and they show that they are vulnerable with their stress marks/cellulite and all.
What do you think about that?
Hello MThomas,
Thank you for giving me feedbacks about my conference paper.
Well this actually the difference micro-celebrities and influencers .Micro -celebrities has a direct co-relation with marketing fields for instance self- branding.The main benefit of using micro-influencers to promote your brand is their relatively affordable cost in comparison to mega-influencers. According to a report by Influence.co, micro-influencers with between 2,000 and 100,000 followers charge roughly between $137 and $258 per Instagram post.
However, we are made to acknowledge like you said that there are positive influencers who promotes themselves the way they are by sharing body positivity .
Don’t you think that in this modern era more emphasis is laid upon physical appearance than appreciating themselves the way they are?
Thank for replying.
Personally, I think that an Instagram user will be more exposed to what they want to be exposed.
Personally, I am more into the body positive activists and I see a lot of posts about these.
Many people nowadays are money-minded and using your beauty to make money is not something new but with the emergence of social platforms, it is more blatant.
There is also a culture of show-offs concerning the body nowadays like fitness models are most of the time posing naked or half-naked.
For example, the model Alexis Ren, have most of her pictures half-naked.
Do you think that even ‘non-influencers’ or models can get indulged into that show-off culture even if they get nothing out of it?
Hello MThomas,
Thanks for reply to my comment.
Well ,to answer your question i firmly believe that we are living in the era of ‘the age of influence’ , and i do agree that for their personal satisfaction or as a way of expressing themselves individuals may actually get indulged into that show-off culture.
But this can be geographically restricted for instance in some countries women aren’t even allowed to post drive like Saudia Arabia now posting of half-naked pictures is nothing they don’t even have the right to think of?
Hi MThomas,
I would like to thank you above all for your constructive feedbacks!!
To eventually reply to your question, i firmly believe that we are living in an era of
‘the age of influence’, it is viewed as a a form of art or a way for an individual of expressing themselves openly through semi-naked pictures.I believe that influencers have carved this path so that normal individuals could indulge in it too and its quite subjective because it actually depends on the motives of the individuals for some it is done to help people by raising awareness about positivity.
But objectivity prompts us to acknowledge that there is geographical restriction
whereby in countries like Saudia Arabia women don’t even have the right to drive now they can’t even think of expressing themselves like models or even non-influencers have the possibilities to do.
what’s your views on this ?
I really think that women in Saudia Arabia are somehow into a mold and do not think like westernized women.
Expressing yourself is ‘up to you’ but definitely these women will not be able to follow the paths of these influencers or celebrities.
Exposing your body is even unacceptable in Saudia Arabia, so I do not think that this is a problem.
Hi DRamen,
This shows how many people are getting influenced with what they are seeing on social media. this can be a good influence as well as bad and it depends how the image is being projected to the public. but overall it is a nice topic.
thanks,
Manishta
Hi MBisasur,
Thank you for reading my paper and giving me constructive feedbacks about my paper!!!
I do agree with your opinion that it all depends on how the public that is us audience view the image.
Hi DRamen,
I enjoyed reading your paper and I do agree with what you’ve stated. It spend hours scrolling through Instagram and this trend is very much spread worldwide. I believe that influencers post semi-naked selfies as a way to attract the attention of their audiences to boost sales of their sponsors or simply to gain more followers. Some women do actually post these racy photos because they are comfortable in their skin and want to empower others but most of them do it for their own benefit. I know that your paper focuses on the female gender however I would love to know if you think that male influencers do the same thing on social media?
Cheers,
Pooja.
Hello there DRamen,
I liked your take on how nudity is affecting social construction of online identity on online platforms, very insightful read.
‘Micro-celebrities is really a thing nowadays with all the collaborations between marketers, influencers on social networks and even actual celebrities.
Very nice read,
Keshav
Do not hesitate to check out my paper on : https://networkconference.netstudies.org/2019Curtin/2019/05/09/social-media-influencers-defining-construction-of-identit/
Hi,
I think that this paper is well written, easy to understand and also point out important aspect of social media influencers. One thing I would like to know is what are the goals of social influencers apart from gaining popularity and likes on social media site, do they have business perspective in the future after having gain followers?
Regards,
Shaf Sookharry
Hi Msookharry,
I would like to thank you for reading my conference paper and giving me constructive feedbacks about it.
I do believe that some of them do have business perspective plan in their mind for their future after being famous.For instance most female influencers have the tendency of launching their own make up products for example, Kylie Jenner launch her own make up brand known as Kylie Jenner cosmetics and there also HudaBeauty who had launched her own business
Regards
Devanee