Blogging: Creating Celebrities
I've just been reading on this website, http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/425827/1246992 about regular people who blog and become celebrities as a result. There are many of these people including Perez Hilton (who is most commonly known for celebrity gossip, and I'm referring to actors, singers etc) and I find this whole concept fascinating. I personally believe that a blog is more like a diary more than anything else and to become a celebrity because of it seems a little bit ridiculous but I was thinking about this earlier today, maybe it allows some to live viacriously.
It has been said in lectures that some people are unable to transfer their online confidence into the physical world, but I would like to present another idea. Could it be that instead of having physical diaries that we kept private we now have online diaries and actually are seeking more advice than we used to before.
I really don't see what all the fuss about blogs and online identities is all about. It just seems ridiculous to me. In saying this, it didn't used to. Maybe it is a bit like watching a movie in that it allows you to escape reality for a short time, but the question is, why are we wanting to escape reality and why can't we interact with people in real life? I understand that the times are changing and things are different to what they used to be, but I believe it is because of the internet communities that people are becoming more and more socially inept.
I could be wrong though, and as has been pointed out, people do have different ideas and belief systems. I would like to leave you with the question, should people be famous because of blogging which in essence is just talking about what they think and their every day lives? I mean are we so desparate to have idols; and so desparate to be famous that this what we are now doing? Shouldn't celebrities be people who are famous for doing something, like acting, being a politician or a successful sports player etc etc?
It has been said in lectures that some people are unable to transfer their online confidence into the physical world, but I would like to present another idea. Could it be that instead of having physical diaries that we kept private we now have online diaries and actually are seeking more advice than we used to before.
I really don't see what all the fuss about blogs and online identities is all about. It just seems ridiculous to me. In saying this, it didn't used to. Maybe it is a bit like watching a movie in that it allows you to escape reality for a short time, but the question is, why are we wanting to escape reality and why can't we interact with people in real life? I understand that the times are changing and things are different to what they used to be, but I believe it is because of the internet communities that people are becoming more and more socially inept.
I could be wrong though, and as has been pointed out, people do have different ideas and belief systems. I would like to leave you with the question, should people be famous because of blogging which in essence is just talking about what they think and their every day lives? I mean are we so desparate to have idols; and so desparate to be famous that this what we are now doing? Shouldn't celebrities be people who are famous for doing something, like acting, being a politician or a successful sports player etc etc?
posted by liz shaw at 1:45 AM
9 Comments:
Good post. Liz, when you say "I really don't see what all the fuss about blogs and online identities is all about. It just seems ridiculous to me", I'm not quite sure what you mean. What kind of fuss and why is it ridiculous? Could you clarify?
Thanks Luke. It just seems to me that blogs are just online diaries. Why are we so interested in people's lives? The chances are high that we will never meet these people in real life so why does it matter what happens in their every day lives? Are we losing creativity in terms of writing scripts and having broadcast dramas that we now want to know what someone on the other side of the world is doing?
To me it just seems that we are only distancing ourselves more and more from people by having online identities which I think can be attributed to the fact that we are being "brainwashed" by the media into creating this ideal version of ourselves. In my view we should be happy with ourselves.
I can live with the concept that we have different windows in our lives and act in different ways, but that to me is different to creating an online identity. To me different windows are just adapting to different situations. I believe that by creating many identities online we are hiding from ourselves and they do say "If we fear being intimate we hide behind a facade".
Blogs are more than just online diaries, ya know. The original "blog" was obviously an online diary, but its evolution now has most definitely surpassed its ancestors.
Tabloid-style gossip blogs, commentary blogs on politics/culture/sports/food/stars etc, literature blogs, and a return - blogs full of personal things.
As for this interest in other people's lives ... it's just another form of voyeuristic fetishism that's existed for years. Take 'Big Brother' for example, which is the probably the most well-known voyeur Reality TV program. As for writing scripts and broadcast drams - it's currently all trash on NZ TV, we haven't had good stage shows in ages, and theatre performs often cost too much.
As to the idea of creating an online persona is similar to the notion of living a 2nd life, quite literally. You can pretend you're a drop-dead bombshell blond that makes every male drool in the room. Or, it's possible to pretend (for a shy guy) to be "real smoove" with the ladies and chat them up.
Or, as in my case, I get to kill monsters and yakk about crap in an online game. For a person I know, who I've never met but is a good friend ... he can pretend that he's fit, lean, agile, and deadly with a sword. In real life? He's a quadriplegic.
I return to my question, why? why can't we be happy with ourselves and who we are? Why must we be deceptive to those on the other side of the screen?
I understand what you are saying and see where you are coming from but I do disagree. To me, this notion that a blogger becomes a journalist (or opinion writer) only demeans the training and skills of other journalists who have the formal skills to do such a job.
On the flip side though, it does open up possibilities to have alternative viewpoints presented and alternative news items made public.
Are we really being deceptive? Or is the "persona" that we've created a facet of ourselves that we would normally be too scared of to present to the world?
For some, this persona *is* the real them, but maybe due to the way they're raised, or personal moral guidelines, or whatever force from outside makes them conform and unable to express their true self.
And to be honest, would you really be happy if you were like my quadriplegic friend? The only thing you can move is your eyes, your mouth, and twitches of your hand. You're feed by a nurse, or a caretaker like some feeble old person. You'll never run again, you'll never feel the rush of exhilaration of a physical achievement again. For goodness sake, from what I understand of being a quadriplegic someone has to hold his penis if he needs to go to the toilet! It is degrading, and of utter humiliation.
Of course, that's a more extreme case. Yet think about all those things he's incapable of doing, and apply it to someone's mental self. Having a persona means that you're "safe"; there is a space between you and them, a buffer. We can pause, think, and reply. We do not need to feel fear of rejection, of humiliation, of discrimination.
Do I talk like an Asian, or a Kiwi? You won't know until you meet me, and that is the best thing about having an online persona. You only reveal information about yourself that you want, and not what others gleam through their eyes - your dress, height, body size, speech, accent, race. There is no prejudice. And the real world is a place left to the cynics and judges a lot of the time.
/endrant
sorry if I got a bit carried away!
Yuhan, that is my exact point. We shouldn't be scared. Why is it okay to show a part of your personality on the internet but not in real life? I have first hand experience of knowing that the two overlap.
What should it matter if you are physically unable to move? Isn't the net just designed for friends? and more iimportantly why should it matter what other people think of you? Here I was thinking that we, as a world were getting over the fact that some people have disabilities.
It's not important what you look like or what race you are. What is important is this discussion and it doesn't worry me who I talk to on the internet so long as they are real.
I don't think it is a case of technological determinism anymore. It is now a case of societal attitudes and changes shaping the way in which various mediums are used; and we all know that the net was not intended for blogging when it was created, nor was it created for creating celebrities or for "flaming" and abusing people as the case is on some internet forums and blogs.
Which I totally agree, but in actuality, will never happen.
We are scared, because society is hostile; it's unfair, it's at times detrimental, and sometimes downright abusive. I'm sure all of us have at one time or another suffered as such. And this change of us being accepted wholly is impossible - where there are human interest, there is conflict. Nations have gone to war for the simple idea of whether they should lean forward or lean backwards in a baptism. If such a simple thing brings strife, than what about race? I've personally suffered, no matter how good my English is, and I'm sure everyone here can remember the protests in Christchurch a few years ago.
As for my friend, it's not that he pretends to be something he's not for the sake of pretending, or shame. Rather, it is because he can't do it in real life. So he pretends, to escape, and to find hope of living a normal life. I'm sure you yourself must have had to stay in the hospital, or get wrapped up in a cast for one thing or another, and I'm sure you can understand the idea of being caged in and unable to move, much less actually do anything.
Escapism - that's the whole point. Why do people read books? Why watch films? Why listen to music? Same concept, entire way through.
Whoa! Some great comments on both sides here. I don't really want to wade in at this point as you've both made good cases. But I think it might be useful (as I'll discuss in the next class if there's time) to remember that blogging is now an extremely diverse form of media with all sorts of sub-genres emerging. The diary-style personal blogs can be linked not only with recent phenomena such as reality TV, but also with things such as "confession" and even (talking) "therapy".
But is it merely voyeurism that draws audiences to these things? Actually, I think that just like bad reality tv is like watching paint dry (for me, anyway), the personal blogs that drawn and sustain audiences are those that demonstrate good writing, that draw readers into the narrative and that perhaps give readers something to identify with. The case of LonelyGirl19 shows that these things can draw audiences even when exposed as "fiction" (read "deception"?). This is a somewhatcdifferent sub-genre to the journalistic blog (though there are definite overlaps at times).
I do agree with you, Liz, about the dangers of neglecting the art and craft of narrative, quality journalism and the like, when we focus so heavily on the gains of a medium blessed with such diversity and near-universal accessibility ("wow, anyone with an Internet connection can become a journo or other form of celebrity now"). But I really relish the diversity and freshness that blogging and related developments have brought to the media landscape.
Question: Would anyone sign up for a course on the art and craft of blogging (just like they would for the art and craft of, say, short stories or journalism)? Might those courses exist one day? (Do they exist already, perhaps?) Or is that anathema to the rough spontaneity that we associate with the 'free spirit' of the blogosphere?
I'm supposed to be preparing my Powerpoint slides for tomorrow's class so I'll shut up now. (We all know blogging has now joined many other Internet-based activities as wonderful procrastination tool!)
I can definitely relate to the idea that someone with a disability would create an online able bodied persona because they can't in real life and because it is a form of therapy.
And in terms of society being harsh and unrelenting on some matters, I think that maybe one way we can move back to a caring society is to take our lives offline and to allow people to be open as they are rather than wanting and needing them to put on a front. I think that instead of using the internet for educational purposes and work gain, we are taking it too far and becoming the technology. It is now an extension of ourselves.
I think this needs to change so we can ineract on a face to face personal level.
On the other hand though; I agree with the point Luke made in class today that blogging is creating a more democratic and open society. This is a result of the fact that we are sharing our lives with people on the other side of the world and because we are posting articles rather than taking the mainstream media to be golden.
And to answer your questions Luke, I think that one day, maybe in the next 5 - 10 years there will be a course on blogging and how to make it interesting. I mean the University of Auckland has around 3 courses on the internet (Techno Culture, Media Research Online and I think there is also a stage three version), so given this fact, there is definitely a possibility. The internet is a fascinating medium that is forever changing and forever being used for different things. who would have known 5 years ago that there would be such terms as blogging and vlogging (video logging for those in the class who are not familiar with the term)?!
I think that in some ways the internet is surpassing cellphones and text messaging as a preferred medium.
So is the internet the new television, radio and cinema? When you think about the diverse range of things you see on the internet it is actually combining all of these along with other mediums such as newspapers and magazines, and I think that is the great thing about the internet in some ways. It is, to coin a term used by advertisers the world over, a one stop shop for information, views, chilling out and relaxation.
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