I found and read a Washington Post article about niche internet micro celebrities. A niche internet micro celebrity is somebody who has a small but cult-like following on a particular social media platform. They often have a backstory, lore, or inside jokes with their followers that. Unlike a traditional “influencer” these people don’t do social media as a job and they do it solely for entertainment. This article interviews some of these micro celebrities and explains how they accidentally found fame. It explains how the creator world is shifting from being made up of large creators to containing a lot more of these micro celebrities.
This article was extremely helpful when it came to answering my question. I had been having a hard time finding research that related to my first thesis: the internet is changing how we as a society perceive celebrities. This article helped me refocus my thesis by explaining an aspect of celebrity culture fueled by the internet that I had not previously thought about. I thought about if it was a matter of how we are perceiving celebrities or if it is a matter of celebrity culture as a whole. It lead me to want to change my thesis to address the effects of the internet on celebrity culture as a whole.
November 29, 2022 — 2:48 PM
This was a great insight and build off of your initial thesis! In a way, it opened more doors for you as it could perhaps put the ideas you’re arguing against in a positive light rather than the negative spin you intended. One thing I noticed was that you said you’re struggling to find a source for this, a place you could possibly go to find more research could be the financial record of these self-proclaimed internet celebrities! But, all in all, great work!
December 5, 2022 — 11:21 AM
I never thought about how celebrity culture is changing but now that you’ve pointed it out I totally see it. What an interesting concept. I love that reading this article helped you branch out your thesis. Do you have a specific minimum follower count/number associated with what qualifies someone as a niche-micro celebrity? Are you going to use examples in your essay? I’m interested to see which micro celebrities you pick to use as an example if you do use some.
November 29, 2022 — 3:02 PM
The topic you chose is very interesting, especially in the current era. I know there are many communities out there that have a “cult-like following” that I believe you could look into. There’s a lot of material when it comes to toxic communities, since it isn’t really the “celebrity” that is promoting that kind of behavior. I don’t know if that helps, but looking into the mind of those types of communities is really compelling.
November 30, 2022 — 4:40 PM
I’m glad you found this article, since it did help you re-state your thesis. It’s not a matter of you changing your thesis, but it is that this article helped you evolve your thesis. It made it into a more specific topic regarding, not only celebrities but regarding effects of the internet on celebrity culture as a whole. You have established that there is a “celebrity culture”, this makes your topic more specific.
December 1, 2022 — 2:51 PM
Your evolved thesis is very intriguing! I had not previously considered the effects of the internet on celebrity culture. I am curious how this recent shift away from larger creators will, in turn, impact consumer culture. Meaning; I wonder how internet culture will change as a result of these micro-celebrities. Great work!