Internet Celebrities Curse or Blessing

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Internet Celebrities - Curse or Blessing?
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• Chris Crocker
• LEAVE BRITNEY ALONE!, September 2007
• over 16 million views up to now

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Public Private Spheres

• Internet platforms make public self-display
  possible
• Intimacy becomes part of the public realm
• Shifting boundaries public ? private (Rössler)
• The Tyranny of Intimacy leads to decrease of
  discussions of generel interest in the public
  sphere (Sennett)

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Research Questions

• Is the development of the phenomenon of Internet
  celebrities a desirable one?
• Is it a benefit or a decline for the public
  sphere?
• What does it tell us about the interests and
  values of young Internet users?

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Case Study I Chris Crocker

• Self-display of his attitudes and personality
• Topics of videos celebrities, homosexuality
  the sex-filled confessions, the wild monologues,
  and the messages to his generation have all
  become viral video hits (from The Stranger)
• Does he represent the decay of the public sphere?

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Case Study II Brotherhood 2.0

• Experiment communication only via a videoblog
• Viewer observes private family communication
• Broad variety of topics politics is one of them
• Counter-example of a valuable use of new
  technologies?

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Conclusion (for now)

• Internet is only a new platform, public
  self-exposure is nothing new (cp. Rössler)
• Every case is different (also Chris Crocker has
  his positive aspects)
• Problem of a loss of interest in politics has to
  be solved otherwise Internet can help
• Easily avoidable phenomenon

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Thanks for your attention!