CS371
Social Media and Life
Blog Assignment #4
Essena O’Neil, a young 19 year old Instagram model from
Australia, recently turned the social media application on it’s head when she
publicly disavowed the authenticity of her stardom, and spoke out against the
social values surrounding Instagram practises. She released a Youtube video in
which she outlined the grievances the app introduced into her life, and
dismantled her remaining social media accounts. Soon after, O’Neil created a
website called “Let’s Be Game Changers” in hopes to continue her influence on
others, but without corporate interests guiding her message. O’Neil’s surprising
decision to “quit” social media and subsequent behaviour following, are both
characteristic and oppositional of Jose Van Dijck’s “neoliberal economic principals”
of the culture of connectivity of contemporary social media platforms.
O’Neil’s shift from endorsing public interests (brands, product
promotion) to endorsing private social values (her own values) is characteristic
of a Van Dijck’s neoliberal economic principals. During her time as an
Instagram model and social media influencer, O’Neil endorsed numerous products
and brands which provided monetary compensation for creating an audience that
can then be advertised too. By eventually refusing to promote her online
identity in a way that economically benefitted a product or company, this
transferred the control of economic factors from the public sector, to the
private sector.
O’Neil’s controversial choice to delete all her social media
accounts proved to be neoliberalist in nature, as this action defied the
popularity mechanisms, hierarchies, and competition inherent in social media.
However, her subsequent behaviour in uploading a video to Youtube explaining
her controversial choice, was oppositional to Van Dijck’s neoliberal economic
principals. While O’Neil’s intention in sharing the video was to help spread
awareness on the inauthenticity of social media persona’s, in doing so this re-perpetuated
the very relationship she was opposing. In order for her video to be effective
and reach a large audience, she again must engage the popularity mechanisms,
hierarchies and online competition she opposes. Her Youtube video is edited, omits
certain information and is framed in a specific light for the public, despite
having no public interests behind it (see below).
Essena O’Neil has demonstrated through her choice to “quit”
social media and subsequent actions, both characteristic and oppositional
qualities of Van Dijck’s neoliberal economic principals. Her overall message
disavowing Instagram and its social values is characteristic neoliberal in
nature, however her method of disseminating that message through the very thing
she has publicly disavowed is clearly not. For her to speak out against popularity
mechanisms, hierarchies, and online competition, she had to utilize them.
Works Cited:
Essena O'Neill - Why I REALLY Am Quitting Social Media - (Original Video). Perf. Essena O'Neil. Why I REALLY Am Quitting Social Media - (Original Video). Youtube, 3 Nov. 2015. Web. 2 Dec. 2016.
Van Dijck, J. (2013). The culture of connectivity: A critical history of social media. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Great post! I agreed with your critique of Essena O'Neil using Youtube as a platform to express her displeasure with social media platforms as being strictly ironic as she was using a social media platform she was denouncing in her video. As you have stated her attempt to dispute the characteristics perpetuated by social media involved her revisiting them to ensure her message reached a large audience. I think it is wrong that she is trying to scold the sites that have afforded her the ability to voice her opinion and have it make a difference because of her following. She made it clear that in order for her to speak out against the principles of neoliberal economics she had to utilize them to make a difference. I think your post clearly outlined this idea!
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ReplyDeleteNice Post TJ! I like how you talk about Essena's actions as being both characteristic and oppositional of Jose Van Dijck’s “neoliberal economic principles” of the culture of connectivity of contemporary social media platforms. I feel like most people will perceive her actions as characteristic to the neoliberal economic principles and focus on when she held the status of instagram "famous", but neglect the idea of her actions following her departure from social media were oppositional to Van Dijck's "neoliberal economic principles". As much as Essena did not like what Instagram stood for, she used YouTube towards her own advantage for her voice to be heard by the public. Like Shannon mentioned in her comments to you, it's quite ironic as Essena is in a way making this as a hate video yet using the platform still.
ReplyDeleteI fully agree with your post! Essena O'Neill was working within Van Dijk's neoliberal economic principles thorough her using social media in order to gain gratification and sponsorship from others. I also like your point on how her use of another internet medium as a source of protest towards social media still works within Van Dijk's principles as well. She used her website as a way to get her message across, while hoping to receive donations from her viewers. She was going against what social media can stand for in terms of hierarchies and popularity, but yet uses other forms of it to display these ideas.
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