Essena O’Neill, a (former) big Instagram star
who had over half a million followers, recently posted a video explaining why
she quit all social media. She claimed that it wasn’t authentic. Because she
was so famous, many brands wanted her to show their products on Instagram. O’Neill
managed to made a lot of money on this and gained a lot of popularity but despite that she felt unhappy. The
brands directed her on how to show the product, exactly the way they wanted. Van
Dijck mentions neoliberal economic principles in her book, and this is a good
example of it (Van Dijck, 2013).
Before she made the decision to quit all
social media, she was caught up in a principle that José van Dijck calls the
popularity principle (Van Dijck, 2013). This principle explains how social
media platforms are structured around hierarchical ranking and ideologies. She was
addicted to the attention she got from posting her flawless Instagram post to
all her followers. The moment she quit it all, was against the popularity
principle, until it became clear she made a website called ‘Let’s Be Game
Changers’. In other words; a social media platform against social media
platforms.
On this platform, she tried to raise money because
she wasn’t able to pay her rent anymore. After she raised a lot of money, she
shut down the website and she is now writing a book on how to get popular on
social media (Shunatona, 2016) .
Van Dijck, J. (2013). The culture of
connectivity: A critical history of social media. Oxford: Oxford University
Press.
Shunatona, B. (2016, January 5). Essena
O'Neill Reveals Surprising Future Plans in 6,200-Word Email. Retrieved December 4, 2016, from
Cosmopolitan: http://www.cosmopolitan.com/style- beauty/beauty/news/a51651/essena-oneill-email-newsletter/
Hi Carolien,
ReplyDeleteAfter reading your post and learning that O'Neill created a website to raise rent due to her lack on income and inability to raise rent I can't help but wonder what happened to all the money that she made through social media. From other influencers or social media famous people it is noticable that they generate a fairly large revenue - this is an assumption from all the bloggers I follow on instagram carrying $1000+ handbags - which obviously are not a gift from large luxury brands such as Chanel. Do you think that this was all a scam? That Essena really didn't enjoy life in the social media industry? Or do you think she did this for more attention and as a way for people to feel bad for her and pay her rent so she could be work free?
These are just my thoughts - would love to know your opinion.
Like Zoey, I also question O'Neill's motivation to crowdfund immediately after claiming to be so successful and rich from the lifestyle that she left. It tainted the authenticity of the situation in my opinion. If she had actually tried to get a job, failed, and then shared this story, she would have validated her situation. Her request for support through social media created questions of hypocrisy, which worked against her initial proposition. She formally used social media in a corporate and self-indulgent way, and her later use of social media was as an honest yet still self-indulgent manner. The centrality of the self is one of the prime characteristics of social media, and she uses it as a crutch in her situation. If she were to start a fundraiser for any insta-famous person to seek support from once they chose to leave the industry, the fundraiser could have been removed from O’Neill’s self-centered activity.
ReplyDelete