”I’m with Meryl”: Celebrity Activism, Self-Presentation and Social Media

TY - ABST

T1 - ”I’m with Meryl”: Celebrity Activism, Self-Presentation and Social Media

AU - Haastrup, Helle Kannik

PY - 2018

Y1 - 2018

N2 - ”I’m with Meryl”: Celebrity Activism, Self-Presentation and Social Media final version Celebrity activism on social media profiles in the era of the attention economy exemplifies a different dynamic as to how and what the celebrity activist can communicate to fans and followers than previously. Existing research on political activism has primarily concentrated on the representation of celebrity activism in legacy media (Wheeler 2013, Corner and Pels 2003). However in todays attention economy celebrities also address political issues, as well as promoting their philanthropic work and humanitarianism, on their social media profiles. Therefore the aim is to establish a theoretical framework combining theories of celebrity activism with theories of online self-representation and parasocial interaction, as well as theories of celebrity culture in order to be able to analyze how the political is integrated with the personal performance on social media by celebrities. The framworks is apllied to a case study is a selection of six social media profiles belonging to well-known female stars who have been politically active on their social media profile on Instagram: This paper is divided into two sections: 1) The presentation of the theoretical framework combines theories on celebrity activism (Raphael and Lam 2017, Chouliaraki 2013, Drezner 2009) with self-presentation and social media (Marshall 2010, Marwick and boyd 2010, Marwick 2015), celebrity culture (Marshall 1999, Cashmore, 2006, Dyer 1979) and theories of parasocial and mediated communication (Horton & Wohl 1955, Meyrowitz 1985). In the second section this framework is applied to a qualitative empirical analysis of a selection of six profiles belonging to female Hollywood stars including Jessica Chastain, Viola Davis, Charlize Theron, Brie Larson, Kerry Washington and Emma Watson. The analysis focusses on how their celebrity activism fit’s into their overall self-presentation performance with focus on the concepts of ’moral authority’ (Cashmore), ’authenticity’ (Marwick) and ’transgressive self-presentation’ (Marshall) . The three main issues addressed on the profiles include support for the 2017 Golden Globe speech by Meryl Streep (#I’mwithMeryl), The 2017 Womens March and a critique of the Charlottesville Supremacists. Thus this theoretical framework makes it possible to analyze and critically discuss what kind of celebrity activism is being done on social media by female Hollywood stars today within the attention economy. References Chouliaraki, Lillie (2013) The Ironic Spectator. Polity: Cambridge. Dyer, Richard (1979): Stars. BFI Publishing: London. Marwick, Alice (2015) Instafame: Luxury Selfies and the Attention Economy” In: Public Culture. Meyrowitz, Joshua (1985) No Sense of Place. Oxford University Press: Oxford. Wheeler, Mark (2013): Celebrity Politics. Polity Press: Cambridge. Key words Celebrity-activism Star-studies Social-media Self-presentation Celebrity-culture Bio Helle Kannik Haastrup is Associate Professor, Ph.D. at university of Copenhagen. My research interests are celebrity culture and digital media culture, cross-media analysis and contemporary film and television fictions. In English I have co-edited Intertextuality and the Visual Media and recent publications include “Power Play and Family Ties: Hybrid Fantasy, Network Narrative, and Female Characters”, in the edited volume ”Women of Fire and Ice”(Bloomsbury 2016) and ”Framing the Oscars Live” In: Celebrity Studies (2016).

AB - ”I’m with Meryl”: Celebrity Activism, Self-Presentation and Social Media final version Celebrity activism on social media profiles in the era of the attention economy exemplifies a different dynamic as to how and what the celebrity activist can communicate to fans and followers than previously. Existing research on political activism has primarily concentrated on the representation of celebrity activism in legacy media (Wheeler 2013, Corner and Pels 2003). However in todays attention economy celebrities also address political issues, as well as promoting their philanthropic work and humanitarianism, on their social media profiles. Therefore the aim is to establish a theoretical framework combining theories of celebrity activism with theories of online self-representation and parasocial interaction, as well as theories of celebrity culture in order to be able to analyze how the political is integrated with the personal performance on social media by celebrities. The framworks is apllied to a case study is a selection of six social media profiles belonging to well-known female stars who have been politically active on their social media profile on Instagram: This paper is divided into two sections: 1) The presentation of the theoretical framework combines theories on celebrity activism (Raphael and Lam 2017, Chouliaraki 2013, Drezner 2009) with self-presentation and social media (Marshall 2010, Marwick and boyd 2010, Marwick 2015), celebrity culture (Marshall 1999, Cashmore, 2006, Dyer 1979) and theories of parasocial and mediated communication (Horton & Wohl 1955, Meyrowitz 1985). In the second section this framework is applied to a qualitative empirical analysis of a selection of six profiles belonging to female Hollywood stars including Jessica Chastain, Viola Davis, Charlize Theron, Brie Larson, Kerry Washington and Emma Watson. The analysis focusses on how their celebrity activism fit’s into their overall self-presentation performance with focus on the concepts of ’moral authority’ (Cashmore), ’authenticity’ (Marwick) and ’transgressive self-presentation’ (Marshall) . The three main issues addressed on the profiles include support for the 2017 Golden Globe speech by Meryl Streep (#I’mwithMeryl), The 2017 Womens March and a critique of the Charlottesville Supremacists. Thus this theoretical framework makes it possible to analyze and critically discuss what kind of celebrity activism is being done on social media by female Hollywood stars today within the attention economy. References Chouliaraki, Lillie (2013) The Ironic Spectator. Polity: Cambridge. Dyer, Richard (1979): Stars. BFI Publishing: London. Marwick, Alice (2015) Instafame: Luxury Selfies and the Attention Economy” In: Public Culture. Meyrowitz, Joshua (1985) No Sense of Place. Oxford University Press: Oxford. Wheeler, Mark (2013): Celebrity Politics. Polity Press: Cambridge. Key words Celebrity-activism Star-studies Social-media Self-presentation Celebrity-culture Bio Helle Kannik Haastrup is Associate Professor, Ph.D. at university of Copenhagen. My research interests are celebrity culture and digital media culture, cross-media analysis and contemporary film and television fictions. In English I have co-edited Intertextuality and the Visual Media and recent publications include “Power Play and Family Ties: Hybrid Fantasy, Network Narrative, and Female Characters”, in the edited volume ”Women of Fire and Ice”(Bloomsbury 2016) and ”Framing the Oscars Live” In: Celebrity Studies (2016).

M3 - Conference abstract for conference

T2 - Society of Cinema and Media Studies Conference 2018 Toronto

Y2 - 14 March 2019 through 18 March 2019

ER -