Introduction to OSP: blog tasks

1) What years did YouTube, Twitter and Instagram launch?

2005, 2006, 2010

2) What is the definition of an influencer?

A person that has become well-known on social media and is able to endorse/promote products

3) Give an example of an influencer and how many followers they have. Try and add some additional information, brand associations or other statistics if you can.

Nicki Minaj, with 136 million Instagram followers, caused a spike in demand for pink crocs by 4900% in a matter of hours after wearing a pair of them in an Instagram post

4) How big is the influencer industry according to the article?

By the end of 2019, it was worth $8bn 

5) What are the problems associated with being an influencer?

Controversial opinions on politics or potentially have fake followers by paying for bots

6) Why is it suggested that audiences actually like being sold products by influencers?

Because it makes them more convinced to buy the product if the recommendation if from an idol/role model

7) What representation of beauty is often found on Instagram or other influencer sites?

For women, it is a young face with clear skin and plump, high cheekbones, long lashes and full lips - essentially Caucasian but with "a hint of rootless exoticism", which is drawing inspirations from the "most appealing" features of other ethnicities in order to set unattainable beauty expectations and boost white supremacy

8) What is YOUR opinion on influencers? Are they a positive or negative influence on our society and culture? Why?

They can be negatively and positively influential, especially on teenagers, in contexts to beauty, lifestyle, and belief systems. The emergence of the "Instagram face" amongst female models and influencers on social media platforms, who are paid to be attractive, promotes the ideology of women only being beautiful if they have "a young face, of course, with pore-less skin and plump, high cheekbones, long lashes and full lips". This hinders the confidence of young women and singlehandedly expedites the insecurities of teenage girls, especially if they are not of a white background.