who is she
35 year old vlogger from brighton
began youtube in 2009 - things in my bedroom
zoe sugg youtube subs
zoella subs
insta followers
5M subs
10.5m
9.1 followers
endorsements
- mind ambassador for mental health
- NCS figurehead
- part of 2014 bandaid single - do they know its christmas revamp
stereotypical feminine traits
pastel pinks
fairy lights
fabrics and soft bedding (domestic) - ‘everyday winter makeup’ jan 2018
hyperreality
constructs a hyper real version of reality and female identity (best friend style - chatty)
makes her life aspirational yet achievable
binary oppositions in her life
feminine zoe vs masculine alfie
zoe burps and acts informally vs her gender and feminine appearance
amateurish cinematography
editing is very personal - done herself
appeals to younger audience
parasocial relationship
she builds parasocial relationships with the audience as a ‘best friend’ personality
done through breaking the 4th wall and directly addressing audience (baudrillard)
how do parasocial relationships reflect the age of digital media?
blurring of barrier between consumer and producer
meet and greet at superdrug to launch beauty product 2014
hypermodality
vlog and blog hybrid of zoella brand
used to reach a wider audience (max. audience - hesmondhalgh)
menu bar of website blog
beauty. food, style etc.
hegemonic representation of womens interests
online youtube community
the brit crew
tanya burr, louise pentland etc.
context of zoella brand
zoella is an independent brand
ho. integration - multiple youtube channels and methods of revenue
ve. integration - controls production line and distribution
audience engagement
maximised via multiple sources of revenue
youtube autoplay
zoella.co.uk read next button
external distributors
hodder and stoughton used to publish book girl online
zoellas issues with regulation
promoted brand on insta feed without saying it was a paid sponsorship - now clearly says ‘AD - PR gift’
hate speech towards gay people and women (trying to be a bit macho but never works 2010) (fat chav on x factor 2011) (keep her legs shut) (tramp)
criticised for promoting dangerous beauty standards
what does her issues with regulation suggest about digital media
self regulation - putting age restrictions on and warnings
more reliance on self regulation can lead to subjective views on harm
age target audience
13 - 24
social media use of snapchat
fandoms of britcrew - role models
youth slang
aspirational life for teen girls
crit. : sexual content on website and youtube (vibrators)
BUT for women - not subject to male gaze
ethnicity target audience
mainly white people
racial hierarchy?
lack of inclusion or just coincidence
exclude poc audiences
class target audience
working class
high street fashion brands (h&m, asos, new look)
chatty and informal when want to be - required pronounciation (prestige)
NOW promotes more expensive brands (m&s)
big house
luxury life relfected in middle class - but working class can aspire
apolitical - middle class not highlighted by conservatism
sexuality target audience
heterosexual
nuclear familty model reflected by relationship with alfie
male - excerise, takes her shopping
female - stays at home, bakes, shopping
gender target audience
female
emotive content - mental health
make up, fashion, relationships
male rep
THEN
alfie very masculine - productive, excercise etc
NOW
domestic, spends time with children, mental health
