The changing types of

audience..

DEVELOPING CELEBRITY IDOLISATION

What are the audience evolving to be? What role do they play in the celebrity phenomenon?

• Media audiences were inactive recipients• Now media establishments encourage active

participation

The audience as ‘Props’

• Traditional methods for example quiz shows and documentaries which follow the normal lives of ordinary people have always needed audience participation.

• In the 1960s and 70s an example of a popular TV show is The Golden Shot. Many quiz and game shows of the time had members of the public participating as competitors.

Media Magazine

The Audience as ‘Curiosities’

• In the 1970s the main focus of successful shows was to investigate consumer health or issues

• Great concern & consideration was shown to audiences

• Example: That’s Life

The Audience as ‘Content’

• Participating audience provided the show’s content

• You’ve Been Framed was based around audience members submitting home videos, could be the originator of Youtube.

• Youtube now uses audience to provide content eg Robert’s Web C4: 2010

The Audience as ‘Subjects’

• A popular format in the 90s was a fly on the wall series called ‘docusoap’. Many of these shows focused on work environments ie Driving School and Airports.

• These shows had a few breakout characters, through being a participating audience they became celebrities.

• Early examples of the convention of reality television that some participants are provided with platform to move from being an audience member to being a celebrity

Audience Participation – Big BrotherPowerful Powerless

The producers of the show

• Controls who appears by holding auditions

• Creates specific representations of contestants through selective editing

• Constructs situation to manipulate who’s up for eviction

• Cant completely control the way participants behave or the relationships they form

• Cant control the way audience vote

Audience • Can select who stays or goes by voting during eviction

• Can choose not to watch programme if its not entertaining enough

• Cant always identify how much editing may be manipulating the perception of characters

Participants • They can alter behaviour in an attempt to make themselves more popular

• They are unaware how they are being presented by the institution or the tabloid press

Press • They can choose to represent contestants as ‘villains’, ‘victims’, ‘heroes’ etc

• They cannot directly influence the contestants activities in the house

Evolution of boy bands

• The boy band phenomenon all started with the "mania" surrounding The Beatles and the latest boy band One Direction have now been made into action figures and other advertising forms, boy bands are changing.

• Over the past 50 years, there have been a number of coordinated, harmonizing boy bands, each of them just a bit different from the previous. www.huffingtonpost.com

The audience are more interactive with the boy bands nowadays because of..

• Meet and greet concerts• Social media sharing photos and whereabouts

to fans• cd/book signings..

However audience participation could be declining..

• Because of the misuse of social networking sites, forms of audience participation could decrease as not all audience agree on audience participation techniques.

Evolution of girl bands

• 1950s – several girl bands started to produce songs that mixed doo wop harmonies and blues music

• Usually trios or quartets where there any lead vocalist, the others supported a background vocal.

• Girl bands flourished during the 1960s, constant presence in bill board charts

www.history-of-rock.com

• Now girl groups are being formed through talent shows such as Girls Aloud and Little Mix.

• The audience now have a say in how girl bands progress and their formation

www.history-of-rock.com

Celebrity Case Studies

Marilyn Monroe

• An American actress, model and singer. Starting off as a model then got a film contract with 20th century Fox for which she is most known for.

• She started off the label ‘blonde bombshell’

• She’s still well known for her beauty and intellect, many still get inspiration from her quotes.

• She’s still a celebrity brand 50 years after her death

• However audience participation didn’t start until after her legacy

Kim Kardashian

• Didn’t find fame through talent but instead a leaked video, showing how media now has a lot to play in initial stardom

• Audience is very participatory in her daily life as she and her family members have a string of reality tv shows including Keeping Up With The Kardashians, Kourtney and Kim Take New York etc

How are celebrities famous?

TV

• From being contestants on reality tv/talent shows to becoming presenters and artists.

• Gone from ordinary to stars• Reality tv provides a platform for ordinary people to become famous

Internet

• Youtube allows ordinary people to post videos that are viewed by millions.

• Home videos can be projected to worldwide platform

• Ordinary people can develop new personas through Youtube

Film

Importance of franchises..

• Celebrities rely on franchises for consecutive work like Indiana Jones and Harry Potter.

• Successful movie franchises means that actors are expected to reprise their roles for each sequel, increasing their fame and net worth.

Sport

Olympians have now been fast tracked to the world of celebrity:

• Tom Daley is now getting celebrity attention on Twitter

• Victoria Pendleton is now a contestant on talent show Strictly Come Dancing

Story board

Script

Actors

• Presenter – casual clothing (t-shirt, scarf, jeans, boots), folder, relaxed body language, informed on topic already

• Public interviews – the younger generation (teens, young adults), mature adults (30s/40s/50s)

• Expert interview – sociologist, psychologist

Location

MusicEmeli Sande – Heaven InstrumentalsTinchy Stryder – Help Me Instrumentals

Because..• Its familiar to younger audience• Change paces a lot reflecting change in nature

of celebrity and audience

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKGCSjT39mM