Master Media Studies Specialisation Digital Cultures
Transformations in Digital Cultures – Research Paper
How Online Fitness Influencers are presenting themselves on health advice and transforming the Industry
Introduction
The rapid growth of modern technology has become an immense part of our everyday life and a fundamental characteristic of the modern era. This have infiltrated our daily routine, have become part of our habits and have influenced the way we produce and consume cultural content, the manner in which we conduct business and essentially, the way we live. These developments have given the individual unprecedented power in terms of publicity which in turn has generated a constant striving to capture and hold the people’s interest. New strategies, approaches and technological means are perpetually being adopted in order to survive the competition and establish oneself as a person influencing trends and affecting human lives. The scientific and technological advances coupled with our consumption-oriented society are the driving forces behind the influencers’ social and cultural authority. Their personal story and first-hand experience, the emotional charge of their messages turn such individuals into market leaders who are able to establish and promote a certain lifestyle and influence a great number of people. Taking a closer look at some of the most prominent figures on social community platforms would provide a valuable insight into some of the practices employed in attracting and maintaining the interest of the audiences. For the purpose of this paper, I have decided to study and analyse the fitness industry as part of the whole online business family and how fitness influencers are altering the consumer’s preferences.
This would enable us to observe the moral implications of digital technologies used as a means for influencing people on a personal level as well as some ethical issues that this process could entail. Self-portrayal and public image are of great consequence to one’s professional development and successful realisation and would partly account for the rise in fitness influencers’ popularity. The moral reasoning behind seems to be rather complex and hardly straightforward, often blurring the lines between genuine concern and the wish to help people on the one hand, and unambiguous desire for commercial gain, on the other. Therefore, the research question that will be a major focus on this work is: How online fitness influencers are presenting themselves on health advice and transforming the Industry?
Within the narrow scope of the current paper, we will touch upon all these aspects and a more in-depth analysis of the various dimensions and corresponding issues would be examined. Moreover, we will attempt to look into some general tendencies and the theoretical groundwork which would provide the reasoning behind them.
Theoretical Framework
The virtual environment provided by the access to social networks and various blogging communities is the primary domain of fitness influencers and their activity. Nowadays, our daily lives are passing in close engagement with technology and our virtual socialisation habits exhibit some of the features of real-life social routine which, resemble our domestic or organisational environments in certain aspects. Therefore, Chughtai suggests that the notion of device paradigm might be considered applicable to the digital setting of our existence. In this context the influencer’s activities are significant as much they reflect the pursuit of life-improvement in accordance with one’s ethical values and thus constitute a reflection of the current state of moral criteria and principles of a certain community (Chughtai, 2019). It is usually the act of engagement and participation that is considered to be of highest ethical value and this engagement concerns focal things and the respective focal practices of individuals.
As Chughtai points out we might argue that a phone has ceased to be simply an every-day possession but has become a focal point of our environment around which our activities are centred and which serves as a connection with the world. It is this centrality of the digital devices to our social existence nowadays that determine the new authority of influencers on the web and the impact of the content they share. Unrestricted access to the messages they spread, availability at any time or place are the factors that facilitate their activities, while influencers’ approachability as well as relative emotional and social closeness to the audience make their content relatable and easily absorbed.
Influencers’ authority stems from their personal achievements or power to influence and motivate people. The personal account of their own experience and the difficulties that often arise in the process are especially powerful means for achieving reciprocity and this is most evident when it comes to personal development and physical well-being. An influencing individual has achieved results in a certain sphere and this provides weight and authority to their methods and techniques creating the impression of being achievable and within the scope of everyone’s ability. This is often achieved through providing objectivity and attainability to their practices. An exceptionally popular practice these days – digital monitoring of personal fitness through the use of various self-tracking devices has often been perceived as a testament to the objectivity and reliability of physical improvement (Sharon & Zandbergen, 2016). However, the quantified self merely calculating one’s progress and observing the numerical representation of their activities exhibit certain restrictions when it comes to evaluating their real goal-attaining ability as it does not take all the individual and contextual factors into account (Sharon & Zandbergen, 2016). This could be viewed as one of the reasons why this digital calculatory approach to measuring fitness has been considered rather lacking, and in some cases detrimental to one’s progressive development when physical well-being is concerned. Sharon & Zandbergen argue that this sort of “data fetishism” is largely reductionist and limited in its function. Self-observation and self-tracking could be viewed as aspects of a more wholesome and mindful approach that would permit maximisation of the results by taking into consideration the personal characteristics of every individual and eliminating the stress of not adhering closely to the adopted plan of their activities. Criticism of digital technologies as a self-applied tracking methodology does not end there. As Lupton states promoting self-monitoring fitness devices might be seen as a way to impose personal responsibility for one’s health and fitness onto the individual self and are often interpreted from a bio-political perspective as this neo-liberal aspect of their implication disregards additional socio-political dimensions to one’s well-being (Lupton, 2019). As bold as those claims may seem they are most common among influencers and the sole reliance on self-tracking gadgets is frequently frowned upon or even rejected by many fitness gurus on the web.
However, a moderate approach is not uncommon and seems to be gaining ground among influencers promoting a self-quantified approach of mindfulness and self-awareness. Sharon & Zandbergen postulate that the quantified self is being slowly replaced by the emerging quantifying self which is seen as an individual applying more encompassing and sensitive to outside factors approach to interpreting the numerical data received from self-tracking devices (Sharon & Zandbergen, 2016). This approach has been largely advocated by influencers who are both inclined to inspire personal responsibility but are reluctant to dismiss the human individual factor in the process of fitness development.
Influencers’ intended messages and the way they are delivered has been determined by the tendency of Internet users to socialise from their private homes. Therefore, the nature of the content as well as the act of sharing it had adopted a form suitable to the new realities – it needs to be accessible, adequate in length and frequently updated. Perhaps the most important trait distinguishing this manner of communicating with a wide audience is its interactivity and the chance for everyone to participate actively in the process and give feedback or ask questions. Bakardjieva suggests the term “immobile socialisation” as best describing this sense of belonging to a cyber community, which she views as mirroring Williams’s term “mobile privatisation” (Bakardjieva, 2003). Despite the physical restriction to a certain locality, the participants are actively interacting within the social networks they use. It is not uncommon for such interactions to be even more intensified as they are not limited by working hours or space. This type of social engagement acquires the form of a social practice which might go beyond the usual interests of the users and draw them even further into a given activity (Bakardjieva, 2003). This is readily understood and exploited by influencers who would often update their content and trigger various discussions within their community which consequently attract interest andadditional followers.
Influencing people on such a large scale hides certain risks and the dangers are all the more serious when they concern people’s health as it is in the case of fitness influencers. The issue of self-diagnostics or finding unreliable information online is particularly pressing nowadays. It has been addressed by Cline & Haynes who contend that this practice is hardly beneficial and could be rather detrimental to one’s health due to the quality of information accessible on the Internet. This has led to influencers’ increasingly reminding or pointing out the need to contact a qualified physician in case of an injury or prolonged discomfort.
Those theories and viewpoints are indicating not only the moral implications for any social engagement but also coincide with the real influencers’ habits and actions. Building a community online is not only the new way of marketing for certain brands but building a stable arena on which only the highly valued businesses may persist. Thus, from a theoretical point of view, the fitness industry has been indeed influenced by the new online engaged society. The next section will demonstrate practical examples that will further help in answering the research question.
Methodology and Empirical Data Analysis
The methodology adopted in the current research consists of the simultaneous application of a few distinct anthropological approaches. I have employed the non-participatory, observational method of authentic representation of techniques and practices used by fitness influencers within the virtual community platform to achieve high degree of realistic factual representation without my own personal experiences to influence the objectivity of the findings. In addition, a confessional story in the form of an interview with a prominent influencer, whom for the purposes of this analysis would be referred to as Yanita has been acquired in order to provide a more personal experience and lend a more intimate and direct dimension to the narrative (Van Maanen, 2011). However, there are possibilities for limitations because my focus is on one influencer, but if it was done with other then different data could be reached. The data is presented with the help of coding and categorizing the interview which provides a clearer perspective of the interviewee’s experience and online routine. Three axial codes were created: Personal opinion on fitness, social media use, and Personal opinion on health. The codes are important because the qualitative data analysis will be grouped into categories and themes. The relationship between them gives not only a list of her practices as an influencer but explains the choice of words and phrases she exploits which is a vital part of the analysis. Furthermore, it reveals the methodology of activities and duties an influencer follows throughout the day and how this alters the taste and preferences of the audience.
Most observations were collected through closely following, recording and analysing certain features of the blogging activities of three prominent fitness influencers on the Instagram platform over the course of one month. Eventually, the subjects have been asked to provide answers to a questionnaire regarding their daily routine and the promotional strategies they have implemented in order to grow their community and maintain the high quality of the content they provide to their audience. This is also supported by the interviewee stating: “I update my social media profile regularly with new pictures, stories, advices and recently I start adding comedy as entertainment” (Appendix II, p. 15).
In the course of the investigation, it has become clear that one significant aspect of virtual communication and a fundamental factor at getting one’s message across is language. It has become evident that the use of language exhibits some specific features when used for blogging, chat and community posts. Semiotics and linguistics have long been preoccupied with the essentially different means of interaction on the Internet dominated by the use of abbreviation, emoticons and graphic images. As Crystal puts it, the virtual environment provides a distinct semiotic situation and the means for communication are different from those we normally employ in other situational settings, the expressive means and general rules of verbal and written communication often do not apply to online chats, forums and blogging (Crystal, 2006) This development suggests that the connection between influencers and their audience is of emotive nature, more immediate and informal and in that sense more easily established. Yanita also points out that the members of her community rarely react with more than an emoticon or simple likes and generating a more active form of participation in the comment section is sometimes hard to achieve. This was clear when the interviewee brought the subject up regarding “social media”: “I receive mostly compliments but those days write words they use emojis or just react with like. So I don’t know if they like my work or something else, the background or whatever” (Appendix II, p. 13). As far as the influencer’s message goes, any information shared as personally experienced is consumed more readily and allows the figure of the influencer to be viewed as combining the voices of the authority, the fellow sufferer and an inspiring role model that one could identify with. The use of highly emotive, non-formal language is the reflection of this new type of connection which transforms the very nature of the dialogue between those seeking health guidance and those providing it. Highly specialised and formal manner of communication hinders communication and puts boundaries between the participants and fitness influencers seem to bridge the gap between trained specialists and ordinary people who often feel ignored or misunderstood by the latter. 75% of the answers to the survey also indicate that influencers avoid engaging in lengthy discussions and specialised terminology as it often has a negative effect on their relationship with their followers.
This development makes it possible for fitness influencers to reach thousands and have a crucial impact on their lifestyle choices. This newly acquired authority creates advertising and promotional opportunities that involve the biggest and most popular brands of pharmaceutical products, fitness equipment and self-tracking gadgets as well as opening the door to niche products and brands that are generally less known but trusted and recommended by the influencer. Of all the participants in the survey 80 % would include promotion of relatively unknown or small-range brand products with emphasis on natural and organic content or innovative use and design. All of them indicate that one of their central goals is developing their own brand or line of products in the future. Thus fitness influencers can be seen as effecting the industry by diversifying and widening the market and potential users of fitness and well-being goods. Our also admits to pursuing a commercial goal and the establishment of her own company and brand. This was clear when the interviewee pointed:“I want to build my own name in the industry and work with my sponsor. I am also currently designing my own brand” (Appendix II, p. 15).
Blogging and being in touch with her followers is vital as providing online advice and classes does not encourage enough involvement on the part of her audience, they need to be intrigued, inspired and motivated constantly. Furthermore, adding: “I participate in group chats. I try to post everyday picture/message” (Appendix II, p. 14).
Another aspect of fitness influencers’ role and impact and one that we already touched upon is the sense of authority that influencers and their community provide to their audience. From a psychological perspective, as Camerini et al. argue power-relations in virtual health communities is a key element to the way those online societies are structured and function in a self-sustaining manner (Camerini et al. 2010). The figure of the influencer is the centre of the community and the advice they provide is deemed solid and reliable, without being questioned by the audience. However, as long as their viewpoint is not radically different from that of the influencer, any member of the community is welcome to provide their own personal feedback and in that way establish their own authority among the followers. An interesting and common occurrence is the violation of the “code” by sharing a negative or hateful comment in the respective section. It is often disparaged by the influencer’s followers without the need for the influencer to interfere on their own behalf. However, most participants in the survey point out that they often do, when they consider it necessary. In other words, the influencers’ network of followers functions as a hierarchical structure, where everyone can acquire relatively prominent status within certain limits. What distinguishes the community formed around a fitness influencer and the majority of health virtual communities is the presence of a central authoritative figure, which is also approachable and whose advice is easy to process and the promised results are perceived as plausible and achievable.
Discussion and Conclusion
Thus far, the research about the fitness industry and how it is changed by the new area of online influencers consisted of carried out virtual anthropology, further reinforced by the personal account given by a leading representative. This strongly indicates that fitness influencers’ impact on the way we perceive self-care is fundamental in this day and age. It is rooted into the charismatic, inspirational personality of the influencer and stems directly from the success of their personal achievement as an ordinary human being. This influence has marked psychological, economical and cultural aspects that provide multi-dimensional authoritative status to the individual, their community and the advice they provide. In times when consumers’ trust in conventional forms of advertising has been largely undermined, everything promoted by the influencers’ personalities has proved much more effective for achieving commercial success and has radically transformed the marketing industry. A closer, more intimate connection between the two sides of the transaction can enormously facilitate the promotion of a given product or lifestyle. A consumerist society like the one we live in is largely dependent on physical appearance and as general well-being has become a priority for the self-aware individual, prioritising self-care and body-image improvement has turned into a successful enterprise.
The form and function of the message as well as the channel of its transmission brings forward the centrality of language. The way an influencer interacts with their followers is fundamentally different from other situational contexts and the content of their advice acquires a simplified, highly emotive and stylised form that is easily assimilated as it is boiled down to its essence without unnecessary verbosity and complicated terms. This manner of linguistic and semiotic representation gives the impression of truthfulness and straightforwardness. Thus, despite the fact that it permits heavy editing before being posted, the influencers’ advice appears intimate, sincere and therefore reaches and effects deeply a high number of people.
On the other hand, technological advances have granted the individual a sense of autonomy and emancipation from institutional hegemony. Thus, the influencer has filled the position of an intermediary whose function is to serve as an example of what every one of us could achieve on their own, generating a sense of empowerment and self-reliance, which might prove quite addictive and therefore easily exploitable. Therefore, all of the above can be considered as our conclusive response to the research question given at the beginning of the paper. However mundane that kind of reasoning may seem, the outlined tendencies are instigated by the innate necessity for self-development and self-improvement of the individual and imply the further and more pervasive influence of influencers in this field in the future.
References:
Bakardjieva, M. (2003). Virtual togetherness: An everyday-life perspective. Media, Culture & Society, 25(3), 291-313.
Camerini, L., Diviani, N., & Tardini, S. (2010). Health virtual communities: Is the self lost in the net? Social Semiotics, 20(1), 87-102.
Chughtai, H. (2019). Human values and digital work: An ethnographic study of device paradigm. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 49(1), 27-57.
Cline, R. J. (2001). Consumer health information seeking on the internet: The state of the art. Health Education Research, 16(6), 671-692.
Crystal, D. (2006). Language and the internet , Journal of Cambridge University Press, 2nd ed.Cambridge:August 31, 2006, 5-12.
Van Maanen, J. (2011). Tales of the Field: On Writing Ethnography, Second Edition. University of Chicago Press, 2011, 45-55; 74-79.
Yanita Ynacheva – Fitness Influencer https://www.instagram.com/yanitayancheva/?hl=bg
Transformations in Digital Cultures – Reflection on the First Term
2020-2021-100-DCU4000
There is a lot that I have learned in this class over the past semester. From learning to do Qualitative Interview to being able to make Blog design. The amount of information I have learned I will use to go beyond in the next semester. All the tasks we had to do were linked to topics and materials that some of them I found for extremely interesting and I will love to look in-depth for further knowledge. For example in one of the tasks we had to watch a movie and discuss the topic of “Robots: Implications for our humanoid future”. This made me think what is the future for us? Can robots think like humans? What will happen if robots replace humans? What robots can do better than humans? I found a really helpful article by Forbes that desired me to think about questions they ask: Would you want a robot giving you an important medical diagnosis? Would you want to go to a theater and watch a cast of robots perform for you?
However, there is another topic that I was curious about it. The use of Social Media Data. From our class, I found out about the movie “Social Dilemma” how political campaigns get an advantage in the data we provide. There are platforms like Facebook and Twiter that are changing the face of politics today. Also, data privacy on social media is private? We are living in the digital age accelerated the evolution of online social networks. Social media has become an emerging industry with massive input and output cash flow. As a result, massive data sources have been created as a result of such a massive market.
Finally, I will like to learn more about Virtual Reality. This course made me realize that I will like to experience the newest Virtual Reality platform –Facebook Horizon. At first, Horizon seemed like another crazy experiment from Facebook but is the “ultimate” social VR experience. From Virtual Reality class, we learn about the Phenomenology of the Virtual and the Real. Is hard to explain what would be Horizon and how useful would be because I didn’t experience it yet. But as I know this platform it will connect us with friends and family but at the same time, we will be alone.
Real Virtualities – Phenomenological Anecdote
2020-2021-100-DCU4001
Online stress
Online stress
“Oh my goodness … Why is it so hard?” This is my first reaction to the online tutorial on web design. My computer slows down to the extent that I have to stay behind with the task of the day. I’d spent over four hours on zoom calls; that’s 240 minutes spent staring at other people faces on my screen. My eyes hurt from the screen light; I try to smile but just for a while. Of course I try to look presentable and move around my body location as everyone can see me well on their screens. Of course, I stay after the Zoom meeting with my professor so I can finish the assignment. I look at my screen and tell him “I can’t follow what you are saying”, so he asks me to share my screen with him. His first reaction is “Why do you have 20 tabs open? This is why your computer is so slow!” I push the computer away and my teacher saw my reaction. “Don’t get panic”, he told me. I become quite and didn’t know what to answer.
The truth is that I changed and now confuses all my passwords for Canvas, Netflix, Instagram, Facebook, and Gmail so I need some time to fix that. My open windows of those platforms made everything on my screen to freeze any other minute. However, the situation is out of control and I space out because I assume that I can’t understand anything. Now my head hurts as well and I feel weakness, my doesn’t want to move. I can’t focus and I can’t see simple things on my screen like numbers and words. I feel incredibly lost almost to the edge of crying. I realize that if we were in the same room and my professor would just point it out to me I will be fine and back on track. Distance learning distracts me and I find it impossible to learn anything fast enough. So I am just praying for the best at this point…
