Online Democratization

Common + Talented = Stars

In the previous post, I mentioned examples of making it big on YouTube. All of those YouTube stars had one thing in common: before becoming popular, they were all common people, doing common things, living a common life just just like us, and did not have any celebrity background or did not belong to any particular star family. This is a very special attribute of not just YouTube, but any social media platform on the world wide web. The development of the internet and social media had essentially helped eradicate the fine, invisible line between people of different status and position in the society, hence leading to the concept of “online democracy”. From the perspective of equality and same rights for everyone, social media is a place where every human being is equal, and can get their hands on equal amount of spotlight to share their viewpoints, opinions, and have their voices heard around the entire world, only if they have the talent and patience.

Going Viral

It is seen that growth rate amongst common people is at a peak in this day and age, because everyone has complete access to almost all kinds of virtual resources, including information, networks, opportunities, sources, communication platforms and sharing features etc., all with the help of the internet. To go further ahead into an analysis, today it is much easier to reach out to the world, than it was 20 years ago. Our previous generations had to work much harder, because they did not have the means and technology to help them. They required much more physical labour to reach a certain stage, which can be attained much easily today. For instance, let’s consider the amount of struggle and rejection J. K. Rownling, the author of Harry Potter, had to face, to finally become a renowned author. The Harry Potter series that is so famous today, and holds such a special place in the lives of the millennial generation, was rejected 12 times before it finally got published as a book. While it cannot be stated for sure, an inference could still be made, that had social media been so powerful during her times, she probably would not face as much rejection. She might as well be able to reach out to her audience and gain feedback and fame, along her journey of contacting publishers and becoming an author. Going back to the Justin Bieber example, if the social media site, YouTube did not exist, there probably wouldn’t be a famous Justin Bieber either, because, as mentioned in the previous post, he was also “discovered” on YouTube, by an executive of a famous media group - So So Def Recordings. Hypothetically, Justin Bieber would probably come into spotlight more easily today, than he did back in 2009. This brings me to the concept of getting “viral”. With YouTube and other social media sites, reaching the screens of millions of people worldwide within minutes, is so easy, that it has now become a trend.


Citations:

Bhargava, J., & Klat, A. (2017, January 05). Content democratization: How the Internet is fueling the growth of creative economies. Retrieved from https://www.strategyand.pwc.com/reports/content-democratization

Dawn, R. (2017, October 20). J.K. Rowling's original 'Harry Potter' pitch was rejected 12 times - see it in new exhibit. Retrieved from https://www.today.com/popculture/j-k-rowling-s-original-harry-potter-pitch-was-rejected-t117763

Kirkhope, T. (2012, December 12). How the internet is transforming democracy. Retrieved from https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/how-the-internet-is-transforming-democracy-8411474.html

Press, A. (2011, April 04). J.K. Rowling looking into Harry Potter e-books. Retrieved from http://blog.syracuse.com/entertainment/2011/04/jk_rowling_looking_into_harry.html

Srinivasan, A., Dulay, P., Bindal, G., Koropenko, O., Arora, Y., Foster, H., . . . Frances, J. (2018, August 29). Social Media Gives Everyone a Voice – Including the Crazies. Retrieved from https://socialnomics.net/2018/09/03/social-media-gives-everyone-a-voice-including-the-crazies/