media reflection – YUYU On Media

Weibo’s “Super Topics”: A Community as the Commons-Based Media Resource

When Twitter is the leading microblogging platform in worldwide, Weibo still occupies the largest share of the Chinese market. The operation mode of them is pretty similar, but the conversation I want to bring today is about a unique feature of Weibo, the “Super Topics”.

“Super Topics Community”
Left: The Category of Film
Right: The Category of Celebrity

The super topics presents in the same form as hashtags, but it is much more than a hashtag. Each super topic has a page, which allows users who share the same interests and thoughts to post in this page. Everyone could set up a super topic page on any topic, as long as it meets up the community code. For example, the advertiser can open a super topic page to promote their product. But advertisers need to pay a fee to the platform to gain exposure. However, the majority of super topic is individual-based and there is no fee needed to open. One of the most active categories is the fandom-based super topics. This kind of super topic could be described as a commons-based media resource, since it not only allows users share the information of stars, but also encourage them to produce more content in the way of peer production.

There are several approaches to describe fandom-based super topics as a commons-based media resource:

Firstly, according to Yochai Benkler, the peer production is driven by intrinsic and self-interested reason. The labor that people provide in peer production is voluntary and used to meet their own needs. The popular of fandom-based super topics is closely correlated with Chinese fan culture. Under this circumstance, fans are willing to dedicate their labor for the super topic page for free. It is not just about finding people who admires the same idol. Some businesses will use the data of super topic as an important indicator of the popularity of celebrities. Therefore, many fans put their leisure time in promoting idols in the super topic community, in order to create more business opportunities for idols.

Secondly, as mentioned before, the commons is not simply about “sharing”. In addition to the update of celebrities’ itinerary and the expression of worship, another important component of super topic is the derivative work made by fan. Cai Xukun’s super topic is a representative example of peer production, who used to rank the first in super topics for hundreds of weeks.

Fans Hand Drawing of Cai Xukun in Super Topic

Fan Made 2021 Year-End Summary of Cai Xukun in Super Topic

Even as an outsider, like me, would feel impressed for the energy that fans devoted in these works. However, their hard work did enrich the content of super topic, making the super topic a more sustainable community.

And thirdly, a common-based media has high degree of autonomy and operates under the guideline made by users themselves. In super topic community, everyone could apply for the position of host. The assessment criteria of host are activation and contribution to content production. The responsibility of a host is to ensure that the content of the super topic conforms to the community’s norms, and to discover high-quality posts so that more people in the community can see it. In addition to this, a super topic’s host is often an organizer of onsite event. For example, there is a fan meeting, a host can distribute the works to other fans: live streaming of the event, photography, post-editing of the materials and content delivery to different platforms. It may sound like the duty of agency company, the difference is that fans have more freedom of creation and they are not getting paid.

Overall, fandom-based super topic not only provides a platform for fans to express their love, but also stimulates the emergence of many excellent derivative pieces. This fully demonstrates how common-based media platform can integrate resources and facilitate content production.

Working in the Digital Economy

“The division of labour … as one of the chief forces of history up till now, manifests itself also in the ruling class as the division of mental and material labour … while the others attitude to these ideas and illusions is more passive and receptive, because they are in reality the active members of this class and have less time to make up illusions and ideas about themselves.”

—— Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels

I remember on my recent lecture, our instructor said a word that impressed me: If you are not paying for a product, you are the product. This is not a new theory but it incurs a profound reflection when I give it a second thought. When we have countless free ways to kill time today, how much invisible labor have we paid?

Social Media Councils: Consultation - Digital — Resource: https://www.article19.org/resources/social-media-councils-consultation/

To answer this question, firstly, we need discuss what social media platform is. When I started to use social media about ten years ago, I was amazed by how these free apps allow me to see my friend’s life updates and get instant conversation with them. Now I am a heavy user of these apps. But I find these apps are pushing different advertising contents to me every day. When I want to quit using them, I realize that I can’t do it. As Nicole S. Cohen says in her article, social media platforms are designed to make advertising more personalized and user- specific, its priority is not for people’s communication convenience. When users think they are enjoying the free services, they are actually both commodity and workers. What they pay is their own attention, time, and sometimes personal information. At the same time, those labour is sold at a marked price to advertisers by platforms.

And, I’m saying, the digital labor exploitation is real. With the emergence of platforms like TikTok, it requires more labor to gain likes (for people who wants to be an influencer). You need the ability to shoot the video and edit it, even write the script. Here is a guide of how to be TikTok famous:

how to become tiktok FAMOUS (0-500k) & go viral overnight! – Tara Michelle

The big companies weave a shining and fancy dream for the users, lure them to become an influencer. Millions of people were attracted by this low-threshold opportunity and put effort into it. There is a living example in my life: I have a friend who wants to be an influencer and have made many attempts on this path. Every time I ate with her in a restaurant, she would spend a lot of time photographing the food and the environment. In the past, all she needs just nice pictures, but now with the popularity of TikTok, she often asks me to take videos for her. Sometimes I think she is very hard, since she can’t completely relax during leisure time and enjoy delicious food.

However, some people would argue this deal is pretty fair. While we labour on social media, we also get many services with no charge. Also, many people become an influencer through these platforms, and earn a considerable income even in part-time. The big Internet companies provide a platform and open to everyone.

I also agree with this idea that, we are not laboring for nothing. But I want to point out, DON’T TAKE IT AS A REWARD. The question is: do we really need all these platforms and technologies? I mean, we didn’t ask for these services at the beginning. These services were the product of technological development and then used by big companies to make profit. As we gradually get used to this environment, there is no other choice for us. Like Marx mentioned, we the audiences are the passive and receptive one. We are not in control of the progress, and all the leisure and convenience provides by the platforms are incidental.

About few months ago, Facebook changed their name to Meta, and launched the Metaverse which aroused a heated discussion around the world. I think this is a very adventurous exploration in the history of technology, and could be a whole new chapter of social media. Along with this, I can see there is a further exploitation of users by the digital economy.

Algorithmic Bias: The Invisible Injustice

*Punched card for input in FIRST generation of Computer*, it reflects how algorithm, the human-decision making procedure collects and processes data.
Resource: https://www.flickr.com/photos/binaryape/5151286161/

Algorithm is not a new term in Internet age. It is a set of instructions to solve problems and was first published in 1843. However, algorithm is now heavily applied to the Internet construction to predict what users want.

The first time I realize the exist of algorithm is when I browse my Instagram feed, the similar product I’ve searched before always pop up. At beginning, I think such highly customized ads are very user-friendly. But then it annoys me and makes me feel my privacy has been violated: my preferences and data are being shared by different platforms. Such advertisements always encourage me to purchase products and trying to get money from my pocket (but I have to admit that my ability of self-control is not strong enough).

This is not the worst. When I am overwhelmed by the promotion posts, my cousin says he doesn’t have such troubles. His Instagram feed is not that consumerized.

On the social media platform, women are usually targeting as consumer group. The marketing strategy is doing the best to make women pay the real money. There are practical reasons behind this phenomenon: according to statistics, the purchasing power of women is significantly higher than men. Obviously, the algorithm has mastered this law.

Statistics on the purchasing power of women
Resource: https://girlpowermarketing.com/statistics-purchasing-power-women/

In addition to this, many of my female friends, including myself, have received this kind of message on Instagram:

It is a new-type scam on social media. Luring young girls on Instagram become brand ambassadors and ask them pay for “free” jewelries. The senders are mostly robot account and run by program. In this case, the algorithm again chooses to target female.

What really makes me uncomfortable is, everything happens here are too invisible. We think that the program has no bias, but forget that people who wrote them has it. In Safiya Umoja Noble’s book, she uses Google search engine to illustrate how algorithm has bias on colored female: when she type keywords “black girls” into searching box, the first page of results is filled with porn. Such discrimination is not inherent in search engines, but a projection of society. When we think that we have entered a brand new and civilized Internet age, no, the history just repeats itself on the new platform. And with the cover of digital screen, all this happened naturally, because we don’t see a real discriminator in front of us.

This invisible injustice has penetrated into social media. Another phenomenon I notice is that many high-liked videos on short video platforms always cater to male gaze.

What would algorithm do here is, when you liked these videos, there will be more and more similar videos occur in your feed. And creators will continue to produce such content in order to gain more likes. Although algorithmic recommendation brings highly personalized feed to users, it has generated a vicious circle on platforms and reinforce the prejudices of society in an invisible way.

The point here is we should realize that new technology is not non-bias. As a product of human and society, algorithm is inevitably containing the domain ideology. It is crucial to aware of this fact and be critical to what we have seen on our feed. I’d like to use a quotation from George Orwell’s renowned book 1984 as the end of this reflection:

Who controls the past controls the future.
Who controls the present controls the past.
George Orwell

SK-II #BareSkinProject: What is Under the Bare Skin?

In recent years, cosmetics and skincare brand seem to be increasingly focusing on integrating customers’ concerning topic into marketing. Meanwhile, more and more consumers begun to take service experience and value recognition into account when choosing the brands. As for most female consumers, the one that impresses most is often related to women’s inner world and female power. It is worth mentioning that the skincare brand SK-II has taken many bold attempts in this field and received lots of positive feedbacks. I’d like to use their recent campaign #BareSkinProject to analyze their marketing strategies and how did this interact with Sheconomy.

What is Sheconomy?
Sheconomy emerged around 2010, along with the improvement of women’s social status and economic strength, suggested by Morgan Stanley Research. Different from the pink economy, which targeting a certain group as major consumption power, Sheconomy more concerns about female’s living conditions and reflects on marketing strategies. As a consumer myself, I would be more touched when I see a brand really care about women’s dilemma in their campaign, rather than simply use pink appearance to draw our attentions.

#BareSkinProject
In this project, SK-II invited six actresses to take a bold try by revealing their bare skin to the public.

Arimura Kasumi, Chloë Moretz, Mayu
Tang Wei, Ni Ni, Chun Xia

#BareSkinProject Chun Xia reveals her Bare Skin with SK II Facial Treatment Essence

#BareSkinProject Chloe Moretz reveals her Bare Skin with SK II Facial Treatment

In this set of photography, all these six actresses didn’t use foundation on the skin, and the only ally was SK-II Facial Treatment Essence. As the photo and video above shows, although Chloe expressed many concerns before shooting, she was quite satisfied with the healthy and natural looking in the end.

As a commercial promotion, I personally think it was very successful. The starting point of this campaign was to show the effect of the Facial Treatment Essence, and what could be more convincing than the bare skin? Especially when it comes to celebrities, people have a natural curiosity for those stunning stars, which brings more attention to this campaign.

Alongside this, the call for natural beauty of women is also a currently debating. On Douyin, there is a challenge called #RejectAppearanceAnxiety, in which girls put their original and filtered photos together. This challenge page racked up over a billion views, which is enough to show how female are paying attention to appearance anxiety. And #BareSkinProject is just calling people to stop anxiety.

#RejectApperanceAnxiety

What is under the Bare Skin?
Back to the question in title: what is under the bare skin? For this campaign, we can say it starts with a well-meaning point, it encourages female to face the true self. However, when we see those celebrities still looking gorgeous with bare skin, will this arouse a new kind of anxiety? The truth that the photography didn’t reveal is that behind their perfect bare skin, there are high spending on skincare and professional lighting from world-renowned photographer.

As a brand campaign, #BareSkinProject inevitably has commercial attributes and ultimately serves the interest of SK-II. The core of #BareSkinProject is not to encourage women to have no makeup and pursue natural beauty. It is used to reflect the effect of product. However, this campaign releases more implicit meaning during the process of dissemination. However, this campaign releases more implicit meaning during the process of dissemination. It breaks the stereotype of beauty and brings up a new definition of feminine beauty. My point here is we should treat the commercial campaign critically, to see what is truly under the bare skin.