R7: Summary of Silvia's Selfies

Reflection #7

  

All of my pictures inevitably show that I'm white. Sometimes people can glean from my face or surname that I am of Italian descent, although that's not obvious to everyone.

My appearance from my necklace to my long hair broadcasts that I identify as a woman, which is correct. The outfits I'm wearing aren't especially feminine except in the second photo, but overall I broadcast a decidedly feminine identity.

These selfies don't communicate anything about my sexuality. I do not regard sexuality as an important part of what I need to show people unless I'm seeking a partner. Perhaps if I picked a selfie with my boyfriend, my images would show something about that part of my identity. If I were to share a picture of us kissing, it would show that I'm attracted to men, but it wouldn't show if I'm also attracted to women.

Socio-economic status is difficult to convey through social media, but people can likely tell I come from some middle class background. I'm not wearing anything or doing anything extravagant but nothing suggests poverty either. People don't always express their income through selfies. For instance, a wealthy person like Martin Shkreli often posts selfies of himself in t-shirt and jeans but we all know he's wealthy because he is a famous figure.

Not much about my cultural affinity is shown except for my age, showing that I am young. Details about my race, relative age, social class, religion, or income are not typically put on purposeful display in my selfies, but people would be able to conclude some aspects just by seeing them. For example, the second picture shows me with the "I voted" sticker, unique to US elections, displaying my national residency.

While I am apathetic towards cultural affinity, I enjoy expressing affinity groups in my selfies by showing what my interests are. The first image taken a couple days ago shows my interest in animals. While "liking animals" is not a strict group, the picture expresses that I regard myself as a "pet lover," a type of person. It's my new Facebook profile photo, revealing just how much I wanted it to represent me online for a while.

The second photo identifies me as a USA voter. It is seen that I voted, but it is not seen who I voted for or what ideology I support. The picture communicates that I think voting is important or that I feel good about voting.

The third photo was taken at the National Cannabis Festival in DC last weekend and I show my enthusiasm for cannabis business. I'm wearing a hat from Weedmaps, a website connecting cannabis patients to doctors, dispensaries, and delivery services across the US. What people can't see from the selfie is that I lost the hat halfway through the festival, but I still choose to show it to people because I still enjoy Weedmaps.

Selfies are a way for people to communicate aspects of their identity but that is not the only purpose. Just because I'm compelled to take the selfie doesn't mean I intend to post it to social media or even show anyone. I find myself taking selfies to personally commemorate my life at a specific time. For example, I didn't post the last photo to social media. I just wanted a selfie to look back on for the event I attended.

R7

R7

           A selfie to me is a picture that one takes to show off what they are either wearing or where they are capturing the views around them. This is one way that we show others what we do outside of our day to day life. Being Indian and having Indian parents who came from India I still part take it taking photos and also wearing the traditional Indian outfits. Photos are allowing someone to capture the moment and remember where you are and what you wore. By me wearing a sari in the Indian culture it means that I have a certain age that I'm allowed to wear it. Indian is what I am Nationality wise. I'm the type of person who needs to take a thousand pictures before I find one good one. Or I need to find that perfect lighting to help out with the overall appearance of the photo. Traveling is something I have grown a found of and taking a selfie with a famous area just to remember the trip and why the real reason why I went there. This has to do with the social ecomonic statues. I am truly blessed to have two hard working parents that also love to travel and thats something that we share a common bond with.
     
   The photos that are here are the multiple sides to who I am. I like being able to take pics to capture where I am and what I'm doing. Being able to take selfies using snapchat filters just make me enjoy taking a ton of them. Compared to my parents generation they are not really used to taking selfies they take normal photos with other people. My parents don't really post pictures they will take family photos and with their friends but they don't understand what the real concept of selfies are.

Reflection 7-Bobadilla, Steve

Steve Bobadilla

MCS 355

Prof. Snyder

Reflection #7

Friday, April 28, 2017

                                                       Me vs. the “infamous” “Selfie”

      First and foremost, I’m not one of those people that likes to take selfies, so this experience was unique. Secondly, I tried to figure out when to take a selfie was the most challenging part. My identity is shown through all selfies because I feel as though they reflect my personality. They also give a good perspective on how I perceive the world by sitting from my wheelchair. These selfies don’t obscure my sense of identity. As a matter of fact, they enhance my sense of identity. Furthermore, I’m a very curious person who likes to explore interesting events happening on campus. For example, the somewhat blurry photo explains my visit to the URCAD event, which is always attracts lots of attention. I was accompanied by my cousin, who had never been to URCAD. I had trouble with pushing the button, which made the picture blurry. In this case, I felt as though I needed a “selfie stick”. The picture with me and my computer, explains my happiness toward the 1^st round win of the Houston Rockets in the NBA playoffs. My facial expression kind says it all. Finally, the last photo explains my faithfulness to my favorite soccer team which is D.C. United. I believe that sports have become a big part of my identity, since my childhood. I think my parent’s generation was completely different because they dressed differently and rock and roll had just peaked. Everybody in the sixties had eccentric clothing, meaning people tried their hardest to become a celebrity. 

Anybody who knows me knows that I love face to face conversations. People would also say that I’m a family guy as well as athletic. They are also aware that I rarely post content on social media, because I value face to face interaction. I would consider myself “social media blind” because I don’t have Twitter, Snapchat, and Instagram accounts. On the other hand, I still have full support of my family, who has been with me through the rough times. I have also received lots of praise for all the obstacles I have overcome in my life. The most important thing is that I don’t receive any “special treatment” because of my disability. My family recognizes that I’m and outgoing and social person.

In conclusion, taking selfies is a trend that has lasted for many years. In my opinion, it will last until someone figures out a way to revolutionize the “art of a selfie”. However, I’m not sure how the “art of a selfie” can be taken to the next level. Personally, I hate taking selfies, I think they are pointless but that’s my opinion. I firmly believe that this trend will become obsolete because most people will get tired of taking selfies. I believe this modern-day generation will find different ways of taking pictures, this is present today. The more competition there is between big companies the more technology will evolve. In my head, I say “why do selfies have to exist”! this is so cheesy! ahhhhhha.

R7: Portrait of the (Anti)Slick

In the digital age, taking a selfie is one of the primary ways we communicate our identity to others as it allows us to have absolute control over the image produced. Given this control though we are able to present ourselves however we want to even if it is not an authentic representation of our identity.

This is actually the first selfie I ever took and that is my genuine
reaction to my succumbing to this cultural norm.

With this in mind I would say that my selfies offer a good representation of who I am: a white middle-class guy who likes to joke around. As you may be able to tell by my three selfies here I am (1) white and (2) male, but like the late, great Prince they are all sexually ambiguous (unless someone mistook my dad as one with sugar). What may be harder to discern is my socio-economic status as none of the pictures really provide the viewer with any hard evidence of my being middle-class. The kayaking picture may even imply that I am one of those good 'ol boys, partaking in some outdoor adventure, but this assumption would be wrong.

What is also not shown is that my family does have strong Norwegian ties, me being only a third generation Norwegian-American. Their is a fair amount of Norway related stuff around my house and we always try to watch the country's athletes participate in world sports like the Olympics.

Somali Pirates with Dad.

What is shown though is that I am someone who enjoys outdoor activities like kayaking and hanging out with their dad given the expression on both of our faces. I think people will be able to tell that family is very important to me, otherwise wouldn't even take such a picture. People will also be able to tell that I am a basketball fan since I am wearing a jersey and holding a basketball. What they won't be able to tell though is how bad I am.

Heard Trump is paying $82/hr to lay bricks.

I think what is most visible about my selfies is that they are humorous more often than not as I don't take myself seriously at all. This is significant to how others see me because I'm usually very quiet around others, so they wouldn't know that I do have a sense of humor and love to make people laugh. Selfies are a good way for me to get my real identity across to others though as they allow so much freedom in how you want yourself to be seen. Generally if I am making some sort of face in the picture I am representing myself in an authentic way as I am using my sense of humor to poke fun at something, but mainly myself.

R:7

Selfies

 I believe selfies can only give the audience a very broad idea of the person and their identity because it only shows people the exterior. One thing that stands out in selfies are obviously the features on the face. Usually selfies are taken up close to the face, therefore I believe if you openly share that with a large number of people then you portray a sense of confidence. I believe one visible aspect of my identity is my confidence. Moreover, in my selfies you can identify that I am into fashion because you see a pattern with my clothing that represents I am open to different trends. With my selfies you can easily identify that I am into makeup and artistry. In each photo I have a different look, from a bold dramatic look, to a unicorn look. Another identifiable aspect in my selfies is my nationality. Besides seeing my Middle Eastern facial features, people are able to identify my nationality due to the necklace I have on in my first picture. If you analyze the photo, you can see that I am wearing a necklace that spells my name in Farsi, which confirms that I am Persian.

There are a lot of aspects of my identity not visible in all three selfies. In fact, I believe it is really hard to represent ALL aspects of your identity in just three photos of your face because it only portrays your exterior and very little of your interior. One main aspect not visible is my personality. Typically, when it comes to photos of my face, I don’t like to smile. By not knowing me and just seeing my photo, you would think that I am a very serious and an unfriendly person, when in fact that is completely wrong. I have a very cheerful personality and I love to laugh. Selfies can be very misleading because it’s basically judging a book by its cover. The many things not identifiable in my selfies are listed below.

• Passion for animals
• Passion for shopping
• Level of compassion
• Relationship status
• Goals
• Level of education
• Social class
• Personality
• Health status
• Etc…

R7

These selfies show my ethnicity as caucasian American.  What they do not reveal is the fact that my mother is first generation and I am actually half Brazilian.  My grandparents met in Brazil and immigrated here a few years before my mother was born.  Just based off of a these photos people would assume my family origins are from with the United States as I have a fairly pale complexion.

As far as gender goes in these selfies you can tell I am a male and based off of the outfits I am wearing one can also assume I identify as a male.  Both of these assumptions are correct.

Sexuality is not really shown in either of the photos in anyway.  Two of the photos are with friends of mine, and one is solo.  I do not believe any of these photos give indication about my sexuality in anyway.  If I posted a kissing selfie with an ex girlfriend or something, then one would be able to assume my sexuality.

As far as cultural groups and identity one can tell that I am a young person and that I am fairly social as these selfies depict two different friends I am hanging out, and close enough with that I took a selfie with them, something I do not do too often.

I think personal aspect of identity are only revealed when chosen in selfies.  I could have posted a picture kissing a girl, or with the Brazilian flag to show my sexuality and my heritage but I chose not to.  The wonderful thing about a selfie is it is up to the subject to include whatever it is they want to include in the picture.

This can have a direct impact on how people see and view me as a lot of people from my past I only keep up with on social media sites.  While I do not post selfies often, when I do that must provide a sort of snap shot of how I'm doing to those who do not see me often.  This makes up their perception of me, and really shows the power of social media.

R7: Frames of Life

For this selfie, this is an obscure sense of my identity. I typically never have straight hair, but when I do, I tend to glamorize my appearance. As a result, I am showing to others the idealized version of myself that I like. I want to look like this on a daily basis, but it is hard work and to a certain extent I want others to understand that I put a lot of effort to look like this and that I want them to “like” the effort. But in terms of my parent’s generation, pictures were meant to capture important occasions not your look of the day or how well you look with you hair straightened. My parents will appreciate the picture but after a while they will not remember it. They will however remember the picture taken years ago, like my first Christmas as an important milestone marker. They do no put as much meaning or memory into my selfies. They see it as just an image of me, while I see the selfies I take of myself much more differently, I put attribute a lot more meaning to photo as it is representation of an idealized me. Most of my selfies either have a plain background or something minimal in the backgrounds. Therefore, it is much harder for people to guess where I am from or my origin. My gender can be deciphered from this photo as that of a female. A socio-economic factor that could be gleaned from the photo is that I have some source of income that I use to purchase makeup products like eyeliner and eye shadow featured in the photograph. Aesthetically this picture is very clean and there is not much going on in the photo, would could be a cultural link to my family as most of them prefer a simple picture, with not much going on. But there is not much to use to classify the picture in terms of ethnicity, origin, or nationality.

My selfie showcases part of my identity as a soccer fan and a diehard fan of Real Madrid, especially Cristiano Ronaldo. The part of my identity that is not visible is actually what player’s name is on my jersey. But from all of my social media posts and the amount of times I have posted about Cristiano, most people can automatically tell who it is. Sexuality markers, could be seen in the way that I am positioning my body. I want others to see my sporty side but that I can also be attractive at the same time. But in terms of my nationality or origins, there are no specific markers besides my skin color, but even then one has to guess at where I’m from. But because soccer is not as popular here in the USA, especially La Liga, they can assume that I have some other background besides being American. Not only are that but the official jerseys expensive so it could allude to my socio-economic status that I am doing alright for myself, but again that is an assumption. The cultural identity marker in this photo would be the use of the term bae, as most Millennials use that to describe a person they love. Not only that the bar of text that goes across the screen is a notable feature of Snapchat another popular app among Millennials; therefore, I am linking myself through speech and app usage to a particular cultural marker of the stereotypical “Millennial”. I am part of the affinity groups of La Liga, Real Madrid, and if we are being more specific a fan of Cristiano Ronaldo.   

My selfie showcase part of my relationship with my sister. It shows that we are not afraid to be a little goofy for others to see. But again in terms of my nationality or origins, there are no specific markers besides my skin color, but even then one has to guess at where I’m from. The cultural identity marker in this photo would be the use of the Snapchat filter, so I am linking myself to the culture of taking selfies with filters. Regardless, filtering is a way of hiding part of one’s identity. I believe in this photo I was having a bad day, but the cute filter hides my facial expression and forces me to smile for

it to be cute. It obscures my identity as in most of the photos posted online are of me smiling, but I’m not always happy. So having candid selfies or photos taken of me help form my identity or showcase to others that there are other sides of my personality not typically seen on social media. They serve as a point of contrast. In the selfie, one of the main parts visible about my identity is the closeness I have with my family. You can see with the way I lean into her, I am comfortable and at ease with her. I am so comfortable, that I allow her to take the selfie. I never let people take the selfies of me, because I am very picky about the angels but with her taking the selfie she has full reign. Another part that is address is my socio-economic status, which is on display through the jewelry I am wearing. Jewelry is typically synonymous with females, so that is a sexuality marker, but is a visible part of my identity. I always wear that necklace, every single day.

R6: Shane Dawson

Reflection 6

Shane Dawson makes content for YouTube and his podcast called Shane and Friends. He has been popular on YouTube since about 2008 and has accumulated 3.4 million followers on his Twitter account. He vlogs about his life and makes videos about life hacks, weird food combinations, horror topics, and anything else he and his fans will enjoy. He interviews prominent celebrities like Jillian Michaels on his podcast and has written two books about his life.

While his YouTube account exists as a way to entertain fans, his social media presence mixes video/podcast updates with a more intimate representation of himself. Alice Marwick and Danah Boyd, both social media scholars, define intimacy as "a sense of closeness and familiarity between themselves and their followers." Shane is known to go into detail about his subjective experiences in videos and books, treating his fans like a confidant. His Twitter @shanedawson is an extension of this role and he uses it to post life updates you will not learn about anywhere else. For example, he recently posted a video of Miley, a dog he owned that recently passed away. Fans can connect to Shane through grief, feeling like they got an intimate view into his life.

Shane consistently posts content that's relatable to his mostly teen - 20s audience. The authors relate this behavior to affiliation, "the process of publicly performing a connection between practitioners and fans using language, words, cultural symbols, and conventions." He is often self-deprecating in an attempt to make himself appear less as a YouTube celebrity and more like a friend. He recently posted a picture of his cat in the fridge and alludes to how he likes food even more than his pet does. Shane is known to make fat jokes about himself because he has body dysmorphia and he used to be 400 pounds. Shane periodically addresses his illness as a serious topic so his audience knows it isn't always a joke, but he finds it therapeutic to make humor of his situation. Fans feel like they can relate to Shane more when his image presents an imperfect depiction of himself and the content is funny at the same time.

He maintains an image of authenticity by making his Twitter presence appear very casual. Marwick and Boyd propose that "Tweets that are personal, controversial, or negative – in other words, that contradict the stereotype of the overly managed ‘celebrity’ account – signal greater authenticity than safely vetted publicity messages." While many celebrity accounts are managed by a PR team, YouTubers traditionally manage their own social media. However, it is still important for them to practice authenticity to seem like they are presenting their real selves and not an act. Shane posts his fair share of content updates and mostly expresses positivity, but the professionalism of that is counterbalanced by tweeting embarrassing things about himself. In the above tweet, it must be Shane himself because a social media manager wouldn't bother to post it and it reflects a personal experience he had. In this way, Shane reminds his fans every so often that the account expresses his genuine self.

Marwick, Alice, and boyd, Danah, “To See and Be Seen: Celebrity Practice on Twitter,” Convergence May 2011 vol. 17 no. 2 139-158.

https://twitter.com/shanedawson

R6: Justin Bieber on Twitter

I chose to analyze Justin Bieber for this assignment because he is active on Twitter, responsive to fans, and he provides fans with a sense of intimacy in his personal life. Justin Bieber is often “praised” for being very attentive to his fans through social media, especially on Twitter. He often Tweets how thankful he is to his “Beliebers” or his fans and tries very hard to respond to as many as he can. Here are a couple of his Tweets thanking and appreciating his fans:

According to Alice Marwick and dana boyd’s article “To See and Be Seen: Celebrity Practice on Twitter” they write that this interaction between the celebrity and fans excites fans and encourages more to interact with the celebrity. Marwick and boyd write that “Fans @reply to famous people not only in the hope of receiving a reply, but to display a relationship, whether positive or negative. If fans receive @replies back, they function as a mark of status and are publicized within the fan community. For example, here is one popular Tweet exchange between Justin Bieber and a fan:

By directly responding to fans, Bieber strengthens his image by seeming like a “friend” but also interests more fans to interact with him to gain a response for their benefit which then goes on to benefit him on seeming more “real”.

According to Marwick and boyd fans are interested in following celebrities on Twitter because it offers them the, “the illusion of ‘backstage’, giving the impression of uncensored glimpses into the lives of the very famous. Although there is no way to determine the ‘authenticity’ of any celebrity practice, this uncertainty appeals to some audiences, who enjoy the game playing intrinsic to gossip consumption (Gamson, 1994)’” (Marwick and boyd, 140). Here is one selfie that Justin Bieber Tweeted:

This selfie is available to all of his followers and offers them an intimate and immediate look into his life. According to Warwick and boyd “[...] these pictures and videos [that celebrities post] add a visual dimension, they are still strategically chosen by the practitioner, in contrast to the unauthorized candids found in tabloids and gossip blogs” (Marwick and boyd, 142). While the selfie may seem to offer an intimate glimpse into Justin Bieber’s life, he took the photo to appear in a certain way, notably positive light.

Works Cited

Marwick, Alice, and Dana Boyd. "To See and Be Seen: Celebrity Practice on Twitter."Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2017. <http://www.academia.edu/755942/To_See_and_Be_Seen_Celebrity_Practice_on_Twitter>.

Bieber, Justin. "Justin Bieber (@justinbieber)." Twitter. Twitter, 15 Feb. 2017. Web. 25 Apr. 2017. <https://twitter.com/justinbieber?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor>.

R6: Elon Musk

Twitter is a great platform where people can interact with one another and instantly share their thoughts and ideas with the world. In the article “To See and Be Seen: Celebrity Practice on Twitter”, Alice Marwick and Dana Boyd describe celebrity twitter use as an “ongoing maintenance of a fan base, performed intimacy, authenticity and access, and construction of a consumable persona” (Marwick and Boyd 140). In a world filled with many celebrities, Twitter, and social media in general, has allowed the average person to get a closer look and stay updated to things going on in their favorite public figures lives.  

Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk has become a popular public figure in recent years due to his futuristic business ventures. As a businessman, Elon uses twitter to keep his followers updated and informed about his various companies, notably his electric car company, Tesla and space transport company SpaceX. The majority of Musk’s tweets revolve around promoting his companies and sharing his thoughts and future plans for them. Musk often retweets or tweets articles about the successes of Tesla, like how Tesla's Model X won AAA's Green Car Guide and articles about the company's financial success. He also updates his followers on goals and plans for his companies like time frames and release dates on certain projects.

Although celebrities may not reply to every tweet from their followers, Twitter has also given people the opportunity to communicate with these celebrities directly. “Celebrity practitioners use public acknowledgment, in the form of @replies, to connect with others. Fans @reply to famous people not only in the hope of receiving a reply, but to display a relationship, whether positive or negative. If fans receive @replies back, they function as a mark of status and are publicized within the fan community (Marwick and Boyd 145). Elon Musk makes an effort to respond to his followers every once in a while, whether he is replying to a supporter or a critic. One instance where he responded to a follower was when a father tweeted Elon a letter from his daughter regarding an idea she came up with for a fan-made commercial contest for Tesla. Musk quoted the tweet saying it was a great idea and that he would use it.

Marwick, Alice and Danah Boyd. “To See and Be Seen: Celebrity Practice on Twitter.” Convergence 17.2 (2011): 139-58. Web. 24 Apr. 2017. PDF