Research On The Production And Consumption Of Celebrities In The New Media Environment

Interactive integration and inclusive symbiosis are two themes of the new media era.Stars are treated as one of the most important phenomena in media culture,so that the progress of media technology has also dramatically changed the relationships between film industry and stars as well as stars and fans,which has produced a series of cultural effects.Based on the new media atmosphere,this article will discuss some new changes of star phenomenon after the improvement of media technology from two aspects which are star production and consumption,and then,try to dialectically and critically work out the impacts of these changes.By conducting various case studies,it is not hard to find that medias,stars and audiences play new roles in famous stars’ producing process under the new media atmosphere.Firstly,in the current environment of media integration,movies and TV series in traditional medias are still the hub or "DreamWorks" of creating stars,but new medias have gradually become a new performing stage for stars,since a wider field has been created by new intermediaries.Secondly,under the flourish and interactive new media environment,celebrities have more opportunities for self-publicity which means the overall images of celebrates would be more personalized,diversified and approachable than before.Lastly,the public or fans are empowered by new media technologies.The role of fans has changed from spectators to participants.The new media technologies allow them to actively participate in the publicity and interpretation of celebrities’ images.As for the level of consumption,the new media technologies provide more adequate and distinct hierarchy of consumption to the public.The first point is about the visual satisfaction.It is more likely to be achieved by watching stars through new media which would result in the visual enjoyment,followed by the imitation of stars’ making up and dressing up styles.Secondly,the emotional satisfaction would be achieved by interacting with stars on social medias and networks,at the same time,the emotional bonds would be built within the fans’community on the internet due to the frequent interactions and collaborative cooperation.Finally,with the promotion of the media industry and the publicity of new media,the consumption enthusiasm of fans has been awakened and developed to the greatest extent,they will consistently spend their time and money on their favorite celebrates and relevant products.In the last section,this thesis further discusses the influences on the consumption and creation of stars brought from the changes of media technologies.For the creation of stars,the existence of social media is a double-edged sword.From one side,it enables stars to build their image and attract adequate attention easier and faster by interacting with their fans’ group on social media.From another,famous stars are more likely to exposure to the threats from network violence and public opinion pressure which is very possible leading to the flying in the face of their public images.From the aspect of consumption,the mass consumption on the internet is actually everywhere.Meanwhile,famous stars are totally surrounded by the tentacles of information,they nearly lose their personal space and privacy.In addition,fans superficially play a decisive role in the consumption,but in fact,they are merely income producing machines controlled by the cultural industry.They just passively receiving the cultural products fed by the cultural producers,and gradually losing their unique aesthetic and critical thinking abilities.