Introduction to OSP: Influencers blog tasks

 1) What years did YouTube, Twitter and Instagram launch?

YouTube launched in 2005, Twitter in 2006, and Instagram in 2010. 

2) What is the definition of an influencer?

a person who has become well known through regular social media posts and is able to promote a product or service by recommending or using it online.

3) Give an example of an influencer and how many followers they have. Try and add some additional information, brand associations or other statistics if you can.

Huda Kattan, who founded the Huda Beauty brand and has over 54 million followers on Instagram.

The Creator Union; andaUS trade association, the American Influencer Council. Mega influencers such as Kylie Jenner (233 million followers on Instagram) can earn as much as $1m per post. Even the Government uses them: last year it paid influencers including Love Island stars to promote the NHS Test and Trace service.

4) How big is the influencer industry according to the article?

the influencer marketing industry was worth some $8bn a year. One recent report by Insider Intelligence predicted that it would grow to $15bn globally by the end of 2022.

5) What are the problems associated with being an influencer?

Mental Health and Psychological Pressure, Professional and Financial Challenges, Privacy and Personal Boundaries.

6) Why is it suggested that audiences actually like being sold products by influencers?

Audiences are suggested to like being sold products by influencers because they build trust and create a feeling of a personal recommendation, which is often seen as more authentic than traditional advertising.

7) What representation of beauty is often found on Instagram or other influencer sites?

On Instagram and other influencer sites, the prevailing beauty ideal is often an "Instagram Face" aesthetic, characterized by a specific set of highly curated, and often digitally or surgically enhanced, facial and body features. 

Symmetrical face with high, prominent cheekbones and a sharp, chiseled jawline.

Large, "catlike" eyes often accompanied by long eyelashes.

A small, neat nose.

Full, lush lips (often achieved with fillers or specific makeup techniques like overlining).

Flawless, "glass-like" or dewy skin (often achieved through specific skincare routines, lighting, and filters/editing).

Defined, full eyebrows.

A "blank" or neutral expression. 

8) What is YOUR opinion on influencers? Are they a positive or negative influence on our society and culture? Why?

My opinion on influencers is that they do not deserve the fame they get. Most of the time they dont need tk put any effort in anything and all they do is sit still and look pretty while music artists and animators spend hours of their life to create one post. They also add negative influence in our society and culture as they add unneccesary, impossible beauty standards on people when they really just edit themselves using filters and photoshop.