Celebrities

Julian Barnes’ The Man in the Red Coat: Celebrity Culture in the Belle Epoque (Julian Barnes)

Review

Odile Heynders

10/04/2020

8 minutes to read

In his latest novel, Julian Barnes combines biography, art history and cultural analysis in a hybrid form of fact and fiction. The Man in the Red Coat shows that there is much real life in literature and much fiction in reality.

Vlogging during the coronavirus crisis

Column

Mingyi Hou

14/04/2020

7 minutes to read

Chinese student Yi Dahua’s vlogging from Turin, Italy has made him a micro-celebrity during the coronavirus crisis. His case illustrates a "boundary-blurred" public sphere with widely varied public communication on the pandemic.

Ellen DeGeneres: talk show host or CIA agent?

Paper

Iris Dumoulin

16/03/2020

11 minutes to read

In 2018, people believed that Eric Trump suggested that Ellen DeGeneres is part of a hidden government within the US. This essay analyzes how this conspiracy theory has come into existence, who plays a role in it, and what this means online.

gravedigging, digital shaming, digital gravedigging, social media celebrities

Online gravedigging, identity and privacy

Column

Mingyi Hou

18/02/2020

11 minutes to read

This article analyzes gravedigging as a digital practice, and illustrates its roles in online shaming and celebrity image management activities.

Mom-shamers vs. celebrities on Instagram

Article

Sanne Graumans

02/06/2020

7 minutes to read

Mom shamers have been around since forever and, sadly, social media has only helped to amplify their voices. When it comes to being especially vitriolic, they take aim at Hollywood moms. This article examines how this unfolds on Instagram.

Leonardo DiCaprio and online activism

Article

Iris Dumoulin

26/02/2020

13 minutes to read

Leonardo DiCaprio has been stealing hearts since the '90s. But next to his acting, he has also been an environmental activist. To this day, his online posts encourage others to change the world. Can such a famous actor honestly be an activist?

BTS A.R.M.Y on Twitter

Article

Luna-Anastasia Riedel

02/06/2020

18 minutes to read

This article focuses BTS A.R.M.Y, the fandom of Korean boyband BTS as a niched culture on Twitter. It analyzes how the fandom influences BTS achievements and success on the global stage through their online support.

@Queenofjetlags constructing authenticity on Instagram

Article

Anna-Lisa de Boer

11/05/2020

14 minutes to read

This article takes a deeper look into how Instagram influencers construct authenticity. As a new era of advertising is dawning on social media, we analyse @Queenofjetlags' Instagram to see how she remains "authentic" while promoting brands.