Politics of neutrality in the contemporary technological imaginary: YouTube and the figure of the creator

Authors

  • Simone Cunha Pós-doutoranda do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Comunicação da Universidade Federal Fluminense (PPGCOM/UFF).

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4013/fem.2020.223.04

Abstract

Amid debates about the political, economic and social role of digital platforms, the article discusses strategies adopted by media and technology companies in articulating positions of neutrality. For this, a case study about YouTube and the dissemination of the figure of the creator (of content) is presented. From the analysis of the company’s communications, it is argued that the terminology is the result of the consolidation process of its business model. It also investigates how the categorization mediates approximations and distances between the YouTube star system and the traditional notions of celebrities and audiovisual media. Finally, the ethical and aesthetic implications of popularizing the creator are discussed. It is concluded that the emphasis on its independence and creative potential operationalizes multiple processes of erasing the dynamic characteristics of the digital ecosystem and corporate policies.

Keywords: Digital influencers. Technological imaginary. YouTube. Creators.

Author Biography

Simone Cunha, Pós-doutoranda do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Comunicação da Universidade Federal Fluminense (PPGCOM/UFF).

Pós-doutoranda do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Comunicação da Universidade Federal Fluminense (PPGCOM/UFF). Pesquisadora do Laboratório de Pesquisa em Culturas Urbanas e Tecnologias (LabCult/UFF) e do Laboratório de Investigação em Ciência, Inovação, Tecnologia e Educação (CiteLab/UFF). E-mail: simone.evangelistacunha@gmail.com.

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Published

2020-11-18

Issue

Vol. 22 No. 3 (2020): Setembro/Dezembro

Section

Dossiê

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