Zoella

Question 1

How can Bandura’s Media Effects theory be linked to Zoella?

Answer 1

Zoella injects messages into the minds of a passive audience e.g. Zoella’s constant made-up appearance injects the message that females should look a certain way into her viewers passive minds.

Question 2

How can Baudrillards theory of postmodernism be linked to Zoella?

Answer 2

• Zoella promotes consumer culture
• Vlogs reinforce hegemony - relationships, conforms to stereotypical feminity
• everything they put up on YouTube has been edited and selectively filmed. You only really see a fraction of their lives.

Question 3

How can bel hooks’ Feminist Theory be linked to Zoella?

Answer 3

Zoella subverts the conventional woman by having her own successful business - feminism, ending patriarchy
-BUT- she contributed to patriarchy by staying at home, being dependent on men etc.

Question 4

How can Gauntlett’s identity theory be linked to Zoella?

Answer 4

The young audience may take aspects of Zoella’s identity and use them to build their own identity
- Because of par asocial interaction - viewers feel they can identify with her

Question 5

Gerbner’s Cultivation Theory and Zoella

Answer 5

The more her audience see the representations of Zoella’s perfect life and relationship, the more they will believe them to be true.

Question 6

Stuart Hall’s Reception Theory and Zoella

Answer 6

Preferred reading - Zoella cares about her relationship with her fans and takes their comments into consideration
Oppositional - Zoella does not care about her relationship with them and only acts like their friends to maintain viewers and make money

Question 7

Livingstone and Lunt and Zoella

Answer 7

Youtube is Zoellas main platform = struggle of regulation vs giving consumers choice
- However, zoellas videos contain sanitised content

Question 8

Shirky ‘End of Audience Theory’ with Zoella

Answer 8

Zoellas parasocial interaction with her viewers reinforces the ‘end of the audience’ because viewers now have input into what Zoellas blogs are about - comments, shares, tweets etc.

Question 9

How can Van Zoonens Feminist Theory be linked to Zoella?

Answer 9

• ‘Zoellas apartment’
• zoella conforms to stereotypes with her hair and makeup
• Feminie topics - baking, decorating
• Alfie = strong, been to the gym