How Social Media Affects The Youngsters in Generation Like Movie

Introduction to Social Media's Influence

In Generation Like (2014), filmmakers explored the rising popularity of various forms of social media and how they affect today’s younger generation. Douglas Rushkoff interviewed many individuals with the aim of illustrating how they were influenced by social media, popular online personalities, and brands. Frontline employed the tool of talking heads to take an expository look at the theme that corporations and brands can use covert marketing strategies to have a significant, widespread impact on the youth of the world—often without the knowledge of the youth themselves.

The Impact of Social Media Personalities

The film featured extensive interviews, including one with a popular YouTube personality and “vlogger,” Tyler Oakley. Rushkoff asked Oakley about his rise to fame and his substantial subscriber base. Oakley responded, “It just happened out of the blue, and it happened without intent. A lot of what I did was talk about what I love, and people gravitated towards it, and it opened up a lot of opportunities.” Rushkoff ensured that the viewer interpreted “opened up a lot of opportunities” as opportunities stemming from Oakley unknowingly marketing different brands. The documentary showcased shots of him at the MTV music awards, a One Direction concert, and featured in a Pepsi commercial. Frontline used the talking heads interview to demonstrate that Oakley believed he was merely having fun, but was in fact marketing those companies (Rushkoff, 2014).

The Role of Fans in Marketing

Ceili Lynch, a young The Hunger Games (2012) fan, was purposefully shown to the audience as a teenager who was drawn into unintentionally marketing the movie. Rushkoff asked her questions about her fondness for The Hunger Games to leave no doubt in the viewer’s mind about her obsession and to show that she believed she was simply enjoying her favorite movie franchise. He refrained from asking questions like, “Do you believe that you are a part of marketing The Hunger Games?” Instead, he informed the audience, “Ceili sitting in her bedroom ‘liking’ The Hunger Games isn’t just being marketed to, she’s actually part of the marketing campaign herself” (Rushkoff, 2014).

Unveiling Corporate Strategies

Rushkoff strategically set up Lynch and Oakley in interviews designed to “expose” the fact that members of “Generation Like” have no idea that companies are exploiting their passions for monetary gain. He avoided questions that might elicit responses detrimental to his theme, instead focusing on obtaining the evidence he needed. Videos and pictures of Oakley and Lynch’s actions were shown in a way that led the audience to believe that they were unaware of their roles on the Pepsi or The Hunger Games marketing teams. The “talking heads” interview style that he used was extremely effective in “exposing” the practices of today’s marketers.

Naivety and Awareness in Marketing

Liam Horne is portrayed as an aware but naïve participant in the marketing process. Horne is shown discussing how he was sponsored in a few videos by Adidas and Ford, but the focus is on how the companies are helping Horne, not vice versa. While Horne is happy to receive support for his videos, he doesn’t acknowledge (and Rushkoff doesn’t question) the fact that he is heavily promoting certain brands that he may or may not personally endorse. Rushkoff continues to heavily push his agenda through the use of the talking heads technique—even when it seems like the individual may not perfectly fit the theme.

Conclusion

In this documentary, Oakley, Lynch, and Horne were shown willingly participating in social media and other technology. They appeared to enjoy creating and sharing content based on their interests, highlighting the allure and power of social media engagement. However, they did not discuss other purposes or effects, good or bad, of using social media, which was an intentional choice by the filmmakers. The creators of Generation Like, using the talking heads technique, were effectively able to demonstrate that today’s youth are unknowingly undertaking a large part of the marketing for popular brand names, raising important questions about agency and awareness in the digital age.

References

• Rushkoff, D. (Director). (2014). Generation Like [Film]. Frontline.
• Ross, G. (Director). (2012). The Hunger Games [Film]. Lionsgate.