MDA20009 Digital Communities

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Valorant: Prepare for Battle 

Electronic sports, or e-sports, are organized online games in which teams or professional players compete against one another in a variety of online games. E-sports, like traditional sports, feature passionate players who put in a lot of practice, engage in competitions, and compete for glory, popularity, and cash prizes (Taylor 2018 p. 1). Over the years, esports has grown a significant popularity among many people, creating a global community of fans. There are various genres of e-sports games that you can find, such as first-person shooters, multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBAs), real-time strategy games (RTS), sports simulators, combat games, and more. Personally, I am not a big fan of gaming, nor am I a gamer person. However, Valorant is perhaps one of the games that I truly enjoy playing. I got into it during the lockdown period when my friends insisted to try it, and I have been hooked ever since. It is a free first-person shooter (FPS) game released in June 2020, developed by an established gaming company called Riot Games.

What is Valorant All About? 

The game is super hectic with numerous elements, which involve complex strategic elements, and a unique blending of skills and gunplay (IGN 2022). Due to this, it has captured the attention of millions of gamers worldwide. The gameplay is super exhilarating and skill-based, with an emphasis on strategy and teamwork. Each team of 5 players will get a chance to be in both attacking and defending teams, and each round demands strategic planning, communication, and execution (IGN 2022). Hence, it creates a dynamic and captivating gameplay by integrating tactical gunplay of classic shooters with unique character skills. 

What makes Valorant stands out the most is that the players get to pick a character through the agent system. Each agent has special skills or power abilities that players can strategically use to their advantage to accomplish particular goals or assist other agents (IGN 2022). The game provides a large range of agents with a multitude of team formations and abilities, from aggressive explosives and surveillance tools to defensive smokes and healing abilities. Next, there is also a range of game modes that players can choose from, from competitive to casual mode (IGN 2022), which can cater to the player’s mood.  

A list of some of the agents from Valorant, where each has its own power and abilities.

Reaching Worldwide 

This game has built an incredibly active and enthusiastic community that is still continuously expanding. Being a free-to-play game, Valorant is easily accessible, which contributes to its increasing popularity. Players from various backgrounds can take part, regardless of their financial limitations. Furthermore, the game's multicultural cast of agents includes individuals from different cultures promoting inclusivity and representation in gaming. 

Other than that, the game also gains popularity with the help of live-streaming websites, such as Twitch and YouTube. These platforms offer viewers a simple and quick way to watch live games and tournaments, as well as a tool for players to broadcast their gameplay. Both players and viewers are able to communicate directly through live streaming, which promoted interaction and a sense of community. Plus, many players also use these platforms to educate others on gameplay through tutorials and gaming hacks. This typically emphasizes strategic planning on using the agent’s abilities to the fullest potential.  

Valorant Going Professional 

Thanks to the accessibility of live-streaming platforms, it creates a global audience, which attracts media, marketers and sponsors to organize and invest in professional e-sports tournaments (Taylor 2018). Since its debut, Valorant has quickly made a name for itself as a dominant e-sport. As a result, they have established a competitive ecosystem through The Valorant Champions Tour, a worldwide tournament series that features the greatest teams in the world competing with each other. This drives millions of people to watch live e-gaming events (Taylor 2018), and they have audience numbers that are comparable to those of traditional sporting events.

I believe Valorant has successfully built its identity in the market due to its creative marketing efforts to pique interest among gamers globally. The developer, Riot Games, started with captivating teaser campaigns through the storytelling of the world of Valorant. Hence, the gaming community became hyped up with speculation and discussion in response to these advertising tactics, which in turn instil eagerness among the viewers.  

On top of that, I believe one of their strongest marketing plans is their effort towards community participation. They actively take into account players’ feedback and incorporate it into their game design. They encourage people to share their ideas and opinions based on their gaming experience, which notably improves their platform. This allows their community to feel heard and appreciated, hence promoting a sense of community and involvement. For this reason, they foster loyalty among players due to the community-centric approach, drawing in both amateur and professional gamers. 

Overall, with its captivating gameplay, complex strategic elements, and vibrant e-sports community, Valorant has completely changed the competitive gaming landscape. The unique game design incorporating tactical gunplay, distinctive agent powers, and community collaboration built an engaging experience that appeals to both competitive and casual players. We can see that Valorant has clearly made a lasting impression on the gaming industry with its continuously expanding community and dedication to creating a global e-sports environment, securing its position as one of the top-tier competitive games of our time. 

References: 

IGN 2022, Beginner’s Guide to Valorant, IGN, viewed 11 June 2023 <https://www.ign.com/wikis/valorant/Beginner's_Guide_to_Valorant>. 

Taylor, TL 2018, ‘Broadcasting ourselves’ (chapter 1), in Watch Me Play: Twitch and the Rise of Game Live Streaming, Princeton University Press, pp.1-23 

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You Are Beautiful and Perfectly Imperfect Just the Way You Are 

I am pretty sure everyone wants to feel beautiful, look good and be presentable, be it offline or online. We want to create a good impression of ourselves that reflects our appearance and personality. It is especially evident in our current generation, where we will take great pictures and post them on social media. This consists of our day-to-day activities, outfits of the day (#OOTD), unforgettable moments and so on. It has become a trend of romanticizing mundane daily hustle and bustle. One of the ways we do this is by applying filters to our photos.   

What is Filter?  

A filter is a process where something is added or removed to distort or alter texts or photos. It has become a significant tool in the social media world (Rettberg 2014 p. 21). It allows us to edit the photos into something more aesthetically pleasing. However, it can also use as a way to entertain us and our friends. For instance, TikTok is known for its interactive filters, such as ‘Which Disney Characters Are You?’. There are so many types of filters, varying from beauty filters to mini-games, and try-on products. 

Filters have come a long way, and we use them daily. It has a couple of benefits to it, especially for brands! It creates a high engagement, which in turn provides a highly memorable experience. Filters are very interactive, and it requires the user’s full attention. Hence, it is wonderful for advertising a product or service, as it proves to have 70% memory recall, as compared to traditional advertising (Hamilton 2022).   

Plus, it also enhances the purchasing journey of customers. People do not need to go to physical stores anymore. We can merely try on makeup products through this technology, which can influence spontaneous buying (Hamilton 2022). On top of that, filters are such a pleasure to experiment with, especially the ones that highlight your greatest features and make you feel cute (Belle 2018). I mean, who does not like that, right?  

But there are a few cons to Filters...  

Unfortunately, it can distort our perception of reality, especially beauty filters. It becomes even worse with the beauty representation depicted through media and society. Society tends to pressure both men and women on a specific beauty standard needed to accomplish to be more socially desirable. This could create a person to have body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). Those with this disorder are concerned with some aspects of their appearance that they find unattractive (Coy-Dibley 2016 p. 2). It can become serious when one starts experiencing anxiety and obsession over their appearance through compulsive habits and routines, such as non-stop grooming and hiding certain ‘unattractive’ body areas (Coy-Dibley 2016 p. 3).   

Hence, numerous images portrayed by the media have a massive impact on those with BDD or those who are highly insecure. According to Orbach, we can see that many industries play on people’s body insecurities, highlighting them and all their supposed physical faults. They emphasize how these can be modified to look ‘better’, shaping the idealized concept of beauty. I believe we can all agree that the media and society sometimes have a ridiculous beauty standard that is unceasingly narrow and unrealistic (Coy-Dibley 2016 p. 3).  

According to a survey in 2017 by the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (AAFPRS), cosmetic surgeons first recognized a pattern of patients seeking surgery to better mimic how they appear using filters. In line with the results of that survey, 55% of surgeons reported seeing patients who wanted surgery primarily to enhance their appearance in selfies. In agreement with the previous point, in a 2015 study that looked at the impact of edited selfies on young girls' body dissatisfaction, people who regularly edit their photos are more concerned about their bodies and are more inclined to develop a distorted view of how they actually look.  

“I just see a lot of images that are just really unrealistic, and it sets up unrealistic expectations for patients because they’re trying to look like a fantasized version of themselves,” - Dr Vashi  

Body Positivity Movement  

In recent years, there has been a monumental shift in how bodies are represented in the media. Now you can see multiple plus-size celebrities on the screen, from fashion advertising to television shows. Big influential brands, such as H&M, have extended their clothing line to cater to those who are plus size (Yeboah 2020).

Other than that, makeup brands start expanding their shade range to provide for various skin colours. I am sure you would have heard of Fenty Beauty, a cosmetic brand that became one of the first makeup brands to launch 50 shades, which include albinos and dark-skinned people.

Now people are starting to accept that people come in different shapes, sizes and colours. Everyone deserves to be celebrated, and everyone is beautiful just the way they are.   

Although of course that this movement still has a long way to go. We can still see many nasty and insensitive comments due to the deep-rooted beauty standards in our society. Despite it, we must all uplift one another and create awareness, and with this, it can dismantle the toxic and hazardous narratives about unrealistic beauty standards by the media (Yeboah 2020). Together, we can create a safe space for every person to accept and love themselves.   

References:

Belle, E 2018, Young People Are Reportedly Seeking Plastic Surgery to Look More Like They Do in Snapchat Filters, Teen Vogue, Teen Vogue, viewed 2 June 2023, <https://www.teenvogue.com/story/young-people-plastic-surgery-snapchat-filters>. 

Coy-Dibley, I 2016, ‘“Digitized Dysmorphia” of the female body: the re/disfigurement of the image’, Palgrave communications, vol. 2, no. 1, Palgrave Macmillan, London, p. 16040–. 

Hamilton, J 2022, AR Filters – Everything You Need to Know! | Eon Visual Media, Eon Visual Media - App, Web, Design, Animation & Video, viewed 2 June 2023, <https://eon-media.com/insights/ar-filters/>. 

Rettberg, JW 2014, Seeing Ourselves Through Technology: How We Use Selfies, Blogs and Wearable Devices To See and Shape Ourselves, Springer Open, Basingstoke, pp. 20–32. 

Yeboah, S 2020, The body positivity movement still has a long way to go—here’s why, Vogue India, Vogue India, viewed 2 June 2023, <https://www.vogue.in/wellness/content/body-positivity-fat-acceptance-movement-still-has-a-long-way-to-go>. 

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Body Modification 

The internet has now allowed us to keep up with each other’s lives, including celebrities every day. It also has become a platform for product and service advertising; hence we are being influenced to purchase or try new things. This also includes services such as plastic surgery, a medical procedure that aims to alter regular bodily features in order to make the patient's appearance increasingly resemble the current desired body image (Wen, Chia & Hao 2015 p. 3).  

The internet and social media have become ubiquitous in plastic surgery. Half of the surveyed respondents from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) use social media for professional purposes (Dorfman et al 2018 p. 332). Here are two examples of skilled plastic surgeons that use social media platforms to talk about everything plastic surgery.  

Anthony Youn – He called himself America’s ‘holistic’ plastic surgeon, where he explains how any cosmetic surgical procedure works. He has over 8 million followers on TikTok and gained popularity on his ‘Celebrity Plastic Surgery: Real or Sus?’ videos, where he guesses whether certain famous celebrities have gotten plastic surgery (Bushak 2022). 

Catherine Huang-Begovic – She is also known as Dr. Cat and offers thoughtful medical advice for those considering getting plastic surgeries. She also posts videos of her clients through the ‘Before and After’ videos, in which she receives more than half a million followers on her TikTok (Bushak 2022).  

Visually dominated social media platforms, such as TikTok and Instagram, drive more engagement from the public as people can see the results of their desired cosmetic surgery procedures. The increased desire for aesthetic procedures is due in part to the ease of access to pertinent information via social media. As a result, social media has emerged as a critical online route for those seeking information about cosmetic surgery (Wen, Chia & Hao 2015 p. 1). Hence, many surgeons and cosmetic organizations are quick to embrace these platforms to bring awareness and use them for business development (Dorfman et al 2018 p. 333). 

This is especially evident in the number of posts related to plastic surgery. According to Dorfman and his colleagues’ study, there is a total of 1,789,270 posts with 21 hashtags related to cosmetic surgery (2018). On top of the list goes #plasticsurgery with 523,621 posts, followed by #facelift with 224,325 posts and #rhinoplasty with 138,259 posts (Dorfman et al 2018 p. 333).  

In addition to the previous point, YouTube is another social media highly used by plastic surgeons and the public for plastic surgery content. It is a platform that portrays the procedures and effects of plastic surgery with vivid images and narratives (Wen, Chia & Hao 2015 p. 2). The plastic surgeons include features of celebrities in some of their videos creating an impression of the level of prestige and glamour (Wen, Chia & Hao 2015 p. 5) that is appealing to the public. Therefore, it can influence viewers’ decisions on cosmetic surgery as this tactic boosts the content’s credibility and gains audiences’ trust.  

What Motivates People to Do Plastic Surgery? 

According to Wen and colleagues, those who are highly interested in these procedures and obtaining socially desirable appearances range from 18 to 34 (2015 p. 2). People typically want to change their appearance due to media influence (Galardi 2020). As explained in the previous point, social media has become a common place for plastic surgery content. It has been highlighted more frequently in the media, from reality shows to TikTok short-form videos. People now better understand what plastic surgery comprises and the outcomes it can produce. As a result, people feel more confident about getting one done themselves (Galardi 2020).  

Another common reason is due to body dissatisfaction. Unfavourably numerous individuals are made fun of because of their appearance. They may have huge noses or ears and are mocked throughout their lives. Years of mocking might be a strong motivator for pursuing plastic surgery. Other than that, the changes in your physical appearance as you age, such as from having a kid, or suffering from an injury, could create a feeling that your body is not yours. So, plastic surgery is one method for reclaiming your former appearance and feeling more like yourself (Galardi 2020). This most definitely provides a boost of confidence and allows them to feel better.  

In short, plastic surgery is one of the greatest inventions of humankind. The ability of body modification to enhance your beauty, confidence, and repair injury can tremendously change one’s life. However, one must ensure they have done enough research to weigh out the risks and benefits, as any wrong decisions can worsen everything. All in all, love yourself and know that you are beautiful no matter what ❤️

References: 

Bushak, L 2022, TikTok’s most popular plastic surgeon influencers, MM+M - Medical Marketing and Media, viewed 24 May 2023, <https://www.mmm-online.com/home/channel/tiktoks-most-popular-plastic-surgeon-influencers/#:~:text=Catherine%20Huang%2DBegovic%2C%20or%20%E2%80%9CDr.&text=Cat%2C%20a%20plastic%20surgeon%20in,of%20some%20of%20her%20patients.>. 

Dorfman, RG, Vaca, EE, Mahmood, E, Fine, NA & Schierle, CF 2018, ‘Plastic Surgery-Related Hashtag Utilization on Instagram: Implications for Education and Marketing’, Aesthetic surgery journal, vol. 38, no. 3, Oxford University Press, US, pp. 332–338. 

Galardi 2020, GBR Plastic Surgery, GBR Plastic Surgery, viewed 24 May 2023, <https://gbrplasticsurgery.com/factors-that-motivate-people-to-undergo-plastic-surgery/#:~:text=Plastic%20surgery%20gives%20them%20the,go%20out%20with%20new%20people.&text=By%20far%20the%20biggest%20motivator,not%20other%20factors%20motivate%20you.>. 

Wen, N, Chia, SC & Hao, X 2015, ‘What Do Social Media Say About Makeovers? A Content Analysis of Cosmetic Surgery Videos and Viewers’ Responses on YouTube’, Health communication, vol. 30, no. 9, Routledge, England, pp. 933–942. 

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You are Free to Express Your Ideas, but You are NOT ALLOWED to be an A*****e 

We all know technologies are extremely useful tools for our everyday activities. Our whole life is in those tiny box gadgets! We use it to socialize with people, use it as a medium to learn courses, keep up to date with politics, do our banking activities and more. Literally, everything in our lives is contained in our devices that we truly cannot live without them anymore. What I want to stress here is how social media has become a very powerful instrument to convey messages across place and time. It is used strategically in education, politics, and social movements.

Nevertheless, nothing good comes without a price. Freedom of speech is where people are free to articulate their opinions, beliefs and ideas, be it written or oral, and everyone is allowed to discuss them. Social media where millions of people can have access to our content, provides a space for people to leave their comments. Now here is the problem, some people take advantage of the freedom of speech and leave nasty comments that might hurt someone else. If this becomes repetitive, it becomes what we call cyberbullying or online harassment (Marwick & Caplan 2018 p 544). Anyone can be a victim of this, especially the marginalized community.

What are The Limits of Freedom of Speech? (Moore 2022)

Obscenity - Pornographic content that is against the law and has no significant literary, aesthetic, political, or scientific value.

Child pornography – This is obviously wrong, period.

Revenge porn – People posting their former partner’s sexual pictures/videos online.

Defamation – False statements that ruin a person’s reputation.

Incitement to violence – Speech that influences people to start violence.

Threats – Statements/hostile actions to cause harm.

Copyright infringement – People are using content created by others that is protected by copyright laws.

Prohibited disclosure – Disclosure of private information.

Fraud – People deceiving others to gain something.

Many people of different genders, ages, and backgrounds are victims of these activities above. These horrid activities are a way that perpetrators use to take control of the ‘weak’ ones.

There is a study among Internet users in Malaysia ranging from the age of 17 to 30, where 39.7% of them have been victims of cyberbullying, 33.6% people admitted to having cyberbullied someone else, and 61% have witnessed cyberbullying incidences (Balakrishnan 2015). These results prove that online harassment has become a norm and happens to everyone.

Another study also mentioned that women tend to use social media more frequently, as compared to men in every age range, therefore women experience cyberbullying more frequently, compared to men. Plus, Li reported in a study that there is no significant difference between genders, yet men were still more likely to cyberbully than women in the Canadian case (Ali, Ni, & Idrus 2020).

Of course, being a bully does not specifically assign to one gender. You are still a bully, no matter your gender or age or background. I strongly believe that if you hurt someone, no matter physically, emotionally, or mentally, it is wrong, and it is not okay.

The consequence of harassment is detrimental to our overall health. According to UNICEF Malaysia, victims tend to rely on alcohol and drugs, experience physical and emotional issues, and suffer from low self-esteem. All of this can affect our mental health, such as depression and anxiety, which then can lead to poor grades (Ali, Ni, & Idrus 2020) and poor social skills.

Hey! You can still fight those bullies and hold them accountable for their horrible actions 👊🏼

Here is an example of a brave young woman striking her perpetrators using satirical humour and degrading caricature (Vitis & Gilmour 2017 p 341).

Anna Gensler is a talented artist, and she used social media under the name, @Instagranniepants to showcase how her perpetrators spoke to most women on dating applications, such as Tinder. If you go through her profile, you can see how disturbing the way some men talk and describe women. She received multiple threats and was also advised to put those pictures down. Despite it all, she remained resilient because she 100% believed that it was her way to stand up for herself and punish the perpetrators for their crimes (Vitis & Gilmour 2017 p 341).

"The entire granniepants project revolves around the fact that women should not put up with bad behaviour from men. We should be treated with respect and if we aren’t, we shouldn’t have to be pressured into putting up with it. I started the project as a way to stand up for myself." - Anna Gensler, 2014

Violence is never okay. The increase in mis usage of technology is a constant struggle, and coming up with solutions is never easy. Sure, we can easily block someone, but the lingering fear and anxiety of it happening again is not something that can go away easily. So, it is strongly encouraged that every responsible authority educates the public on online harassment and its prevention. It is a serious offence that should not be taken lightly. Plus, we as a community must stand up for each other and call out these coward keyboard warriors. There is immense strength in the empowerment movement.

The problem with cyberbullying is everything. If you have something mean to say, look in the mirror and tell it to yourself. Maybe you will think twice.

"It's easy to be mean when you’re Unknown Author. There are a lot of people who wouldn’t have the courage to say in person what they do online. But you can’t listen to somebody you don’t even know. Opinions of your friends and family matter, but you can’t listen to somebody who is nobody to you." – Brendan Dooling

References:

Ali, WNAW, Ni, TQ & Idrus, SZS 2020, ‘Social Media Cyberbullying: Awareness and Prevention through Anti Cyberbully Interactive Video (ACIV)’, Journal of physics. Conference series, vol. 1529, no. 3, IOP Publishing, Bristol, p. 32071–.

Balakrishnan, V 2015, ‘Cyberbullying among young adults in Malaysia: The roles of gender, age and Internet frequency’, Computers in human behavior, vol. 46, Elsevier Ltd, pp. 149–157.

Marwick, AE & Caplan, R 2018, ‘Drinking male tears: language, the manosphere, and networked harassment’, Feminist media studies, vol. 18, no. 4, Routledge, Abingdon, pp. 543–559. 

Moore, S 2022, ‘The Limits Of Free Speech’, Forbes, 2 December, viewed 17 May 2023, https://www.forbes.com/sites/schuylermoore/2022/11/30/the-limits-of-free-speech/?sh=607539a073a4.

Vitis, L & Gilmour, F 2017, ‘Dick pics on blast: A woman’s resistance to online sexual harassment using humour, art and Instagram’, Crime, media, culture, vol. 13, no. 3, SAGE Publications, London, England, pp. 335–355.

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Slow-Fashion vs Fast-Fashion, Who Wins? 

Sustainable fashion is part of the slow-fashion industry, which seeks to slow down the pace of the fashion life cycle by focusing on quality over quantity and eradicating mass production (Lai, Henninger & Alevizou 2017). What determines sustainable fashion is that it incorporates 3 fundamental elements:  

Environmental factor: Earth-friendly materials  

Social factor: Safe working conditions and a healthy working environment  

Economic factor: Healthy financial viability of the business  

Basically, sustainable fashion is the goods that respond to our basic needs and improve our quality of life, including minimizing toxic materials and the emission of waste products that are detrimental to future generations (Lai, Henninger & Alevizou 2017).  

However, fast fashion is the opposite and, unfortunately, is widely spread across the globe. It is mass-produced using cheap, toxic and low-quality materials that change every fortnight and cost the employees’ wages (Lai, Henninger & Alevizou 2017). The fashion industry is one of the biggest polluters globally, contributing to our landfills and garbage covered with large volumes of garments made of toxic materials. All the garment wastes increase carbon emissions and water usage, which is harmful to our environment (Bown 2021).   

“More than 60% of fabric fibres are now synthetics, derived from fossil fuels, so if and when our clothing ends up in a landfill (about 85% of textile waste in the United States goes to landfills or is incinerated), it will not decay.” - Tatiana Schlossberg, New York Times  

Social Media Influencers & Fast-Fashion Industry Got Married!

I hate to break it to you that this information is becoming worse when the fast-fashion industry is actively collaborating with social media influencers. These people are well-known and have huge followers on their social media pages. When their sponsored posts become viral, they can reach millions of people online (Jakobsson 2022), and we know that people like us look up to celebrities. Upon seeing this type of content, we subconsciously want to look like them, and many would purchase without giving it any second thought. According to Cure Media, 83% of young people look for fashion inspiration on Instagram, the most popular platform for fashion and lifestyle advertising (Jakobsson 2022).  

Example of how social media influencers promote a brand through haul and try-on videos.

Here are why a lot of fast-fashion brands build their presence online and collaborate with influencers:  

Consumer Behaviour  

Their target audience exists on social media platforms, and they spend more than 3 hours on it. Plus, they highly trust their favourite influencers, which encourages them to purchase their products.   

Peer-to-Peer Pressure   

Social media provides an instant gratification factor. Those who buy the products will feel satisfied with owning clothes that are considered trendy. Plus, 72% of consumers are more likely to trust a recommendation from their favourite influencers because they provide a sense of trust and relatability.   

Niche Audience  

Influencers have their own speciality, some are known for fitness, body positivity, makeup, and more. Hence, brands can easily target their audience through influencers with similar interests.   

H&M is one of the biggest players in the fashion industry that is famous among all consumers. They introduced a more sustainable garment through the ‘Conscious’ line where their clothes are made of eco-friendly materials.

However, this brand is not necessarily known as a sustainable brand (Lai, Henninger & Alevizou 2017), as they mass produce clothes and introduce new collections every now and then. However, this line leaves a positive impression on many consumers, which boosts their purchase motivation. Due to the outlets that exist in most countries, it is very accessible for people to pay a visit, which allows people to shop easily. This supports a respondent's answer from a study, as she said it is not easy to look for sustainable-driven brands because of the lack of accessibility, and shopping at fast-fashion retailers is easier because it is everywhere (Lai, Henninger & Alevizou 2017).   

Malaysians are in Love with Second-hand Clothing  

Sora Bundle in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, is one of many secondhand stores in the country (Marcus 2022). Picture by Ian Teh for The New York Times.

Lately, people are doing a lot of thrifting, or Malaysians call it second-hand shopping or bundle shopping. It is one of the fastest-growing sectors in the global fashion industry. According to New York Times, this is growing popular and has a greater number of consumers in South Asia, specifically Malaysia. The reason is that this sector offers far more affordable and eco-friendly options that they are looking for. Second-hand clothing retailers range from tiny roadside stalls to warehouses to retail shops, such as Jalan-Jalan Japan, 2nd Street and more (Marcus 2022).   

“There’s been a tremendous rise in doing this kind of shopping, and it’s quite fascinating,” - Naim Azhar  

Naim Azhar, a consumer from Malaysia, went viral locally because of the luxury clothes that he thrifted for such a cheap price. He spent hours and hours diving into a pile of unwanted clothes and found all the luxury gems, such as a Burberry trench coat, which he bought for only RM1 despite its original price of RM5000 (Marcus 2022).   

Apart from that, thrift shopping has become a source of income for those selling used clothes due to high demand (Marcus 2022). An example of that is Refash, a Singaporean brand with multiple outlets in Kuala Lumpur, where they sell trendy used clothes for cheap prices. They give new life to used clothing while saving the environment. They have helped save $31.22 million for consumers and combat 324 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions through their business (Refash 2022).   

So, it is obvious that thrift shopping is beneficial for the environment, and our wallet too! I, myself enjoy thrift shopping a lot because you will never know what goods you can find there. It's like treasure hunting! However, it is still a long way to go to create a globally sustainable fashion consumption, especially with the efforts from big organizations. Don’t fret! We as consumers must make the right choices for our life, others and the environment, so head to the nearest thrift shop and start shopping! 

References

Bown, I 2021, The Promotion of Fast Fashion from Influencers Is Problematic and Unsustainable, The Daily Utah Chronicle, viewed 4 May 2023, <https://dailyutahchronicle.com/2021/06/18/the-promotion-of-fast-fashion-from-influencers-is-problematic-and-unsustainable/>. 

Jakobsson, S 2022, WHY DO FASHION BRANDS USE INFLUENCERS?, Cure Media, Cure Media, viewed 4 May 2023, <https://www.curemedia.com/why-do-fashion-brands-use-influencers/>. 

Lai, Z, Henninger, CE, Alevizou, PJ ‘An Exploration of Consumers’ Perceptions Towards Sustainable Fashion – A Qualitative Study in the UK’, in Sustainability in Fashion A Cradle to Upcycle Approach, edited by Henninger, C.E., Alevizou, P., Goworek, H., Ryding, D. (Palgrave: 2017). 

Marcus, E 2022, ‘How Malaysia Got in on the Secondhand Clothing Boom (Published 2022)’, The New York Times, 3 February, viewed 4 May 2023, <https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/03/style/malaysia-secondhand-clothing-grailed-etsy-ebay.html>. 

Refash 2022, About Us, REFASH Malaysia, viewed 4 May 2023, <https://refash.my/pages/about-us>. 

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#BlackLivesMatter 

#BlackLivesMatter is reported to be the most influential racial equity movement since the 1960s civil rights era as people from all over the world went to protest on the streets (Ince & Dunivin 2022). It is a global movement that aims to eradicate white supremacy and violence against the black people community. This type of movement has been going on for years, but after the incident of George Floyd, it exploded in massive outrage globally. People began marching to challenge police brutality and the racial injustice happening in America (Georgetown University 2020). This movement spread globally through the help of this little symbol, # that we call a hashtag. How does this symbol help spread this movement?  

Protesters march down 5th Avenue in New York City in anti-police brutality demonstrations on June 10, 2020 (Simonetti 2020). Picture by David Dee Delgado/Getty Images.

What is Hashtag?  

A # symbol is an essential tool in digital marketing, containing links to the words attached, allowing people to find relevant content. It is a grouping of the same or similar content, which create subgroups of digital communities of those who interact with it. Many organizations use their branded hashtag to generate user-generated content or jump on trending hashtags to create popular content (West 2021).   

“Many more people are interested in finding their community or growing the one they already run. Hashtags provide a tried-and-true method across nearly every social media platform.” - Founder of the hashtag, Chris Messina  

So, it is an immensely powerful symbol that impacts the overall content performance, which is a strategic plan to make content go viral or attract the targeted community. This symbol can be used for plain fun, such as a TikTok challenge, and now evolved to the usage of amplifying messages, such as politics and activisms (Smith 2023).  

In summary, these are what the powerful little symbol can do:  

Create high engagement  

Provide easy option to find content/brand  

Helps to add extra context to the content  

The Power of Hashtags  

People started using the #BlackLivesMatter tag to discuss and support the movement across all social media platforms and street protests. As a result, victims and survivors came out to share their personal stories. The art of storytelling is a strategic device that pushes the building of politics through a ‘people over power’ narrative focusing on moral urgency and emotional frames (Vromen 2017 p5). This action helps gain more allies and turns the support into efforts in statehouses and the voting booth (Georgetown University 2020).   

The Conversation team also found that numerous people did online searches for the #BlackLivesMatter indicating that the mass rallies did raise awareness of the movement's actions and causes (Ince & Dunivin 2022). 23% of adult social media users in America have changed their view on this political/social issue through online research (Murphy 2021). Both the hashtag and the protest help the public learn about their aspirations and plans towards social change, which pushes people to rethink the social problems that still exist in the community (Ince & Dunivin 2022).   

Vromen also supported this statement that it drives established organizations to rethink their support of this cause through their staffing structures, offline and online engagement, and efforts to donate and fundraise (2017 p 6-7). Organizational commitment to racial awareness became an obligation rather than an option (Murphy 2021). Hence, big companies joined the cause by speaking up on the issue and implementing actions within and outside the brand.   

Nike is known for using their advertising campaigns to make political remarks, particularly regarding Black Lives Matter. The global firm has a long history of dealing with diversity and inclusion by supporting Black athletes and upper management. They published a video statement on the Black Lives Matter movement, urging viewers to pay attention to the turmoil taking place in front of them, and it received tremendous support and acceptance from the public (Murphy 2021).  

Other than that, under the direction of CEO John Donahoe, the company continued to reform its executive leadership team, advancing Felicia Mayo, a Black woman executive, as the diversity chief in July 2020. Plus, as part of the company's internal goals (Purpose 2025 Targets), they collaborate with Converse, Jordan Brand, and Michael Jordan, pledged a total of $140 million over 10 years to local and national organizations to fight racial inequality for Black Americans, a programme known as the Black Community Commitment (Murphy 2021).  

All in all, the symbol # represents the label or term of any topic that people can engage with others. It is a powerful tool to relay impactful messages such as this movement. It creates a global-wide community, influencing individuals and organizations to be part of social change. Of course, there are so many obstacles left that we must face towards racial justice, but we must continue this effort of helping those in need. Let us all be part of the change. 

References

Georgetown University 2020, Black Lives Matter: From Protests to Lasting Change - Business for Impact | Georgetown University, Business for Impact | Georgetown University, viewed 29 April 2023, <https://businessforimpact.georgetown.edu/uncategorized/black-lives-matter-from-protests-to-lasting-change/>. 

Ince, J & Dunivin, Z 2022, Black Lives Matter protests are shaping how people understand racial inequality, The Conversation, viewed 29 April 2023, <https://theconversation.com/black-lives-matter-protests-are-shaping-how-people-understand-racial-inequality-178254>. 

Murphy, Y 2021, Blackout Tuesday 2020: One year later, what have companies done for Black lives?, Vox, Vox, viewed 29 April 2023, <https://www.vox.com/the-goods/22463723/blackout-tuesday-blm-sephora-starbucks-nike-glossier>. 

Smith, A 2023, Hashtags: What they are and how to use them effectively, Sprout Social, viewed 29 April 2023, <https://sproutsocial.com/insights/what-is-hashtagging/>. 

Vromen, A 2017, Digital Citizenship and Political Engagement The Challenge from Online Campaigning and Advocacy Organisations, 1st ed. 2017., Palgrave Macmillan UK, London. 

West, C 2021, The Complete Guide to Hashtag Analytics, Sprout Social, viewed 29 April 2023, <https://sproutsocial.com/insights/hashtag-analytics/>. 

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Too Hot to Handle Relationships??? 

I am so excited to talk about this week’s topic because I am going to talk about one of my favourite reality TV shows called Too Hot to Handle. In a gist, this show is a dating show where a group of super attractive single people stayed together on a tropical island isolated from the outside world. The goal is to help the contestants form proper and meaningful relationships, which then they could win $100,000.  

These people are chosen through their Instagram profiles based on their good looks and lifestyle. In the first episode, some of them were bragging about their love for hook-up culture, parties, mingling with attractive people and hoping to find “love” on the island (Walker 2020).

Upon watching this, I genuinely thought this show was stupid and filled with people who mistook love for lust and that everyone was only in need for the money. But I was wrong because this show exceeded my expectations!  

Yes to Self-Improvement and Building Positive Relationships  

The show stands out among other typical dating shows because the host is an artificial intelligence bot called Lana, responsible for observing and guiding the contestants in building spiritual and emotional journeys to improve their personal and romantic relationships through various workshops (Walker 2020). So, it is almost like a social experiment on a person’s growth overcoming their temptation between lust, money, and self-growth. Although there is a factor of the ultimate cash prize, I could definitely see each contestant's improvement towards the end. Some of them managed to be vulnerable with their partner and talked about their past, some have learnt of their self-worth, and some have become more considerate of others.   

I think this show is excellent at capturing and educating the audience on the importance of building positive relationships with ourselves and others. The key point is that relationship is more than just physical attraction, and love is more than just a feeling but a continuous effort of improving ourselves. In each episode, you can uncover the various attachment style we possess, the values we carry, and what we look for in others, including the power of vulnerability.   

A psychotherapist, Sana Powell, did an interesting review of this reality show from a therapist’s perspective. She said these people might have an avoidant attachment style because they run away from genuine relationships (Powell 2020), which may explain their love for the hook-up culture that revolves around temporary meaningless connections.

In support of this, many Gen Zs are becoming more aware of their attachment style, which they discuss with their potential life partners. This shows that current generations care more about being with someone who blends with them well rather than how attractive they look (Klein 2022). However, the downside of this reality show is that it might show unrealistic expectations of relationships.   

Didn’t I say that this show teaches our attachment style and the importance of vulnerability, and now I am saying it’s unrealistic? Okay, hear me out.   

Sure, those are awesome things we should apply in every type of relationship, but this show was filmed around a month. You can’t possibly fit everything in just 8 to 10 episodes. People don’t improve over a short period, and there must be consistent effort. That is a lot of work, and it can be exhausting!   

Julia Arbit, the senior vice president of Insights, researched that only 1 in 10 Gen Zs are willing to commit to being committed (Klein 2022). Most of us don’t want to be in a relationship because some are still finding their identity. Some don’t look for one person but think different people fulfil different needs, be it sexual or romantic or whatever else (Klein 2022). I have no say that hook-up culture is wrong or good, but it no doubt create confusion and heartbreak.   

Nowadays, dates don’t necessarily mean you are interested in the person. There are people in a situationship with no need for labelling because they don’t want any responsibilities or expectations. Plus, sex is not as sacred as it used to be because people can jump onto it despite knowing each other for only 3 hours (Iris 2023). On top of that, reality TV in the 21st century normalizes superficiality and disloyalty, and those with these traits are rewarded. The combination format of selected fly-on-the-wall scenes and 1-to-1 interviews with the producers boost the “real” effect of reality TV, despite it being strategically coordinated to create a cohesive narrative (Berman 2022).   

So, reality TV isn’t really the reality. The end goal of reality TV is our attention, and they are conquering it. I believe it is up to us what we want to take away from the shows. Most importantly, we are responsible to differentiate the good and the bad that comes with them. Nevertheless, if you are wondering what show to watch next, do give Too Hot To Handle a chance and maybe you can let me know what you think of it.   

References

Berman, J 2022, Reality TV Has Reshaped Our World, Whether We Like It or Not, Time, Time, viewed 21 April 2023, <https://time.com/collection/reality-tv-most-influential-seasons/6199108/reality-tv-influence-on-world/>. 

Iris, A 2023, The Most WTF Things About Today’s Hookup Culture, Hype MY, Hype MY, viewed 21 April 2023, <https://hype.my/2023/312855/the-most-wtf-things-about-todays-hookup-culture/>. 

Klein, J 2022, Are Gen Z more pragmatic about love and sex?, Bbc.com, BBC, viewed 21 April 2023, <https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20220104-are-gen-z-more-pragmatic-about-love-and-sex>. 

Powell, S. I 2020, ‘Too Hot to Handle’: A Therapist’s Netflix Review, Curly Therapist, Curly Therapist, viewed 21 April 2023, <https://sanapowell.com/2020/04/30/too-hot-to-handle-a-therapists-netflix-review/>. 

Walker, M. M 2020, Why I Love Netflix’s ‘Too Hot To Handle’ - VOX ATL, VOX ATL, viewed 21 April 2023, <https://voxatl.org/why-i-love-netflixs-too-hot-to-handle/>. 

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Tumblr Uniting Marginalized Communities 

Tumblr is one of the many social media that exist and is used by young people for entertainment. What makes Tumblr stand out among the rest is that it is viewed as a “wild” or free-spirited platform (Wood 2022). Okay, let me explain it in a way that is easy for you to understand. Let us think of social media platforms as regular people in our life.   

Firstly, we have Twitter. It is known for its concise content, where people post or, as they call it, ‘tweet’, whatever topics within only 280 characters. Twitter users tend to tweet their personal thoughts on any interesting subject. I like to think of it as a younger sibling who is obsessed over trivial things and forcing you to listen to the nitty-gritty details of their day 😒.

Moving on, we have Instagram, where everyone can upload pictures or short videos. Typically, it ranges from their daily outfits, precious memories with friends and families, or a shoutout to various brand products. The culture of Instagram is aesthetically pleasing that it gives off the vibe of a person who takes hundreds of selfies per day, including everything and everyone around them.

Then, the star of the show, Tumblr, has everything from texts, pictures, videos, GIFs, music, and more. It is a crossover of blog sites and social media (Internet Matters Team 2022). Plus, people can even customize their own Tumblr accounts that represent their personalities. The media logic for this platform is not fixed like other platforms, and it provides its users with the freedom to express themselves (Wood 2022). There are no rules in whatever form of content you want to post! Personally, Tumblr really comes across as an introvert, maybe a weirdo, but definitely a cool creative person 😎.  

The reason I said that is because of the nature of Tumblr. There is no profile or friends list on the user’s account. It is anonymously created and may be tricky to identify who the owner is (Keller 2019 p 7). One doesn’t need to use their own pictures or names. Hence, this anonymity delivers a safe space for people to express themselves without judgement. Plus, this allows them to bring people together, creating a community with similar interests (Internet Matters Team 2022), be it film series, books or funny memes.  

What I want to bring up here, the anonymity culture really helps those marginalized communities, such as women and LGBTQ+ people, to bond and share experiences. I believe every woman has experienced some form of harassment, such as catcalling. Some even have gone through worse, and it can take years to get over such trauma. On the other hand, LGBTQ+ people have experienced harassment or isolation for so long because society still considers them abnormal. This makes them feel alienated from themselves and question their own worth.  

Not to worry, Tumblr is here to save the day! 🥳 As mentioned, the anonymity culture allows people to interact with their respective communities safely because each can connect to one other. A survey among LGBTQ+ respondents on their usage of Tumblr, and one of them said that Tumblr is a space to relate to each other through their experiences. It is a platform where they don’t necessarily ask for advice but more on gaining attention and support from other users (Byron et al 2019 p 2247).  

It goes the same for the feminists who use Tumblr to talk about feminism. A controversial topic can lead to debates, and sometimes it just goes south. But Tumblr provides a space where it is converse among those within the community only, which they can control and expect a better interaction result. They can control the flow of information and the people that can access it, which is called social privacy (Keller 2019 p 8). Due to this, Keller (2019 p 8) said that a lot of girls feel safer sharing their thoughts on this matter without worrying about the hate comments.  

Tumblr's ‘No Rules Allowed’ culture undoubtedly pushes the boundary of conversation topics we rarely hear daily. To some extent, the exposure of these taboo topics really helps, especially young individuals to learn about themselves and gain clarity of their identity. It tremendously helps in showing that there are many people out there who are like us and let us know that we are not alone.

References:

Byron, P, Robards, B, Hanckel, B, Vivienne, S & Churchill, B 2019, ‘“Hey, I’m Having These Experiences”: Tumblr Use and Young People’s Queer connections’, International journal of communication (Online), University of Southern California, Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism, Annenberg Press, p. 2239–. 

Internet Matters Team 2022, What is Tumblr? What parents need to know, Internet Matters, viewed 13 April 2023, <https://www.internetmatters.org/hub/news-blogs/what-is tumblr/#:~:text=It%20is%20host%20to%20more,people%20of%20similar%20interests%20together.>. 

Keller, J 2019, ‘“Oh, She’s a Tumblr Feminist”: Exploring the Platform Vernacular of Girls’ Social Media Feminisms’, Social media + society, vol. 5, no. 3, SAGE Publications, London, England, p. 205630511986744–.

Woods, K 2022, Tumblr is back. What does that mean for marketers?, Sprout Social, viewed 13 April 2023, <https://sproutsocial.com/insights/tumblr-marketing/>.