Monday: For the Celebrity Research Project I will be following Khloe Kardashian and Adele.  While the two are both household names, their social media presence is very different.  Since Kardashian is a reality television star, she relies heavily on her social media presence.  She interacts with her followers and keeps them updated.  Adele, on the other hand, is known for her powerhouse voice.  Therefore she relies less on her social media presence, and uses them more to promote her music rather than her image.

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Wednesday:  After observing these two celebrities on social media for the past two days, their differing presence’s have been emphasized.  In addition, many of my initial perceptions have been validated.  Khloe Kardashian uses her platforms much more frequently.  She uses them to promote her shows, her family, and the products she endorses.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BDSJz4WBRl4/?taken-by=khloekardashian

This type of social media presence was expected.  Since Kardashian is a reality star her fans stay loyal due to the minute by minute updates.  Her fame is largely based on her persona, one that she plays a key role in cultivating.  Kardashian can also be seen communicating directly with fans, on twitter especially, whether by answering questions or responding to posts.

On the other hand, Adele posts on social media much less frequently.  In the past two days she has only posted twice, with each photo being taken at or before a performance.  This too makes sense.  Since Adele is a performer her social media is used to promote her tour and music more than anything else.

Still, however, both stars were seen using their millions of followers for good as well.  Kardashian tweeted and instagramed on Tuesday in support of the Belgium following the terrorist attacks.  In addition, one of Adele’s posts featured her forming a “W” with her hands, showing her support for clean water initiatives.

Friday: In chapter eight’s required reading the imaginary relationships between celebrities and the public was explored.  The author explains how through social media, television, and, especially, advertising fans feel as if they know the celebrities personally.  This causes many peculiar interactions.  For example, when celebrities appear in advertisements endorsing different products their fans can either support the product because of the celebrity or become angry by their endorsement.  Further more, the essay explains how these relationships are dynamic, not just static adoration.  Instead the fans opinion of the celebrity can fluctuate between anger and love, just like any personal relationship.

The concept and proof of these imaginary relationships were seen through Khloe Kardashian’s and Adele’s social media.  Khloe Kardashian interacted with her fans on a daily basis.  She responded to their tweets and even sent out tweets with direct questions to her fans.

She was also seen advertising many different products throughout the week.

Her fans are exposed to her and interact with her as much as people that they physically see everyday.  They receive advice and support from Kardashian as they would from their best friend.  In addition, if they look up to Kardashian as a role model her opinions affect them even more.

The relationships Adele builds with her fans was also seen.  Although Adele is much less prominent on social media she was still seen interacting with her fans.  On Friday she tweeted about an injury that occurred at one of her shows.

By keeping her fans updated in this manner Adele not only forms a respectable image of herself, but shows that she cares.  This strengthens the relationships she has with her fans.  In addition, Adele was not seen promoting any particular products, besides Drops for Drops, a charity organization.  Since her persona is more serious and based on talent, advertising for a meaningless product might undercut her persona.  her fans may become angry that she is trying to gain money rather than promote more important pursuits.

The relationships described in “The Imaginary Social World and Use of Media Figures in Advertising” may be evaluated further since the emergence of social media platforms.  the essay mainly speaks of interactions in terms of TV ads or simple commercials.  However, now with Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook fans can interact even more directly with their heroes.  They have even more exposure and their relationships are constantly changing.  These fans may even interact with these celebrities more than their family or friends.  Through my study of Adele’s and Khloe Kardashian’s social media platforms the large cultural impact they have was observed.  Although the two women’s presences differed, they each hold much power since they are the imaginary friend and confidant of so many followers.