- Brian Ekdale is an Associate Professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Iowa. ... moreBrian Ekdale is an Associate Professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Iowa. His research focuses on digital cultures, production studies, and global media.edit
This article explores the entanglement of nation branding and personal branding in the Kenyan music video industry. Although self-commodification and labouring on behalf of the nation are both indicative of neo-liberal governmentality,... more
This article explores the entanglement of nation branding and personal branding in the Kenyan music video industry. Although self-commodification and labouring on behalf of the nation are both indicative of neo-liberal governmentality, Kenyan music video directors build personal brands to wrestle creative control from their clients during the production process and they invoke their experiences representing Kenya abroad to elevate their professional status at home. Thus, branding in the Kenyan music video industry illustrates the complexities and contradictions of neo-liberal governmentality in global cultural production.
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Media coverage of influencer marketing abounds with ethical questions about this emerging industry. Much of this coverage assumes influencers operate without an ethical framework and many social media personalities skirt around the edges... more
Media coverage of influencer marketing abounds with ethical questions about this emerging industry. Much of this coverage assumes influencers operate without an ethical framework and many social media personalities skirt around the edges of legal guidelines. Our study starts from the premise that influencer marketing is not inherently unethical but, rather, the ethical principles guiding production of sponsored content are not well understood. Through a case study of the travel and tourism media industry, our findings demonstrate that influencers use the concept of authenticity as an ethical framework when producing sponsored content. This ethics of authenticity is premised on two central tenets: being true to one’s self and brand and being true to one’s audience. This framework puts the influencers’ brand identity and relationship with their audience at the forefront while simultaneously allowing them to profit from content designed to benefit brands and destinations.
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There is a growing concern about the extent to which algorith-mic personalization limits people's exposure to diverse viewpoints, thereby creating "filter bubbles" or "echo chambers. " Prior research on web search personalization has... more
There is a growing concern about the extent to which algorith-mic personalization limits people's exposure to diverse viewpoints, thereby creating "filter bubbles" or "echo chambers. " Prior research on web search personalization has mainly reported location-based personalization of search results. In this paper, we investigate whether web search results are personalized based on a user's browsing history, which can be inferred by search engines via third-party tracking. Specifically, we develop a "sock puppet" auditing system in which a pair of fresh browser profiles, first, visits web pages that reflect divergent political discourses and, second, executes identical politically oriented Google News searches. Comparing the search results returned by Google News for distinctly trained browser profiles, we observe statistically significant person-alization that tends to reinforce the presumed partisanship.
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This study examines the relationship between travel influencers (e.g., bloggers and social media personalities) and destination marketers within the changing travel and tourism industry. Through in-depth interviews, observations, and... more
This study examines the relationship between travel influencers (e.g., bloggers and social media personalities) and destination marketers within the changing travel and tourism industry. Through in-depth interviews, observations, and document analysis, we explore the tensions between travel influencers and destination marketers that shape the way travel is promoted, labor is compensated, and professional structures are negotiated. We examine a new breed of travel and tourism worker—intermediaries who seek to professionalize and formalize the relationship between influencers and destination marketers while simultaneously solidifying their own role within the industry. Intermediaries promote and facilitate relationships based on structured flexibility—formalized agreements designed to satisfy a brand’s campaign goals yet open enough for influencers to pursue their unique needs. By examining the relationships between digital content creators, destination marketers, and third-party intermediaries, this article provides insight into how digital media industries negotiate the tension between participation and control.
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This article explores the relationship between global imaginaries, frictions, and the production of locality through an examination of the Kenyan music video industry. Localities are constructed, in part, through the constitutive work of... more
This article explores the relationship between global imaginaries, frictions, and the production of locality through an examination of the Kenyan music video industry. Localities are constructed, in part, through the constitutive work of the imagination. Friction occurs when divergent constructions of the global imaginary become entangled with each other. Through an examination of the production, distribution, and reception of Kenyan music videos, this study identifies three types of friction that occur in cultural production: collaborative frictions, in which collectivities work across differences toward a common cause; combative frictions, in which collectivities are positioned in direct opposition to each other; and competitive frictions, in which the interests of different collectivities conflict at times and align at others. This study contributes to scholarship on cultural production in non-Western contexts by articulating hybridity as both an antecedent to and outcome of transcultural exchange.
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Ten months after a catastrophic earthquake struck Haiti, the country was forced to confront what has since become the worst cholera outbreak in modern history. Haiti’s reputation as the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and... more
Ten months after a catastrophic earthquake struck Haiti, the country was forced to confront what has since become the worst cholera outbreak in modern history. Haiti’s reputation as the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and cholera’s stigmatization as a disease of the poor contrib- uted to a dominant narrative in Global North news media in which the outbreak was seen not only as tragic but also inevitable. The failings in traditional news media provided a valuable opportunity for citizen journalism to elevate marginalized voices and challenge dominant narratives. Our study examines whether citizen journalism lived up to this potential through a discourse analysis of CNN iReport coverage of the Haitian cholera epidemic. Our findings demonstrate that iReport coverage failed to close the participation gap between the Global North and Global South, reproduced fam- iliar narratives of Americans as heroes and Haitians as victims, became home to rumors and mis- information, and reproduced tropes of Haitians and cholera victims as backward and ignorant. In short, our study found that iReport coverage of Haiti’s cholera epidemic embodied the same discur- sive formation as that of traditional Global North news media. In closing, we argue that scholars must exercise caution when applauding citizen journalism without first critically examining citizen journalism content. KEYWORDS
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We argue that slum tourist media exemplify a distinct and growing narrative genre about posthumanitarian travel: ironic encounters. In ironic encounters, Global North tourists construct a humanitarian Self through their firsthand... more
We argue that slum tourist media exemplify a distinct and growing narrative genre about posthumanitarian travel: ironic encounters. In ironic encounters, Global North tourists construct a humanitarian Self through their firsthand engagement with suffering in the Global South. In these stories, tourists present their travels as essential for coveted experiential knowledge while depicting locals as the true beneficiaries of the tourists' self-discovery. We examine 3 high-profile texts produced by visitors of Kibera, a densely populated low-income community in Nairobi, Kenya: the BBC special Famous, Rich and in the Slums, the book Megaslumming, and a White House slideshow about Jill Biden's tour of Kibera. Emblematic of ironic encounters, these texts ultimately justify slum tourism as a humanitarian act.
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Rapid change in the news industry and the prevalence of layoffs, buyouts, and closings have led many newsworkers to experience job insecurity and worry about their long-term futures in journalism. Our research uses a case study of... more
Rapid change in the news industry and the prevalence of layoffs, buyouts, and closings have led many newsworkers to experience job insecurity and worry about their long-term futures in journalism. Our research uses a case study of employees at an independently owned media company in the United States to explore the various ways newsworkers respond to this culture of job insecurity and how their responses affect efforts to change news practices. Findings demonstrate that those who believe their jobs are at risk are unlikely to change their practices and even some who perceive job security are reticent to initiate change. As a result, the culture of job insecurity in the news industry has a limiting effect on changes to journalism practice.
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Through an analysis of popular Kenyan hashtags on Twitter, we argue that everyday leisure and entertainment practices interact with development and civic engagement in Kenya. This research draws from participation in the Kenyan... more
Through an analysis of popular Kenyan hashtags on Twitter, we argue that everyday leisure and entertainment practices interact with development and civic engagement in Kenya. This research draws from participation in the Kenyan Twittersphere, analysis of spaces created by hashtags, and fieldwork conducted in Nairobi between 2009 and 2012. Through hashtags, Kenyans on Twitter unite against perceived government corruption, respond to media misrepresentations of their country, share jokes, and participate in global conversations.We argue that sites emerge through the interaction of playful and serious content and that these sites should be examined within ICTD research. Playful activities should not be dismissed as irrelevant to development, as everyday use of Twitter is often imbued with topics tied to social, political, and economic development.
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This article examines the discourse surrounding Kibera, a highly populated low-income community in Nairobi, Kenya. Based on 11 months of fieldwork and interviews with 56 Kibera residents, this article discusses the disconnect between the... more
This article examines the discourse surrounding Kibera, a highly populated low-income community in Nairobi, Kenya. Based on 11 months of fieldwork and interviews with 56 Kibera residents, this article discusses the disconnect between the lives experienced by residents and the hyperbolic and essentialised discourse that depicts Kibera as a community defined by sickness, crime and despair. While residents do not deny many of the hardships that are central to the Kibera discourse, they articulate maisha mtaani [life in the neighbourhood] as complex, diverse and contextual. Sadly, several groups that claim to serve the good of Kibera are partially responsible for perpetuating this harmful discourse. In fact, some NGOs, journalists and residents benefit from reproducing a discourse that actively marginalises Kibera and its people.
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While all people form, exhibit, and use multiple identities, the hybridity of identity plays an integral role in the production of ethnographic knowledge. This article explores three critical tensions concerning researcher identity in... more
While all people form, exhibit, and use multiple identities, the hybridity of identity plays an integral role in the production of ethnographic knowledge. This article explores three critical tensions concerning researcher identity in media production ethnographies. First, I argue ethnographer identity is interstitial, situated at the margins of contesting and, at times, divergent selves. Second, while researchers privilege certain selves and favor particular agendas, others can appropriate and promote certain aspects of the researcher’s identity to serve strategic purposes. Finally, the rise of digital and social media has complicated traditional notions of identity management and ‘the fi eld’ and provides new opportunities for participants to study the researcher. Thus, while acts of identity are exertions of power, that power can be harnessed and enacted by both researchers and participants.
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In 2010, Kenya's first internet meme arrived in the form of a vigilante named Makmende, the action-hero-inspired protagonist of a music video. Within days of the video's release, fans started creating Makmende tales, videos, and artwork,... more
In 2010, Kenya's first internet meme arrived in the form of a vigilante named Makmende, the action-hero-inspired protagonist of a music video. Within days of the video's release, fans started creating Makmende tales, videos, and artwork, and circulating these works online. In this article, we analyze the Makmende phenomenon to understand why this video inspired Kenya's first internet meme, what the meme says about contemporary Kenya and politics, and how this meme broadens our understanding of global participatory culture. We argue that a group of young, urban Kenyans seized the moment to reappropriate stereotypes of weakness into aspirations of strength as they asserted Kenya into the global conversation online. Through this meme, Makmende became more than a fictional super hero—he became a symbol of Kenya's present and future. We situate this meme in its cultural and social context to analyze how and why Kenyans used Makmende to represent themselves. The participatory playfulness around Makmende created a meme of aspiration through which a niche of Kenyans collectively reimagined a hypermasculine hero who embodied youth hopes and visions for the country. This article draws from multiple texts about and within the Makmende meme and observational research in Kenya before, during, and after the height of the Makmende craze.
This article examines the relationship between community journalists and residents in Kibera, a sizable slum in Nairobi, Kenya. Focusing on two videojournalism initiatives, this research explores the structural and cultural features of... more
This article examines the relationship between community journalists and residents in Kibera, a sizable slum in Nairobi, Kenya. Focusing on two videojournalism initiatives, this research explores the structural and cultural features of Kibera that impacted residents' participation and nonparticipation in these projects. Findings reveal that many residents were unfamiliar with these projects because the organizations were located in a more expensive part of Kibera and the videos were not regularly distributed locally. In addition, Kibera has a history of exploitation by media producers and nongovernmental organizations, so residents are conditioned to be wary of journalism organizations. Thus, while journalists believed they were providing a service to the community, many residents did not see the value of this work. This study reveals that journalists in contentious communities must dedicate adequate resources to building productive relationships with those who are not actively engaged in news production. Otherwise, those who do not believe that journalists are serving the best interest of the community may choose to resist this work.
Videos stored on YouTube served as a valuable set of communicative resources for publics interested in the Occupy movement. This article explores this loosely bound media ecology, focusing on how and what types of video content are shared... more
Videos stored on YouTube served as a valuable set of communicative resources for publics interested in the Occupy movement. This article explores this loosely bound media ecology, focusing on how and what types of video content are shared and circulated across both YouTube and Twitter. Developing a novel data-collection methodology, a population of videos posted to YouTube with Occupy-related metadata or circulated on Twitter alongside Occupy-related keywords during the month of November 2011 was assembled.
This article examines an entertainment-education program, The Team, which began airing in Kenya after the 2007–2008 postelection violence. The show promotes cooperation and national unity among Kenyans through the metaphor of Kenya as a... more
This article examines an entertainment-education program, The Team, which began airing in Kenya after the 2007–2008 postelection violence. The show promotes cooperation and national unity among Kenyans through the metaphor of Kenya as a football (soccer) team. The focus of this article is twofold: viewers' identification with and reaction to certain morally ambiguous characters and audience members' interaction with the program through the online social networking site Facebook.
"The Office stands as one of the most popular “translations” of a British television show to American audiences. The British Office garnered scores of awards during its two year run; the American Office is currently one of the most... more
"The Office stands as one of the most popular “translations” of a British television show to American audiences. The British Office garnered scores of awards during its two year run; the American Office is currently one of the most popular sitcoms on American television and a key component of NBC’s Thursday night. There are many similarities between the two shows. Both use similar styles of humor: an uneasy, passive-aggressive and sometimes horrifyingly uncomfortable (albeit often realistic) humiliation of many of the characters. Additionally, both shows follow the exploits of a socially awkward boss, a subservient and obsequious second-in-command, and a good natured office “drone” who becomes, in a roundabout way, the audience’s hero. Further, both shows utilize a “documentary” style of shooting, so that the characters are aware of the TV crew, and the cameras become characters in their own right.
Yet, tellingly, the translation of the show from Britain to America also leaves much out. By focusing on the characters of Gareth (in the British Office) and Dwight (in the American), we use a reading of Baudrillard’s simulacra to investigate how the documentary-style of the show affects the humor, which in turn sets a symbolic reading of the show. In this paper, we examine the uses of humor in the two shows to describe how both function within a bureaucratic society: namely, we conclude the British version uses a shock-realism to mock the status quo/ hegemonic bureaucracy while the American show uses an ironic wink/wink to the audience to exaggerate the status/quo. But in doing so, the American Office actually reinforces its hegemonic bureaucracy, effectively negating any of the subversiveness of the British version."
Yet, tellingly, the translation of the show from Britain to America also leaves much out. By focusing on the characters of Gareth (in the British Office) and Dwight (in the American), we use a reading of Baudrillard’s simulacra to investigate how the documentary-style of the show affects the humor, which in turn sets a symbolic reading of the show. In this paper, we examine the uses of humor in the two shows to describe how both function within a bureaucratic society: namely, we conclude the British version uses a shock-realism to mock the status quo/ hegemonic bureaucracy while the American show uses an ironic wink/wink to the audience to exaggerate the status/quo. But in doing so, the American Office actually reinforces its hegemonic bureaucracy, effectively negating any of the subversiveness of the British version."
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This chapter looks at an organization called Invisible Children that focuses on the ongoing conflict in Northern Uganda. I wrote about Invisible Children for a couple of reasons: 1) It's a rare example of an organization that was born out... more
This chapter looks at an organization called Invisible Children that focuses on the ongoing conflict in Northern Uganda. I wrote about Invisible Children for a couple of reasons: 1) It's a rare example of an organization that was born out of a media production, and the organization continues to be very media savvy. 2) The organization is very successful at attracting young people. 3) The original documentary (called "Invisible Children: Rough Cut") has some significant flaws, and because the documentary has become the foundation of the organization, those flaws have become indoctrinated into the organization's culture and practice.
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The present study uses California’s Proposition 8 campaign as a case study for an exploratory investigation of video activism online. We conducted a content analysis of a sample of Proposition 8 videos drawn at random from the results of... more
The present study uses California’s Proposition 8 campaign as a case study for an exploratory investigation of video activism online. We conducted a content analysis of a sample of Proposition 8 videos drawn at random from the results of a keyword search of YouTube. Main findings from the analysis (N = 801) show that a majority of the videos were made up of original content and took a position against Proposition 8. The results also show that video posters on different sides of the debate drew on different mixes of video forms as the election debate progressed. A greater proportion of ‘Yes on 8’ videos were scripted and professionally produced while ‘No on 8’ videos were more often amateur creations and served to witness the widespread protests in the aftermath of the election.
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In the new media environment, hard news stories are no longer found solely in the ‘‘A’’ section of the paper or on the front page of a news Web site. They are now distributed widely, appearing in contexts as disparate as a partisan blog... more
In the new media environment, hard news stories are no longer found solely in the ‘‘A’’ section of the paper or on the front page of a news Web site. They are now distributed widely, appearing in contexts as disparate as a partisan blog or your own e-mail inbox, forwarded by a friend. In this study, we investigate how the credibility of a news story is affected by the context in which it appears. Results of an experiment show a news story embedded in an uncivil partisan blog post appears more credible in contrast. Specifically, a blogger’s incivility highlights the relative credibility of the newspaper article. We also find that incivility and partisan disagreement in an adjacent blog post produce stronger correlations between ratings of news and blog credibility. These findings suggest that news story credibility is affected by context and that these context effects can have surprising benefits for news organizations. Findings are consistent with predictions of social judgment theory.
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Despite the impact that influential American political bloggers have had on public policies and the mainstream media agenda in recent years, very little research is currently available on the most widely read political bloggers. Through a... more
Despite the impact that influential American political bloggers have had on public policies and the mainstream media agenda in recent years, very little research is currently available on the most widely read political bloggers. Through a survey of 66 top American political bloggers, the present study examines this elite group by analyzing their initial and current motivations for blogging as well as their online and offline behaviors. The findings demonstrate that nearly all motivations for blogging have increased over time, with the most substantial increases occurring in extrinsic motivations. The results also reveal a significant association between extrinsic motivations and blogger online and offline political participation. This study demonstrates that future research on political blogs needs to look beyond blog readers and blog content and investigate the influential political bloggers themselves.
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The Internet in Africa has generated a lively debate in the popular press and among commentators about what its growth will mean for Africa and its people. Through in- depth interviews and observations, we consider one aspect of Internet... more
The Internet in Africa has generated a lively debate in the popular press and among commentators about what its growth will mean for Africa and its people. Through in- depth interviews and observations, we consider one aspect of Internet practice in Africa: how use of the Internet for making friends and dating allows young, urban Ghanaians to craft lifestyles, incorporating globally circulating cultural and symbolic forms into their identities. We suggest that when young, urban Ghanaians go online to meet, chat, and form relationships with strangers near and far, they are devising, testing out, and sharing sensibilities; they are bringing situa- tion, mood, and new knowledge to bear on the self or selves that they are exploring and tentatively projecting.
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In 2010, Kenya's first internet meme arrived in the form of a vigilante named Makmende, the action-hero-inspired protagonist of a music video. Within days of the video's release, fans started creating Makmende tales, videos, and artwork,... more
In 2010, Kenya's first internet meme arrived in the form of a vigilante named Makmende, the action-hero-inspired protagonist of a music video. Within days of the video's release, fans started creating Makmende tales, videos, and artwork, and circulating these works online. In this article, we analyze the Makmende phenomenon to understand why this video inspired Kenya's first internet meme, what the meme says about contemporary Kenya and politics, and how this meme broadens our understanding of global participatory culture. We argue that a group of young, urban Kenyans seized the moment to reappropriate stereotypes of weakness into aspirations of strength as they asserted Kenya into the global conversation online. Through this meme, Makmende became more than a fictional super hero—he became a symbol of Kenya's present and future. We situate this meme in its cultural and social context to analyze how and why Kenyans used Makmende to represent themselves. The participatory playfulness around Makmende created a meme of aspiration through which a niche of Kenyans collectively reimagined a hypermasculine hero who embodied youth hopes and visions for the country. This article draws from multiple texts about and within the Makmende meme and observational research in Kenya before, during, and after the height of the Makmende craze.