News Science Quarterly (NS)

News Science Quarterly (NS)

Celebrities and Public Attention: Examining the Role of Utilized Models

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Mahmoud Abbasnezhad 1
Ali Geranmayeh Poor 2
Mohammad Babaei 3
Nassim Majidi Ghahroodi 4
1 Phd Candidate of Social Communication, Department of Communication, Journalism and Media, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. E-mail: eelmaz@gmail.com
2 Corresponding author, Assistant Professor, Department of Communication, Journalism and Media, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. E-mail: ali_phd1970@yahoo.com
3 Assistant Professor, Department of law and political sciences, Kharazmi University, Tehran, Iran. E-mail: mbabaee48@gmail.com
4 Assistant Professor, Department of Communication, Journalism and Media, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. E-mail: nassim_majidi2002@yahoo.com
10.22034/lrsi.2024.468088.1208
Abstract
Objective:While examining objective indicators, the article seeks to understand the behavior of celebrities in cyberspace how they affect audiences and public opinion. The background study led to the extraction of ten indicators celebrities use to play a role in the social network and attract fans. The research hypothesis is that there is a correlation between these patterns and the attraction of public opinion.
Methods: The research method is survey. The statistical population of the study is Iranian users active on Instagram and follows 10 active and prominent celebrities. Cochran's formula was used to calculate the sample size of indeterminate populations. The researcher sent a questionnaire to 40 followers of each celebrity, and a total of 400 questionnaires were completed and received, which showed that each user followed an average of 5.9 celebrities and spent 3.5 hours on social networks.
Results: The results showed that there is a significant relationship between these variables to 0/759 on the Pearson correlation scale, which is not meaningful based on gender, but is meaningful based on education level, and low-educated people are more affected by celebrities than high-educated people.
In the ten indicators, "imitation and modeling" and "lifestyle" have the strongest connection and most impact on public opinion. The findings confirm theoretical framework theories like performative society, cultural consumption and parasocial relationship, and celebrities in the new social media platform are not only the source of entertainment, but also play a significant role in attracting and shaping public opinion by greatly influencing the attitudes and thoughts of users.
Conclusions:The issues that celebrities raise are important to public opinion, and the amount of presence on social networks and following the pages of celebrities can model for users and not only be effective in shaping the flow of public opinion, but also strengthen or weaken them, so it makes the need to pay attention to this issue and its consequences more obvious to policymakers and media professionals
Keywords
Public Opinion
Celebrity
Instagram
Social Network
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