Thesis (MPhil (Journalism))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study examines how positively or negatively as well as how subjectively or objectively the South African tabloid newspapers represent black celebrities. This examination was primarily conducted by using the content analysis research technique. The researcher selected a total of 85 newspapers spread across four different South African daily and weekend tabloid newspapers that were published during the period February to September 2008. The results from the data collected reveal that tabloid newspapers tend to overemphasize negativity when reporting about black celebrities. The findings also reveal a clear differential in the representation of black female celebrities vis-à-vis male celebrities. Unlike male celebrities whose roles were mainly defined in terms of political activities and personal disputes, female celebrities’ roles were largely confined to relationships and sex. The language used by the four newspapers in their representation of celebrities appears to be humiliating and, in some instances, downright disparaging. There is little doubt that media representations of celebrities, whether positive or negative, serve as mirrors to how some members of society behave. To this end, there needs to be a shift from the current preoccupation with sensationalizing negative news when South African tabloid newspapers report on black celebrities. Tabloid newspapers should judiciously use their greater focus on celebrities’ private lives to report on more positive personal stories that focus on the achievements of celebrities, including how some celebrities are living positively with HIV/AIDS. Since this study only focused on South African tabloid newspapers’ representations of black celebrities, and only employed the content analysis method, further research is recommended on the impact of celebrities’ representations on the South African society. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie ondersoek hoe positief of negatief, asmede subjektief of objektief, daar oor swart beroemdes in Suid-Afrikaanse ponie- of skinderkoerante verslag gedoen word. Die ondersoek is primêr met behulp van die inhoudsanaliseondersoekmetode uitgevoer. Die navorser het 85 koerante uit vier verskillende Suid-Afrikaanse dagblaaie en naweekponiekoerante gekies uit die tydperk Februarie tot September 2008. Die resultate toon ‘n tendens in die poniekoerante dat oorwegend negatiewe verslagdoening oor swart beroemdes vooropgestel word. Die bevindinge toon ook ’n duidelike verskil tussen die verslagdoening oor beroemde swart vroue teenoor dié oor swart mans. In teenstelling met die mans wie se rolle hoofsaaklik ingevolge hulle politieke aktiwiteite en persoonlike dispute gedefinieer word, word beroemde swart vroue se rolle hoofsaaklik beperk tot verhoudings en seks. Die taalgebruik in die verslaggewing oor beroemdes in die vier poniekoerante blyk uiters vernederend, en in sommige gevalle, selfs degraderend en wrang te wees. Daar bestaan min twyfel dat verslaggewing oor beroemdes in die media, hetsy positief of negatief, weerspieël hoe sommige lede van die samelewing lewe. Om hierdie rede is ’n verskuiwing in die huidige beheptheid met die sensasionalisering van negatiewe nuus in die verslaggewing oor swart beroemdes nodig. Poniekoerante wat op die persoonlike lewens van beroemdes fokus behoort na meer positiewe verslagdoening oor hul prestasies te strewe, insluitend, hoe sommige beroemdes positief met MIV/Vigs lewe. Aangesien hierdie navorsing net op verslagdoening oor swart beroemdes in Suid-Afrikaanse poniekoerante kragtens die inhoudsanalisemetorde gefokus het, word verdere navorsing aanbeveel oor die impak van verslagdoening oor beroemdes op die Suid-Afrikaanse samelewing.

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The purpose of this study was to examine how male and female celebrities are represented on the 24 covers of e+, a weekly entertainment magazine that was published by Dubai-based Al Nisr Publishing. This cross-sectional, exploratory study used a qualitative visual semiotic analysis and quantitative content analysis to examine how male and female celebrities are constructed and represented on covers published between October 2010 and September 2011. In addition, the study explored whether the myths and ideologies found on the covers made an impression on the perceptions and tastes of teenagers living in the UAE. A subsequent self-administered questionnaire was completed by 30 teenagers living in the UAE aged between 16 and 19 with the purpose of determining how teenagers experienced representations of celebrities. Furthermore, to gain a deeper understanding of how teenagers experienced celebrity culture, three focus-group interviews, each comprising of six participants, are conducted. The study found that both male and female celebrities were represented in gender stereotypical roles. Results showed that male celebrities were represented as active, strong, decisive and dominant. Male celebrities were associated with success, fast cars and dangerous weapons. On the other hand, female celebrities were predominantly represented as submissive. The representations of female celebrities focused on beauty and fashion. The survey and focus-group results revealed that celebrity culture does have an influence on teenagers. Participants reported that they bought products that they saw celebrities wearing or using, emulated the celebrities’ behaviour and copied hairstyles and make-up looks. However, the study found that, in addition to celebrity culture, teenagers’ perceptions are also shaped by their peers, parents and other people they interact with such as teachers. / Communication Science / M.A. (Communication Science)

L’histoire des arts et de la culture au Québec comporte plusieurs exemples de « retours d’Europe » et de « triomphes français » depuis les séjours de formation outre-Atlantique des « exotiques » jusqu’aux succès des chansonniers sur les scènes parisiennes. Or, entre le début des années 1930 et le milieu des années 1950, de nombreux artistes populaires montréalais font plutôt l’expérience de la tournée américaine. Année après année, ces artistes sillonnent les routes de la Nouvelle-Angleterre pour divertir le public francophone présent dans les villes industrielles et dans les villages forestiers de la région, se rendant même parfois jusqu’à New York. Pourtant, cet épisode de grande mobilité est pratiquement absent de l’histoire, de la mémoire et du patrimoine culturel au Québec et aux États-Unis. Au-delà de l’impact de la Grande Dépression sur la scène culturelle montréalaise et de celui de la Deuxième Guerre mondiale sur la possibilité de séjourner en Europe, si ces artistes ont tourné leur regard vers l’Amérique, c’est parce qu’ils évoluent dans un espace transnational autant géographique que symbolique, hérité de l’époque des grandes migrations intracontinentales, puis réactivé et reconfiguré par l’avènement des médias sonores et audiovisuels comme le disque, la radio et le cinéma. L’histoire de la célébrité médiatique de Mary « La Bolduc » Travers, de Rudy Vallée et de Jean Grimaldi proposée dans cette thèse permet d’accéder aux différentes strates de ce phénomène à la croisée de l’histoire culturelle, de l’histoire des médias et de l’histoire des migrations. Leurs récits enchevêtrés révèlent ainsi les modalités de la mobilité migratoire, artistique et médiatique au sein — et parfois à l’extérieur — de la « communauté imaginée » canadienne-française. L’étude des critères de la patrimonialisation des artistes éclaire en partie les causes de l’oubli de cet épisode de la culture francophone en Amérique du Nord, comme : le rejet de la mobilité dans la mise en récit des formations nationales et ethnoculturelles ; la marginalisation historique des arts populaires ; et la méfiance que suscitent à l’époque les États-Unis au sein des élites culturelles et politiques à travers le monde. / Art history and cultural history in Quebec present many examples of “retours d’Europe” and of “French triumphs,” from the formative overseas stays of the “exotiques” in the 1910s to the stage success of Quebec “chansonniers” in Paris in the 1950s and 1960s. However, between the early 1930s and the mid-1950s, some of the most famous French-speaking artists based in Montréal preferred to go on tour in the United States. Many of them traveled New England year after year, sometimes going as far as New York City, to cheer the French-speaking public present along the way in the industrial cities of the region. Yet this episode of high mobility is almost absent from history, memory and cultural heritage in Quebec—and even more so in the United States. Beyond the impact of the Great Depression on Montréal’s cultural scene and of the Second World War on the possibility of visiting Europe, these artists have turned their eyes towards America because they participated in a transnational space, both geographical and symbolic, inherited from an era of great intracontinental migrations, then reactivated and reconfigured by the advent of sound and audiovisual media—discs, radio and cinema. By studying the history of the celebrity of Mary “La Bolduc” Travers, Rudy Vallée and Jean Grimaldi, this thesis attempts to access to the various layers of this phenomenon at the crossroads of cultural history, media history and migration history. Their intricate narratives therefore reveal the modality of mobility involved inside—and often times outside—of the French Canadian “imagined community.” By analyzing the heritagization process of these artists, it is possible to isolate some of the causes the oblivion of this transnational episode of francophone culture in North America, such as the rejection of mobility in the formation of national and ethnic identity narratives; the historical marginalization of popular arts; and the mistrust of the United States among cultural and political elites around the world at the time.

The Catalina Triangle is a work of historical fiction focusing on the final weekend in the life of the actress Natalie Wood with flashbacks highlighting her rise to fame and references to Reagan-era America as well as the history of Catalina Island.

In the summer of 2019, ASAP Rocky, or Rakim Meyers as his real name is, was suspectedand later convicted of assault after a gig in Stockholm. The incident and the subsequent courtproceedings received a great deal of attention in the Swedish media.The purpose of this bachelor thesis was to examine the news coverage of the case "ASAPRocky" in the Swedish press. The research questions that were investigated were: How isASAP Rocky presented in news articles in Dagens Nyheter and Aftonbladet? What does the conformation of the role as a victim and perpetrator look like? How does the conformation change during the arrest? We conducted a qualitative content analysis using a question template based on four questions taken from media logic and framing theory. By examining the portrayal of the parties involved and roles as victims and perpetrators, we were able to distinguish that none of the roles are portrayed or lived up to the definition of the roles.One theme in the essay was that ASAP Rocky's celebrity status was in his favor. This theme is also demonstrated when ASAP is embodied in the empirical material.

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Ce travail se penche sur les nouvelles formes de célébrité dites micro-célébrité, et plus particulièrement sur les pratiques de self-branding qui se développent dans un contexte néolibéral. Alors que les micro-célébrités, à l’instar des influenceurs, sont communément associées aux médias numériques et à la popularité croissante des réseaux sociaux, je considère que c’est en réalité les candidats de téléréalité qui sont les précurseurs de ces nouvelles pratiques et carrières basées sur la visibilité et l’image. De ce fait, je choisis d'étudier le cas particulier de Jessica Thivenin, candidate de téléréalité de l'émission Les Marseillais (2012–), et influenceuse française. À travers une analyse de contenu cross-média composée de quatre moments-clés, j’observe la manière dont Jessica Thivenin se met (et est mise) en scène afin de se rendre visible en tant que marque. En m’inscrivant dans les études culturelles et visuelles, je mobilise un cadre théorique lié aux travaux de Goffman (1959), avec des concepts tels que la performance, l’impression management et la présentation de soi. Enfin, cette recherche permet de discuter d’enjeux qui gravitent autour de la problématique, comme la représentation, l’image de la téléréalité auprès de l’audience et auprès des chercheurs, ainsi que les bad buzz. / This study investigates new forms of celebrity known as micro-celebrity, and more specifically self-branding practices emerging in a neoliberal context. Even though micro-celebrities, like influencers, are usually linked to digital media and the increasing popularity of social media, I argue that reality television show contestants are, in fact, the pioneers of these new practices and among the first to develop careers based on visibility and image. For this reason, I choose to study the specific case of Jessica Thivenin, contestant from the French reality television show Les Marseillais (2012–), who has become an influencer. Through a cross-media content analysis of four key moments in Thivenin’s self-branding career, I observe how Jessica Thivenin staged herself, and is also staged, in order to make herself visible as a brand. In this analysis grounded in cultural and visual studies, I use a theoretical framework inspired by Goffman’s work (1959), with concepts like performance, impression management and self-presentation. Finally, this research opens a discussion on several concerns such as representation, the image of reality television as seen by the audience and by researchers, as well as bad buzz.