The final part of our Taylor Swift case study explores Audience and Industry contexts.
The exam could focus on anything from the changing nature of digital audiences to the regulation and financial power of social media giants.
A YouGov poll (from the UK) found:
Generations:
It was eventually resolved via a new deal but this nonetheless demonstrates the power social media companies now have across different types of media - including the music industry.
Notes from the lesson: Audience
There is a lot of interesting demographic data regarding Taylor Swift's fans from American polling company Morning Consult found that:
- Some 53% of U.S. adults said they were fans of Swift, and 16% identified themselves as “avid” fans of the star.
- Of avid fans, just 44% identified themselves as “Swifties,” the name given to members of Swift’s fanbase. Among avid fans, 74% are white, compared to 13% who are Black, 9% who are Asian and 4% who are members of other races.
- Some 45% of avid fans are millennials, people between the ages of 27 and 42, while 23% are baby boomers, 21% are Gen Xers and just 11% are members of Gen Z—those 26 and under.
- A slim majority, 55%, of avid Swift fans are Democrats, compared to 23% who are politically independent and 23% who are Republicans.
- Her fanbase is evenly split across genders: 48% is male, and 52% is female, according to the survey.
- 73%. That’s how many avid fans said that Swift’s music is a driving force of their support of her, compared to 50% who cited her performances and music videos and 42% who cited her relatability.
- Avid fans and U.S. adults agree that 1989 is Swift’s best album. Some 15% of avid fans picked this work, more than any other album, compared to 7% of U.S. adults who did. Another 7% of U.S. adults said Fearless was her best album.
- a pretty equal gender split 53% female, 47% male
- YouGov also found Swifties like Ed Sheeran, Ariana Grande, Coldplay and Cher
- Swifties pay attention to ads more than the average (56% versus 38% general population)
- 42% of Taylor Swift fans enjoy celebrity-endorsed ads
- 40% of Taylor Swift fans are willing to pay for Vinyl records
- 54% of Taylor Swift fans say music it's important for a music artist to have a vision
- 40% of Taylor Swift fans like 80s music
- Men 49.2%
- Women 50.8%
- White alone: 57.8%
- Black or African American alone: 12.4%
- Asian alone: 6.0%
- Some other race alone: 0.9%
- Generation Z: Approximately 23% of the US population (roughly half of which are legal adults)
- Millennials: Approximately 24% of the US population
- Generation X: Approximately 21% of the US population
- Baby Boomers: Approximately 28% of the US population
- About 29% of US households had an income of $100,000 or more per year in 2020.
- About 28% of US households had an income between $50,000 and $99,999 per year in 2020.
Sources:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/marisadellatto/2023/03/14/more-than-half-of-us-adults-say-theyre-taylor-swift-fans-survey-finds/
https://yougov.com/en-gb/articles/48989-7-data-driven-insights-on-taylor-swifts-british-fan-base
How Taylor Swift uses social media to connect with her audience - parasocial relationships:
Taylor Swift: Voice of the Millennials or Generation Z?
- Generation X: Born between 1965 – 1980
- Millennials / Generation Y: Born between 1981 – 1995
- Generation Z (or iGen): Born 1996 – 2010
Taylor Swift is a Millennial but most of her fans are Generation Z. Which generation does she best reflect?
Industries
2023 Online Safety Bill
The 2023 Online Safety Bill is attempting to regulate the internet – but has been heavily amended and criticised as it makes its way through Parliament.
Watch this BBC News interview on the topic:
Watch: Channel 4 debate on regulation
Watch this Channel 4 News debate featuring the President of messaging service Signal on end-to-end encryption.
Where do you stand on this debate?
Create a new blogpost called 'Taylor Swift: Audience and Industries blog tasks' and work through the following to complete your case study.
Audience
Background and audience wider reading
Read this Guardian feature on stan accounts and fandom. Answer the following questions:
1) What examples of fandom and celebrities are provided in the article?
2) Why did Taylor Swift run into trouble with her fanbase?
3) Do stan accounts reflect Clay Shirky's ideas regarding the 'end of audience'? How?
Read this Conversation feature on the economics of Taylor Swift fandom. Answer the following questions:
1) What do Taylor Swift fans spend their money on?
2) How does Swift build the connection with her fans? Give examples from the article.
3) What have Swifties done to try and get Taylor Swift's attention online?
4) Why is fandom described as a 'hierarchy'?
5) What does the article suggest is Swift's 'business model'?
Taylor Swift: audience questions and theories
Work through the following questions to apply media debates and theories to the Taylor Swift CSP. You may want to go back to your previous blogpost or your A3 annotated booklet for examples.
1) Is Taylor Swift's website and social media constructed to appeal to a particular gender or audience?
2) What opportunities are there for audience interaction in Taylor Swift's online presence and how controlled are these?
3) How does Taylor Swift's online presence reflect Clay Shirky’s ‘End of Audience’ theories?
4) What effects might Taylor Swift's online presence have on audiences? Is it designed to influence the audience’s views on social or political issues or is this largely a vehicle to promote Swift's work?
5) Applying Hall’s Reception theory, what might be a preferred and oppositional reading of Taylor Swift's online presence?
Industries
How social media companies make money
Read this analysis of how social media companies make money and answer the following questions:
1) How many users do the major social media sites boast?
2) What is the main way social media sites make money?
3) What does ARPU stand for and why is it important for social media companies?
4) Why has Meta spent huge money acquiring other brands like Instagram and WhatsApp?
5) What other methods do social media sites have to generate income e.g. Twitter Blue?
Regulation of social media
Read this BBC News article on a report recommending social media regulation. Answer the following questions:
1) What suggestions does the report make? Pick out three you think are particularly interesting.
2) Who is Christopher Wylie?
3) What does Wylie say about the debate between media regulation and free speech?
4) What is ‘disinformation’ and do you agree that there are things that are objectively true or false?
5) Why does Wylie compare Facebook to an oil company?
6) What does it suggest a consequence of regulating the big social networks might be?
7) What has Instagram been criticised for?
8) Can we apply any of these criticisms or suggestions to Taylor Swift? For example, should Taylor Swift have to explicitly make clear when she is being paid to promote a company or cause?
A/A* extension tasks
Read Deconstructing Taylor in Media Magazine MM51 which covers representations, postmodernism and the relationship between Swift and her fans. You can find this in our Media Magazine archive.
Read Media Factsheets Taylor Swift Online Part 1 (282) and 2 (291) which covers her online presence the construction of brand identity, her communication with audiences and how she uses online media as a marketing tool. You can find this in our Media Factsheets archive.
Read this Guardian article on teenagers and phone addiction. Do you recognise what it is discussing?
Read this Guardian article on the Online Harms Bill. What does it suggest regarding regulation of social media companies?
This Guardian article also explores the mental health implications of social media. Do you think that strict regulation of social media should happen?
Complete for homework - due date on Show my Homework.
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