Where’s My 15 Minutes of Fame?

Illustration by Meghan Zhang

I’m sitting in the library, scrolling through TikTok instead of studying, as usual. All of a sudden, I look up to see a person walk in and sit at the table across from me. I recognize them. I quickly glance back and forth between my phone and the person, confirming my suspicions. The person in front of me was just on my For You page. It’s a campus celebrity! I’ve spotted a microinfluencer!

We see them everywhere we go: on campus, on our phones, at home. There is an epidemic of microinfluencers taking over my screen. There is a good chance that at least one person, or multiple people, from your high school have begun posting regularly. It is even more likely that you’ve seen one pop up from your university and may have even run into them on campus. It’s an itch that just needs to be scratched for some. I personally know at least four people who have started to try and gain traction in the influencer network. Some post day-to-day content, doing get-ready-with-me and sharing chronicles of their days, like a digital diary to look back on. Some people simply post trends and follow the latest and greatest. Some take the inspirational route, sharing advice, opinions, and all things inspirational for school or life in general. Some like to do a little bit of everything. No matter the degree of content, their presence is undeniable. I’m mixed between finding them cringy and respecting the hustle. 

I’m not going to lie and say that I haven’t considered it myself. I’ve left my account public, used hashtags, participated in trends, in the hopes that maybe I’ll get a shot at 15 minutes of fame. The temptation is undeniable. The opportunity for your life to change has become so accessible, especially on TikTok, a platform, for the most part, open to anyone to go viral instead of being limited to certain creators. Once upon a time, being famous and rich and being a unique face in the crowd was a dream reserved for sleeping; now, it is entirely possible and quite simple. All it takes is an idea, a phone, and a steady Wi-Fi connection. The results are beyond our wildest dreams. Influencers go to movie premieres, get sponsored by brands and receive free PR, and move to New York City on a whim, for example. If posting a couple of videos a week gets you there, I’d try as well, save for a couple of reasons. 

As with much social media content, these people are under constant scrutiny and judgment, which takes a strong stomach to take on. The app embodies authenticity and embracing yourself; however, there are not many who fit this ideal persona. It takes a form of media literacy to endure such scrutiny. As many have seen, getting cancelled is not very difficult. Accordingly, there is a right and wrong way to go about committing to being a microinfluencer. Yes, many influencers are completely unproblematic. They remain grounded and humble and maintain their true selves despite the fame and opportunities. They don’t let it go to their heads that they might be better than everyone else. Their content remains fun. Then there’s the other side. Some of these microinfluencers are the worst people you know, taken from personal experience. The second they go viral, it’s like they’re an A-list celebrity and completely lose all manners and common sense.  Many pretend to be something they’re not, preaching morals and values that you never even thought they’d heard of. I don’t want to say that people can’t change, but in terms of social media, the past undeniably plays a role in any future presence in the media. It sometimes seems like a funny coincidence that they so happened to display this miraculous change by posting 15 videos about it. Some use their platform negatively. They spread their opinions and grossly overgeneralize them, spreading a certain agenda, like the idea that to be a significant person, you need to be the villain in someone else's story, and that having people dislike you is just “haters being haters”. They don’t realize how much of a platform they have, a platform that lies beyond free things and video views. It should be obvious, but their opinions and what they say online matter, especially if the content is not meant to be “rage baiting” and especially if their platform relies on being representatives of a school community. This is the media literacy that really matters. It may sound blunt, but just because a video has gone viral doesn’t mean it did so for the reasons you think. No one is idolising a bully. 

As someone who tries to stay “nonchalant” on social media, I can’t vouch for those who have ventured into the social media world. I respect the courage and perseverance it takes to put yourself out there for all eyes to see. There are so many ways to go about it, controversial or not; the determination is evident. Sometimes microinfluencers truly show a facade online. It could also be the opposite. In this age of media and expansion, there is an opportunity for life-changing experiences to occur every day. You won’t know until you try, and as annoying as I find most of them, I applaud the guts to go for it.