School of Journalism and Mass Communications

Faculty of Economic and Political Sciences

The Kylie Jenner Phenomenon: Emerging Female Celebrity on Social

Media

BY
Demetra Frangos

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the

requirements for the degree of

MASTER OF DIGITAL MEDIA, COMMUNICATION AND JOURNALISM

Specialization: Digital Media, Communication and Journalism

Supervisor: Prof. Nikos Panagiotou

May 2018

 CONTENTS

ABSTRACT iv

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 5

Raising Questions 4

Structure of the Study 7

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 8

Feminism and Feminist Theory 9

Post-feminism and Celebrity Feminism 15

Textual Analysis to Audience Research 18

Previous Research 20

CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 22

Research Questions 22

Methodological Approach: Discourse Analysis 22

Data Sampling and Collection 24

Data Analysis 25

Validity and Reflexivity 26

CHAPTER FOUR: ANALYSIS 27

Empowerment and Choice 27

Sexuality and Body 32

Otherness and Gender 45

CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSIONS 50

BIBLIOGRAPHY 54

APPENDIX A 63

ii
APPENDIX B 64

APPENDIX C 66

iii
Abstract

This paper will investigate how Kylie Jenner’s fans interpret her portrayal of feminism while

comparing and analysing to what extent their interpretations fit with Gill’s (2007) and

McRobbie’s (2009) theories on post-feminism. Kylie Jenner is a social media celebrity,

millennial icon, and entrepreneur and is important and influential female celebrity in

contemporary American society. Through discourse analysis of eight interviews of Kylie’s

fans, my research focuses on their perspectives on feminism in relation to celebrity and social

media culture, and how these relate to post-feminism. This investigation of how fans interpret

and experience Kylie’s portrayal of feminism hopes to fill in gaps within current literature on

the state of feminism today. Conclusively, many insights were found concerning Kylie’s

representation of post-feminism and neoliberal ideologies by her fans concerning her

expression of self, personal agency, sexuality, and otherness on social media.

KEYWORDS: kylie jenner, post-feminism, fan studies, social media, celebrity studies

iv
Chapter 1

Introduction

1.1 Raising Questions

Kylie Jenner, was born August 10, 1997 into “celebrity royalty” (Greenberg, 2017),

the Kardashian family. Her father is Caitlyn Jenner a former Olympic athlete, her mother is

Kris Kardashian the manager of the Kardashian name, and her older half-sister is Kim

Kardashian, a reality TV celebrity. The Kardashian-Jenner family is also known through their

reality TV show, Keeping Up with the Kardashians (KUWTK), an American reality TV

show, broadcasted on E! Entertainment, that showcases the life and lifestyle of the Jenner-

Kardashian clan. This year, entering their 14th season of KUWTK, many factors about the

family dynamics have changed.

Kylie Jenner was born into stardom because of the fame of her family and their

financial resources; however, it was her social branding and manipulation of her image on

Instagram and Snapchat that made her into a celebrity. Kylie Jenner is a celebrity personality

in her own right, having amassed a following on Instagram of 101 million, becoming the

number one most followed celebrity on Snapchat (Heller, 2016), and has a cosmetics

business worth $420 million dollars (Heller, 2017). Kylie Jenner is the focus of this study

because of this successful marketing image, and her ability to capitalise on this image to

create successful business.

Kylie garnered a large fan base because of both her values and her image. Her

signature look is of flawless makeup, multi-coloured hair, and “who cares?” attitude, which

contrasted greatly with the image of Kim Kardashian, her famous sister’s, glamour and

perfection. Kylie is celebrated for her use of social media to market her image but also her

belief in the benefit of being different, being “real” and doing her own thing.

5
 The celebrity industry has always profited from the marketing and branding of public

individuals. However, with the use of social media platforms, the marketing of a celebrity

lifestyle has become more fluid, the use of middle men, like talk shows and interviews, are no

longer necessary in connecting a celebrity to the general public (Marshall, 2014). However,

in this era of media excess, audiences simultaneously are overwhelmed with choice over the

media they are able to consume (Geri, et al., 2008).

As a result, the marketing field has sought to embed itself in the “attention economy”

(Geri et al., 2008), in order to gain a wider audience for advertising. Self-branding has

become key in getting attention in a crowded marketplace and Kylie Jenner’s self branding

has been successful, as evidenced by her popularity on several social media platforms. Given

social media’s vital role in everyday life, how people project themselves online is important

and there has been many studies on self-branding online however there has not been an

investigation on how these self-branding relates to feminism.

Feminism has amassed a lot of attention recently in the media, and many female

celebrities have publicly endorsed feminism, due to the recent spate of high-profile men

being accused of sexual harassment against women, and the rise of the “me too” movement.

While some critics welcome this resurgence of attention on feminism, some academics like

R. Gill and A. McRobbie only see the media as propagating a post-feminist response.

Gill (2016) and McRobbie (2009) view current media culture as propagating what they

call “a post-feminist sensibility”. Gill (2016) and McRobbie (2009) highlight specifically

how celebrity culture adopts feminist topics such as choice, freedom and independence, in

order to portray themselves as promoting feminist values. Where in reality, according to both,

their focus on personal empowerment and success can be better linked to neoliberal discourse

which values the self without taking into account socio-political contexts. This kind of

6
feminism which is admired within the media is “an accessible yet superficially empowering

version of feminism” (Chatman, 2015, p.932), lacking substance and political action.

Media coverage portrays mixed messages about young girls and women and their relation

to feminism (Malson et al., 2016). The millennial generation has been marked as “narcissistic

and clueless” (Crossley, 2017) to current gender inequalities, however growing research

suggests the opposite (Crossley, 2017).In Alison Dahl Crossley’s book Finding Feminism:

Millennial Activist and the Unfinished Gender Revolution, she found that young women were

strong in their commitment to feminism and that through the Internet, the spread of feminist

ideas around college campus facilitated the continuation of the feminist movement (Crossley,

2017). As she expresses, “young women have a richer, more nuanced understanding of

feminism than is popularly suggested in media” (Crossley, 2017, p.34).

Today, most conceptualizations of gender are shaped by media outlets (Gill, 2007;

Hamad & Taylor, 2015), so to truly understand feminism today we must comprehend the

language used by media consumers in relation to gender. Within celebrity and media studies,

there has been a heavy emphasis on textual analysis rather than audience research to evaluate

how the audience negotiates celebrity representations, especially of gender (Duffett, 2015).

This is not the case for fan studies, which talks about the importance of how fans and

followers decode media messages (Duffett, 2015). Through the fans’ eyes, one can discover

how they conceptualize and challenge broader customs of discourse associated to gender.

According to Duffett, media plays an important role in formatting social thought but fandom

creates a form of active engagement within media’s power relations(Duffett, 2015). Looking

into Kylie’s fans, who are mostly millennial females (Bazilian, 2016), and their relationship

with media and their engagement of certain ideologies in regards to feminism will be used as

the base of this study.

7
 This study will explore Kylie Jenner through investigating her image, fans, and portrayal

of post-feminism. Kylie Jenner is an interesting figure to study given her successful branding

on social media platforms, and her effective monetization of her image into a multi-million-

dollar cosmetic company. Through investigating her fan base who like and imitate her image,

we can try to understand how fans relate to female celebrities and interact with modern

culture as well as view feminism in contemporary society. By examining fan’s language on

gender, discourse analysis will be used to investigate how interviewees confront and

negotiate dominant ideologies relating to gender. This research aims to help answer previous

gaps within the studies of celebrities, feminism, and fan studies.

1.2 Structure of Study

The research started in February 2018 and ended in April 2018 and was based on

eight semi-structured interviews which were done via Facebook Video with Kylie’s fans

(eight females) from America.

Firstly, I will explore theoretical frameworks and literature around feminist theories

from second wave feminism to the most recent conception of feminism, third wave. I will

then look at the emergence of post-feminism. and categorize the characteristics of post-

feminism and investigate celebrities and their portrayal of post-feminism in today’s culture.

Secondly, I will discuss fan studies and the importance of audience research and looking into

the practices of fans, as consumers of media. Thirdly, I will discuss my choices in respect to

my methodology of research and explain how data was collected and analysed. Then I will

present my data through three sections: Empowerment and Choice, Sexuality and Body, and

Otherness and Gender. Finally, I will conclude my research by answering my research

questions, final remarks, and giving suggestions on further research to be explored in the

future.

8
Chapter 2

Literature Review

2.1 Feminism and Feminist Theory

Feminist theory aims to investigate certain behaviours in our society, related to the

constructs of gender (Finlayson, 2017). Feminist theory was created to highlight women’s

oppression within society and the need for gender equality (Finlayson, 2017) and historically,

its was to expose power imbalances in gender relations and to fight against the socio-political

oppressive structures which create these imbalances (Finlayson, 2017). Feminism, as an

ideology and women’s movement, has grown throughout the centuries. Its different chapters

and developments have been defined as going through various “waves”, which is a metaphor

for its ongoing growth (Finlayson, 2017). Therefore, each wave is not seen as a break from

the past but as a continuation of previous waves, with each wave acknowledging the issues of

previous waves (Mack-Canty, 2004). First wave feminism was important in the United States

as it gave women the right to vote in 1920, however, the second wave is the most famous

wave, in what people understand feminism to be (Alessandri, 2017).

The second wave of feminism started in the late 1950s and early 1960s (Alessandri,

2017). Feminist Mystique (1963) by Betty Friedan introduced the movement as “the problem

that has no name”, criticizing society for its identification of females in the roles of just wife

and mother. This wave pushed for the right of women to pursue careers, and condemned

violence against women, as well as the media’s portrayal of women as mere sexual objects

(Alessandri, 2017). Genz and Brabon (2018) discuss the anti-media attitude within the second

wave of feminism, where feminists argued that the media only portrayed femininity through

reinforcing and accepting traditional, passive roles. The normative idea of femininity and the

idea that women are pleasurable objects for the male gaze were often cited as a tool used by

9
the patriarchy (Bartky, 2015). Second-wave feminists called for more realistic portrayals of

women and more examples of female empowerment in the media (Alessandri, 2017). Their

goal of empowering women was to push for a gender revolution that would be carried out

through the collective and political activism (Finlayson, 2017). Although many achievements

were made within feminism in the second wave, it has been criticised for being centered

around white, middle class women.

Third wave feminism, emerging in the late 1980s, challenged this dualist thinking,

which only focused on gender (Mack-Canty, 2004). Gill (2007) showcases how feminist

theory began to focus on differences, like economic and geographic backgrounds; diversity

and not commonality, which effectively devalued the political force of feminism. Lesbians,

women of colour and other minority groups argued that “social locations provided them with

different vantage points and different conceptions of themselves other than those being

articulate by white, middle-class feminists” (Mack-Canty, 2004, p. 159). McRobbie (2004)

categorizes this time in feminism as one of definitive self-critique. One main critique was that

second wave feminist assumed the existence of a “universal woman”, which did not account

for race, class, or privilege, and believe in the notion of intersectionality (Showden, 2009).

Third wave feminism aims to study the joining of diverse oppression and how these different

oppressions generate different identities and political needs. They accommodate the different

expressions of oppression related to race, gender, class, and sexuality in order to investigate

all factors of gender relations.

Many argued that in the 1990s feminism had achieved its objective, and so the label

“post-feminism” gained recognition. Post feminists believe that the feminist movement was

no longer useful since women had gained equal rights, equal access to employment, and

education (Alessandri, 2017). As Andrea Stuart (1990) discusses, feminist issues like

domestic violence, equal pay and sexual harassment were brought to a wide audience through

10
media coverage of these topics and were supported in institutions like education, law, and

employment. Post-feminists argued that “women who persisted in calling attention to sexism

were needlessly fighting old battles” (Showden, 2009, p.168). The influence of post-

feminism is clear in contemporary culture, firstly because there is no feminist perspective that

currently dominates, rather many viewpoints that exist and grow simultaneously (Bristor and

Fischer, 1993). Secondly, as Aronson (2003) and Duncan (2010) discuss, the word

‘feminism’ now has negative associations, so that some young women of today’s post

feminist generation embrace some feminist ideals while rejecting others and might even fail

to classify themselves as feminist. McRobbie (2009) investigated how popular culture uses

feminist rhetoric to disassemble feminism advances and convinces younger women and

institutions that feminism is no longer needed.

McRobbie (2004) links the emergence of post feminism to neoliberal ideology and

the undoing of feminism through academic and public discussion during the 1990s.

Neoliberalism has been the dominant cultural and economic paradigm within Western

ideology, promoting the values of freedom, equality, individualism, and self-help. In

summary, “neoliberalism produces self-governing subjects who regulate themselves without

the state control or repression” (Gill and Arthurs, 2006, p.445). Accordingly, “the solution to

injustice is to work on the self rather than to work with others for social and political

transformation” (Gill, 2016, p.617). Therefore, there is a strong overlap between the values

and attitudes of post feminism and neoliberalism.

McRobbie (2004) claims that the “undoing of feminism” was mainly propagated

through sites of popular culture and media, such as television programmes and

advertisements. Since it was considered that sexism, exploitation and oppression no longer

existed in this “post-feminist world”, women through their own choice and enjoyment present

themselves as sexual objects (McRobbie, 2004). The feminist movement moved towards the

11
 idea of women’s freedom of choice and that the idea that any choice that a woman makes is

inherently feminist. This shift from passive to active sexualization, resulted in the

development of commercial sexuality within culture as a form of empowerment (Dople,

2010).

There is a complex relationship between post-feminism and feminism (McRobbie,

2004). On the one hand, post-feminism values choice and diversity but it still promotes neo-

conservative values within sexuality and family life. Although women have a role in the

public sphere through their access to education and careers, there still is a retainment of the

notion of traditional femininity, the role of caretaker, and the importance of being sexually

desirable (McRobbie, 2009). Normative femininity is portrayed not as an obligation but a

choice; however, this choice comes with clauses. Women are able to show their sexuality but

in a way which is still appealing to the male gaze. McRobbie describes this as the “post-

feminist masquerade”, which functions to reassure “male structures of power by defusing the

presence and the aggressive and competitive actions of women as they come to positions of

authority” (McRobbie, 2009, p.68). This ultimately re-establishes traditional gender

hierarchies rather than fighting against them.

2.1.1 The Post Feminist Sensibility

Gill (2007) theorizes that post-feminism is a “patterned yet contradictory sensibility”

(p.621), which closely mimics the dominant ideologies of neoliberalism and individualism

(Alessandri, 2017). Elements of sensibility are outlined as follows: the sexualisation of

culture, from sex objects to desiring sexual subject, individualism, choice and empowerment,

self-surveillance and discipline, the makeover paradigm, and knowingness (Gill, 2007),

which are elements that I will explore in this essay, in relation to Kylie.

Gill (2007) characterizes what she sees as the general increase in the sexualization of

culture as being closely related to the focus on women’s bodies as the site of femininity. By

12
sexualization, Gill refers to “the extraordinary proliferation of discourses about sex and

sexuality across all media forms, referred to by Brian McNair (2002) as part of the ‘striptease

culture’ as well as to the increasingly frequent erotic presentation of girls’, women’s and (to

the lesser extent) men’s bodies in public spaces” (p. 8). Whether serious news anchors,

politicians, foreign correspondents, or celebrities, in the media women’s bodies exist to be

seen and discussed sexually.

The second factor of Gill’s (2007) post feminist sensibility is this shift in women

being a sex object to a desiring sexual subject. Instead of women being objectified through

media presentation, women are now portrayed as active, desiring sexual subjects who choose

to be objectified (Goldman, 1992). Gill uses the example how advertising creates a new role

in order to sell to young women, which is “the sexually autonomous heterosexual young

woman who plays her sexual power and is forever ‘up for it’” (2007, p.14). This change in

objectivity signifies a power change in operation: instead of an external male gaze judging

them, women now have a self-policing gaze that works internally. This internal gaze

propagates a deeper form of exploitation where the male gaze has been internalized within

women (Vered, 2016). Women are encouraged to a specific kind of self, closely resembling

the heterosexual male fantasy. Janice Turner (2005) explains:

“Once porn and real human sexuality were distinguishable. Not even porn's biggest

advocates would suggest a porn flick depicted reality, that women were gagging for

sex 24/7 and would drop their clothes and submit to rough, anonymous sex at the

slightest invitation. But as porn has seeped into mainstream culture, the line has

blurred. To speak to men's magazine editors, it is clear they believe that somehow in

recent years, porn has come true. The sexually liberated modern woman turns out to

resemble—what do you know!—the pneumatic, take-me-now-big-boy fuck-puppet of

male fantasy after all.”

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 This shift also highlights the tie between neoliberal ideologies and sexual

representation of women, in which objectification is something done and presented by

women, as they have freely chosen to be active, desiring sexual subjects. Neoliberal

ideologies also are seen in the notions of choice, empowerment, and individualism seen

through the post-feminist sensibility which has been defused throughout media culture. This

is seen through the avoidance of focusing on political and cultural influences in the media

due to media’s tendency to explain any aspect of life through the idea of personal choice and

self-determination (Subramanian, 2015). This phenomenon can be seen through the

increasing numbers of teenage girls undergoing plastic surgery, who commonly depict this

choice as a way to ‘please themselves’ by using beauty to make themselves feel good rather

than as a way to please others. Gill states: “scant attention is paid to the pressures that might

lead a teenager to decide that major surgery will solve her problems, and even less to the

commercial interests that are underpinning this staggering trend, targeted advertising by

cosmetic surgery clinic, and promotional packages that include mother and daughter special

deals” (Gill, 2007, p.16). A central position of post feminist discussions is that women’s

practices are freely chosen, as women are independent agents no longer inhibited by any

inequalities or power imbalances (Dople, 2016).

“What is striking is the degree of fit between the autonomous postfeminist subject and

the subject demanded by neoliberalism. At the heart of both is the notion of the

“choice biography” and the contemporary injunction to render one’s life knowable

and meaningful through a narrative of free choice and autonomy, however,

constrained one might actually be” (Lucey, Melody and Walkerdine, 2003).

Closely connected to personal choice and agency is the new stress on “self-

surveillance, self-monitoring and self-discipline in post feminist media culture” (Gill, 2007,

14
p.16). As Gill notes, self monitoring has long been a part of ‘successful femininity’ some

examples being attire, posture, manners, etc. Present day emphasis on ‘self-monitoring is

seen via an increase on regulation of women’s physical appearance, their intimate behaviour

in relationships and their self image (Gill, 2007). Part of this idea of self discipline is the

‘makeover paradigm’, which requires people to believe that their life is lacking in some way

and that through following advice, a transformation can occur (Gill, 2007).

2.2 Post-feminism and Celebrity Feminism

There has been a revival of the idea of feminism in the media, and especially within

celebrity media (Gill, 2007). Some critics (Retallack, Ringrose and Lawrence, 2016) greet

this new attention to feminism optimistically, but many highlight that celebrity enthusiasm

for feminism reveals a problematical post-feminist approach. Gill (2016) cites that the

feminism portrayed by celebrities is only superficially empowering and therefore is not

significant in its contribution to feminism. According to her, celebrities exemplify a

postfeminist sensibility because even when they validate the concept of feminism, they are

not actively engaged in trying to achieve social-political changes. This sentiment concurs

with Keller and Ringrose’s (2015) results in their study that looked at teenage girls’ reply to

the increased visibility of feminism within media and found girls’ critical response. Most of

the teenage girls questioned the truth of celebrity feminism, as for example one teenage girl

stated that “feminism should not be treated as ‘fashion’ that will eventually fall out of trend,

but instead as requiring long standing commitment” (2015, p.133). Celebrities instead

encourage stories of individual success and reinforce the post-feminist sensibility of

autonomy that if you make the right choices, your life, and career will improve (Cashmore,

2010). Evans and Riley (2013) also state that celebrities frequently exhibit themselves in a

very sexualized style, which connects to the “post-feminist masquerade” as explained by

15
McRobbie (2009) as they underscore the traditional notion of femininity. Celebrities are

therefore complicit in propagating the expectation that women need to monitor their bodies

through self-discipline and obey exacting standards of beauty (Alessandri, 2017).

Celebrities studies, as Hamad and Taylor (2015) and Gill (2007) state, have become

very important, especially when battles over the importance of feminism take centre stage in

the media. Gender conversations are often introduced by celebrities who can influence

perception through their actions. In all, “these modes of feminist celebrity help to shape the

kinds of feminism that come to publicly circulate and that, to varying degrees, come to

receive cultural legitimation” (Hamad and Taylor, 2015, p.126).

2.2.1 The Construction of a Celebrity and Brand

What is a celebrity? George Packer writes “they dominate the landscape, like giant

monuments to aspiration, fulfilment and overreach. They are as intimate as they are grand,

and they offer themselves for worship by ordinary people searching for a suitable object of

devotion” (Packer, 2013). More simply, comes the definition from Daniel Boorstin, who

says, a celebrity is “a person who is well-known for their well-knowness” (Boorstin, 2012,

p.32). But one should not underestimate the complexity in defining celebrity, given their

impact on media, culture, and their audience. One of the most comprehensive definitions for

celebrities is given by Graham Turnes’ in his book Understanding Celebrity, to which he

states: “Celebrity, then is a genre of representation and a discursive effect; it is a commodity

traded by the promotions, publicity, and media industries that produce these representations

and their effects; and it is a cultural formation that has a social function we can better

understand.” (2014, p.9). For this paper, all three definitions of celebrity will be needed to

understand Kylie.

The construction of a celebrity is similar to the construction of a brand on social

media (McRobbie, 2009). A fundamental part of self-branding is the idea that, “just like

16
commercially branded products, individuals benefit from having a unique selling point or a

public identity that is singularly charismatic and responsive to the needs and interests of

target audience,” (Khamis, Ang and Welling, 2016). Preferably, a brand must be seen to

possess strong, favourable, unique and relevant qualities (Keller 1993). Another aspect of

branding is giving a product, service or firm a personality (Aaker, 1997), which gives

meaning to products or services through assigning them qualities such as ruggedness,

sophistication and sincerity (Aaker, 1997). This gives products a more “human-like” quality,

thus becoming more relatable, and is able to sell itself through resonating with the audience.

2.2.2 Celebrity, Branding, and Audience

Brands, media, audiences, and celebrities are all dependent on each other (Khamis,

Ang and Welling, 2016). For example, media relies on advertising for revenue, advertisers

rely on media to address their target audience (Khamis, Ang and Welling, 2016), and media

channels use celebrities in order to create engaging content. In the past, celebrities with a

following relied on traditional media avenues to deliver and interact with their followers.

However now the dynamics have changed, since a celebrity can act as a human brand. A

human brand is “any well-known persona who is a subject of marketing communications

efforts” (Thomson 2006, p.104). In the current age, celebrities can use their own media to

directly interact with and influence their audience, which is why self-branding is important

(Khamis, Ang and Welling, 2016).

Khamis, Ang and Welling (2016) contend that there are three chief reasons for the

rise of self-branding. The first being that social media promises fame to ‘ordinary’ users and

encourages practices of micro-celebrities. This can be seen in the rise of being “Instafamous”

(Khamis, Ang and Welling, 2016). Secondly, self-branding is encouraged through our

political culture of neoliberal individualism as seen through the increase in “marketing

17
oneself” through self-presentation of achieved success. Lastly, the commercial viability of

social media influencers, like Kylie Jenner, has been seen as very successful marketing tool

and therefore replicated.

2.3 Textual Analysis to Audience Research

Research on feminism has been critiqued on accounts for its emphasis on analysing

textual and semiotic meaning in celebrity and feminist media research. Andrew Press (2011)

highlights this critique by stating that there is a lack of research on women through their

actual perspectives. This neglect should be a chief concern for researchers investigating the

impact of culture on women and other marginalized groups. Research on feminism and media

should not be restricted to cultural developments across different media platforms from a

humanistic viewpoint, but should also focus on how commonplace users make sense of such

phenomenon by concentrating on the language they use (Alessandri, 2017).

Similarly, there is an emphasis on textual analysis in celebrity studies (Alessandri,

2017). Turner (2010) concurs with this critique on celebrity studies and states that most

research is a depiction of celebrities through semiotic and content analysis through

descriptive studies. Turner argues that celebrity studies should include “cultural formation

that has a social function” (2010, p.14), which connects celebrity as a cultural phenomenon to

broader understandings of how culture is understood and influenced, especially in regard to

influencing the millennial generation. Turner states that to truly understand this connection,

one must conduct an investigation on the audience, the people who consume the image of a

celebrity and negotiate their meaning.

Fan studies is especially concerned in studying real people’s understanding,

consumption, and interest in media representation of celebrities. Early in media studies until

the late 1990s, the concept of “textual determinism” was most important. Textual

determinism means that importance was found in text and the idea that the audience was a

18
passive consumer of text, chiefly ruled (Shannon, 1948). This changed when scholars started

to portray audiences as an active participant within media. One iconic book that changed the

concept of an audience was Textual Poachers: Television Fans and Participatory Culture by

Henry Jenkins (2006), which investigated audience interaction with media and saw the

creative meanings and practices carried out by the audience, or as he calls them the ‘fandom’.

Fans actively participate in giving different meaning to texts and media representations, for

example, through their own social media profiles, they contribute to popular discourse within

mass media culture (Jenkins, 2006). Mark Duffett (2013) agrees, stating that not only are fans

acting within prevailing ideologies, but they also create arguments of critique and alternative

readings.

Fan studies within media studies also looks into the highly personal identification fans

feel towards an object and through this creates a community. David Cavicchi in his work

Tramps Like Us: Music and Meaning Among Springsteen Fan (1998) investigates Bruce

Springsteen’s fans and highlighted the emotional and personal nature of the fans’ connection

to the singer. As Cavicchi notes, devotion felt by the fans can really affect their lives and a

fan's understanding of oneself beyond logical justification (1999). This shared experience of

media consumption is a way for fans to experience and recognize their passions and in the

process creating a personal and social elements of fandom (Duffett, 2013). This creates social

connections and expands context of shared media culture (Duffett, 2013), and thereby

creates, in essence, a community (Jenkins, 2013).

Many scholars recommend the study of discourse in regard to both fan studies and

gender studies. Duffett (2013) argues that through analysing discourse, an understanding on

the way fans make sense of media texts can be concluded (p.80). Gill (2007) concludes the

same, seeing discourse as an important way to understand media texts in regards to gender.

Gill looks at the categories of gender and sexuality and investigates the highly discursive

19
constructions of both categories. According to Gill, media not only portrays gender but also

constructs it and people try to make sense of gender through discursive elements. This

discursive element of gender makes understanding difficult since there is no single idea but

rather it is a fluid and contested area (Gill, 2007).

2.4 Previous Research

Regarding research on Kylie Jenner, there are many gaps in previous research. Many

researchers and media outlets have looked at the Kardashian family clan as a whole and

judged them hastily: “they are vain, showing off their luxury lifestyle on social media,

shallow, because they do nothing all day except pose naked and shop, and offer no value but

their attractive bodies.” (Zhang, 2017 p.4). Previous research on feminism and the

Kardashian-Jenner family has focused on how they have become synonymous with selling

their objectified bodies as the sub-product of their name. If Kylie Jenner is mentioned within

this research, it normally suggests that she represents the continuation of porn-culture and

self-objectification in today’s society and culture like her sisters (Zhang, 2017).

Previous research has shown the relationship between a celebrity’s action and it being

mimicked by their fans. Heidekreuger et al., (2016) in their study on lip attractiveness found

that there was a 43 percent increase in female lip augmentation since 2000 and conveyed how

social media has played a chief part in that trend, especially when celebrities like Kylie

Jenner disclose using lip fillers. Her enhancements have lead to millions of teenage girls

wanting the same big lips, which in turn influenced the market demand for lip kits, the

primary product that Kylie sells, which includes a lipstick and lip liner.

Other research on Kylie has been in relation to launching her cosmetic business and

the use of Kylie’s image as a marketing tool. On August 10, 2017, Kylie Jenner launched

three new lip kits which sold out in less than a minute (Mejia, 2017). Kylie helped to create

the demand for lip kits, and then supplied this demand through her cosmetic empire. As

20
McCracken (1989) suggests, celebrities are great marketing tools because they have the

power to imbue cultural meaning to a product. Other marketing tools such as using attractive

models, quality materials, or credibility given through reviews, are not able to create the same

desirability for a product that celebrities are able to (McCracken, 1989). Kylie through her

celebrity status was able to promote and market a style that would not have garnered the

same impact from a non-celebrity.

There have been no previous studies relating Kylie and feminism, which shows the

need in investigating Kylie’s portrayal of feminism. Kylie declared “I do consider myself a

feminist; I’m a young woman, for one thing, and I don’t depend on a man or anybody else. I

make my own money and start my own businesses, and I feel like I’m an inspiration for a lot

of young girls who want to stand on their own” (Walden, 2018). Kylie’s statement points to

financial independence as a manifestation of feminism, showing that women are capable of

earning as much money and social status as men. The Kardashian-Jenner clan do not claim to

be politically feminist but through their power financially and culturally, they are seen as

representationally feminist (Monteverde, 2016).

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Chapter 3

Methodology

3.1 Research Questions

With my study, I would like to provide more insight and knowledge within the post-

feminist debate and the relationship between celebrities and social media within academia by

highlighting the average media consumer and their perspectives. Specifically, I will be

investigating followers of Kylie Jenner. Kylie Jenner is considered a ‘representative

character, her choices and actions impact the world of social media and young women (Mask,

2009). In all, it is necessary to look into the followers of Kylie Jenner to conceptualize what

Kylie represents as a female in media.

My research questions try to answer the following: how Kylie’s fans respond to feminism

portrayed by her (her image/brand) and to what extent their opinions reflect a post-feminist

sensibility as theorized by Gill (2007). To answer these questions, I will look at how the fan’s

observe Kylie’s position as a prosperous female celebrity, what values do they attribute to

Kylie’s representation of feminism, and what role feminism plays within their own lives.

To examine the answers of the participants I will appeal on the continuing academic

discussion about post-feminism within media which I reviewed previously. Through the

concept of ‘post-feminist sensibility’, analysis will look particularly at factors of individual

empowerment, choice, sexuality and body, as well as otherness and gender.

3.2 Methodological Approach: Discourse Analysis

To answer the research questions above, I employed discourse analysis (Fairclough,

1992). Discourse analysis developed from semiotics and linguistics as an overall marker for

studying text and talk (Van Dijk, 1995). Discourse analysis involves describing, interpreting

22
and explaining of a certain phenomenon (Cruickshank, 2011). Discourse analysis, through

investigating usage of words, leads to exposing certain ideologies present within the text.

Since ideologies are communicated, endorsed, and reproduced through language (Foucault,

1972) analysing discursive language will reveal ideologies and social meanings. Discourse is

“language in real contexts of use” (Machin and Mayr, 2012, p.20). Through discourse

analysis, language which is chosen can help in understanding and comprehending certain

social and cultural phenomenon.

For this study, I will be using discourse analysis on qualitative interviews. Through

interviewing, data will be observed and collected. Through the use of discourse analysis,

participants’ answers will be evaluated by looking at repetitive discursive patterns and

structures of meaning which help investigate individual’s perspectives of social and cultural

phenomenon (Jorgensen and Phillips, 2002). The ways that people understand the world are

discursively constructed and in parallel discourse can dynamically create the social world

(Bowers, 1988). As Cruickshank states, “a qualitative interview is an excellent method if you

want to gain insight into the intentions, feelings, purposes and comprehensions of the

interviewee since the interview can also represent insights on how individual interviewees

interpret themselves and how they interpret the phenomenon under study” (Cruickshank,

2011, p.54). In all, language reveals interviewees’ perceptions and insights, as well as how

they discursively construct interpretations of culture and society.

To investigate my research questions, I conducted in-depth semi-structured

interviews. This method serves optimally for my study because it collects data on an

interviewee’s history, viewpoints, and experiences. For interviews, the concept of ‘active

interview’ developed by Holstein and Gubrium (1995) was used. Interviews, therefore, are

considered as an outcome of the knowledge generated by the interaction of interviewer and

interviewee. Participants are seen as active subjects who “have substantial repertoire of

23
interpretive methods and stock of experiential materials” (Holstein & Gubrium, 1995, p.10).

In addition, in-depth interviews help explore the nuances of such a sensitive subject and give

opportunity to interviewees to respond. With semi-structured interviews an “openness to

changes of sequence and question forms in order to follow up the answers given and stories

told by the interviewees” (Kvale, 2006, p.17). Flexibility is allowed within the research

process and iterative process of adjustment can flow naturally to take into consideration other

additional issues brought up my interviewees.

3.3 Data Sampling and Collection

Participants were chosen through a sample which had preselected conditions related

to research questions. The criteria were that participants must consider themselves fans of

Kylie Jenner. Although there was no socio-demographic requirement, all interviewees were

female and under the age of 30. Through posting on Kylie Jenner’s biggest fan page on

Facebook called “KingKylie”, I recruited participants. Within the Facebook post, I did not

mention feminism to not influence responses, because I wanted to see if any fans would

mention ‘feminism’ spontaneously within the interview.

I collected a group of eight participants consisting of eight women between the ages

20 to 26 years old. All participants were either university students or working after finishing

university, and all were highly educated. Interviews took place on Facebook Video and were

conducted between January 2018 to March 2018. The interview consisted of preliminary

questions and prepared questions to cover specific topics. Preliminary questions consisted of

socio-demographic questions, and were followed by questions on how participants related to

Kylie as a fan, what they appreciate most about Kylie and how they perceived Kylie’s image

and brand on social media and her role as a female celebrity, icon, and influencer. If

interviewees did not introduce feminism within the conversation, I would engage more

24
actively in the discussion of gender issues by asking direct questions about their views on

feminism, in general and relating to Kylie Jenner specifically. As a way of presenting the

conversation on feminism, I asked about Kylie’s interview with Glamour magazine when she

stated “I consider myself a feminist, I’m a young woman, and I don’t depend on a man or

anybody else. I make my own money and start my own businesses, and I feel like I’m an

inspiration for a lot of young girls.”

3.4 Data Analysis

Interviews were conducted and immediately transcribed. Afterwards, I would make a

preliminary analysis and use general coding to look for patterns to compare each interview.

For each interview, I wrote notes to keep track of concepts and patterns. Following Charmaz

(2006), I used open coding to find overall impressions from interviews and data. After open

coding, I used focused coding to classify the most frequent patterns and most relevant

patterns to my study. I classified three macro-groups: first, “why people started following

kylie” or her “most valued qualities”, which included codes of “doesn’t care about what

others think, just doing her”, “plump lips”, “trying to figure out who she is”, “not afraid to

express herself”. The second category relates to post-feminism and includes codes on Gill’s

post-feminist sensibility. Codes within the second category include “individual choice and

empowerment”, “personal freedom”, “autonomous sexuality”, “discipline and surveillance”,

and “female body”. The last section is “otherness”, this category includes “against gender

stereotypes”, and their relationship with “social media”. Then using the first group, the codes

were either linked to the second or third group. For example, does Kylie’s quality of

“expressing herself” relate to interviewee’s conception of post-feminism in any way. Then,

with the second and third group, coding was compared to each other to created oppositional

concepts. For instance, does the second group of codes of “individual choice” oppose “queer

25
engagement”? These codes were compared to evaluated participants’ answers. Through the

interaction and opposition of the three chief group codes evaluated, reoccurring patterns were

found. To arrange my analysis, I decided to approach three main themes of personal choice

and empowerment; sexuality and body; and otherness.

3.5 Validity and Reflexivity

This study is valid because of its use of rational research process and all decisions

taken are made evident and visibly clarified to the reader. The records of each research phase

have been made available. That being said, I maintained and continued a study through

neutral bias. Any research and its results depend on “reflexivity” as “knowledge from a

reflexive position is always a reflection of a researcher’s location in time and space”

(Bryman, 2016, p.23).

26
Chapter 4

Analysis

4.1 Empowerment and Choice

Within this section, I will showcase how neoliberal discourse on personal choice

shapes the participants’ understanding of feminism. I will investigate the use of

empowerment, as understood by the participants of the interview, which is seen through the

lens of personal empowerment. Although they found Kylie to be empowering in the sense of

feeling free to express themselves through makeup and their image on social media, they did

not feel empowered by Kylie. This opposes the concept of women’s empowerment within

feminism, which is a separate phenomenon detached from a politically engaged feminism.

This suggests that Kylie, although a proclaimed feminist and millennial icon, her feeling of

personal empowerment is not translated into feelings of women’s empowerment for her fans.

4.1.1 Empowerment

The majority of interviewees highlighted individual empowerment and personal freedom

as a key part of feminism. That being said, interviewees did not discuss Kylie as being

empowering in a feminist way. However, they viewed Kylie as reflecting these concepts of

empowerment, through being enterprising on social media and utilizing her platform to create

her cosmetics company. For her fans, Kylie Jenner embodies a young woman who through

her successful business represents an independent, “career-oriented” women. In an interview,

Nicole, a marketing associate at a healthcare company looks at Kylie’s success and states,

“she didn’t have to do any of what she is done, but she did and she works hard at being the

top of her market”. In a way, Nicole loves Kylie because she “works hard” and connects

power with economic independence, indicating “paying one’s bills” as reference. Kylie

27
Jenner is seen favourably through her role as a “boss-bitch” who “gets shit done” but more

importantly is how fans see Kylie as a boss through her utilization of social media. As Nicole

states, “what makes her special, as compared with her other people, is that she promotes only

through social media and whatever she is doing is working, people love it.” Overall, Kylie is

appreciated through her business acumen and ambition, as building a cosmetic’s empire

alongside her other ventures has entailed a large amount of work. Kylie is seen as a young

woman who through her ambition and making the right choices has achieved her success.

Many interviewees correlated the fact that they did not find Kylie empowering due to

feelings of superficiality. Like Rayjay, an American university student declares, “I don’t feel

exactly…empowered by Kylie, in a feminist expression, because...umm…I don’t know,

maybe she is too young and given her family name, a lot of the times people refer to them as

fake.” As Samiha states, “she’s just too fake and so is her family”. Despite her perceived

superficiality, there are other factors that contribute to her appeal, for example, inspiring self

confidence through her self-expression.

Many interviewees saw Kylie as indirectly empowering women through her choice of

image expression on social media. As Norah, a medical student considers:

“I think… Kylie makes me feel more confident in posting selfies and doing whatever the

hell I want to do. She empowers people to have fun and do whatever you want.”

Most interviewees did not link Kylie’s empowerment to being an expression of feminism

but as an individualized action done by her. Kylie therefore does not portray feminism

through the use of empowerment.

4.1.2 Choice

Out of all the interviews, only two interviewees used the term feminist when defining

Kylie Jenner. One of those interviewees stressed the importance of conveying oneself freely

28
without having restrictive expectations inflicted externally. For Rayjay, feminism is seen as

“a woman being able to do whatever she wants and not having to conform to traditional

female roles within society”, in other words, “woman can do anything men can do, there are

no limits”. Samiha referred to Kylie Jenner as a “young teenage girl walking within a new

age of feminism”, which is based on entrepreneurial spirit and freedom to choose. The

interviewees who spoke about feminism while being interviewed without being prompted

stressed the economic independence and personal freedom.

Most interviewees, when asked about feminism, suggested or stated discourse on

individual choice and freedom. Sarah, a medical student, when asked about Kylie’s portrayal

of feminism said, “Kylie expresses herself freely and hmm just does whatever she likes.”

Samiha also reiterates this by stating: “I wish I could be Kylie, she has her own makeup line

and does whatever she wants”. This sentiment of Kylie “doing whatever she like/wants” was

vocalized in the majority of interviews.

Many also referred to Kylie’s feminism as “low-key”, as Kristen states, “she’s not

like Emma Watson who will write a feminist speech and present it to the world”. It is through

Kylie’s lifestyle and “soft” choices on feminism that portray feminism within her life. Kristen

says the following about Kylie’s portrayal of feminism:

“Her portrayal of feminism is like… I’m gonna look good, and indulge in looking

good, wear the hottest things, the hottest fashions because they are for me and I’m

going to enjoy them. I think that’s one of her portrayal because she looks good for

herself and no one else. But she also has this message of “believe in your passion and

work hard” because it might make you a mega star.”

Kylie’s portrayal of feminism is seen through her looking good, feeling good and being able

to juggle her business with her social life.

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 As highlighted by Gill (2007), given the influence of neoliberal ideology within

western culture, women are seen as independent agents who are not restricted by

organizational inequalities; therefore, women can achieve anything they put their minds to,

regardless of demographics. As Gill (2007) states, this occurrence is called “re-privatization”

of issues, meaning that all choices are freely chosen. Similarly, McRobbie (2009) says how

achievements by females, portrayed within society, is not based on feminism, but on “female

individualism”, meaning that success is available to anyone given the fact that women are

free to compete at work and can get education. Nicole mentions the inequalities that exist

between men and women, especially in the business sphere, saying “the fact that Kylie has

come this far in a world dominated by men…is amazing and she deserves to be within the

Forbes under 30 list.” When asked about their views on feminism, most interviewees held

the attitude that women can achieve and be successful, if they make the right choices despite

gender inequality within society. Overall, interviewees looked favourably upon free choice

and on opportunities that women have through their personal autonomy, however they don’t

tend to politicise gender issues.

4.1.3 Individualized Feminism

When asked specifically about feminism, many interviewees struggled to give their

opinion (“this is…a bit difficult to explain,” “hmmm...I don’t know exactly”). This

indecisiveness suggests that many of the interviewees were not acquainted with feminist

arguments and found it difficult to communicate their ideas about feminism. As Tori, a

researcher stated, “I don’t really know how to explain my view on feminism…I guess, I’ve

grown up with my mother who is a very confident, strong woman who taught me that I can

do anything I set my heart to…and women in fact can do more than men.” Many could talk

30
about their background in connection to their feminist positions, relating their family into

discussion.

For the interviewees only two women were involved in feminist causes, indicating a

lack of participation within the feminist movement. Norah, who has been involved in

practical activities towards women’s issues, was a member of Women in Medicine at her

university, which hosted a Q & A with female doctors for students, as well as shadowing

opportunities for future medical students and mentoring. Layan, also showed her involvement

through university groups for Muslim women, which showcased poetry slams and hosted

feminist talks by Muslim women for the student body.

Even though the other interviewees were not actively involved in gender issues, all

noted the existence of gender inequality within their society, and many reflected on the

inequality of women from different races and classes. As Norah states, “it's odd that even

today…in a world of social media frenzy…there still isn’t a cohesive feminist influence.”

Norah also reflects that, “there really needs to be more attention on rape culture within our

society and maybe… this can be done with social media, but I don’t know…it all seems

abstract”.

For many interviewees, reflection on personal experiences produced criticism on the

broader social discourse. For example, Amanda reflects on the many pressures of being a

woman:

“Somehow being a woman has become harder… I don’t know if I can put all the

blame on social media but our lives are put on the spotlight now… I think more than

before. It’s like on Instagram I have to show how I’m a career woman, mother, and

good daughter. I can’t be too sexy or too fat or too lazy or too anything…and men

don’t really have this…”

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However, none of the interviewees offered insights into potential solutions or ways they

could look to overcome these gender issues. This indicates a sense of passiveness towards the

pervasive and oppressive society that they acknowledge exists.

As McRobbie (2009) investigates, a new female role has emerged in media

representation, which contrasts with the traditional role of the housewife and mother. The

“working girl” who is career driven and ambitious, but she must follow a strict line where in

order to retain her vulnerability and fragility so that she can still be seen as desirable to men

(McRobbie, 2009). This description can be applied to Kylie Jenner. Kylie is a hardworking

woman who made her brand, image and cosmetics empire solely through her use of social

media, but crucially she is seen as she ascribes to these conventional standards of femininity.

The interviewees’ positions matched with McRobbie statement that “instead of challenging

traditional expectations that women take primary responsibility in the home, there is a shift

towards abandoning the critique of the patriarchy and instead heroically attempting to do it

all” (McRobbie, 2009, p. 79). As Kylie has just entered the role of being a mother, the next

few years will show how Kylie portrays being a working woman and mother.

4.2 Sexuality and Body

Sexuality and Body will be highlighted within this part of analysis. Most interviews

correlated autonomy and choice to discourse on sexuality and body. The attribution of sex to

females, or more specifically Kylie Jenner, within media was not seen as a negative because

many interviewees saw it as Kylie's choice, i.e. the woman’s choice to express her sexuality.

In general, there was a lot of critiques against artificial augmentation done by Kylie Jenner at

such a young age by the interviewees. Many of the interviewees held personal thoughts

against plastic surgery, however, in the end conceded to the fact that it was Kylie’s choice. In

addition, I will explore sexual freedom in regard to customary ideas of family and

32
interviewees opinions on Kylie’s pregnancy. Lastly, I will discuss the post-feminist

sensibility of women becoming active sexual beings (Gill, 2007) and how, especially with

social media there is a huge emphasis on self-surveillance and discipline of the body, as

related to neoliberal ideology of individualism.

4.2.1 Equality

Equality was a key component of the interviewee’s perspectives on gender relations.

Nicole declares, “that we are equal and women can do anything a man can do and you know

what, sometimes even better.” As Amanda relays, “women and men should have the same

opportunities, there should be no limitations.” Equality is seen through the lens of equal

rights and opportunities. Within the next section, I will explore this statement on how

equality has been achieved and the many assumptions that come to play. It was surprising

how most of the interviewees' conception of equality is revealed through what is known as

“liberal sameness approach” (Showden, 2009). The sameness approach simply says that

women and men should be treated the same. A common example that explains the sameness

approach is as follows: “if two people qualified for a job, it would be unfair to hire one just

because he is a man. This sort of intuition guides the sameness approach. Notice that this

approach does not have to say that men and women are exactly the same. The defender of

this approach can admit that there are natural or socialized differences, just not in terms of

what really matters” (Curtis, 2018).

However, this does not reflect the reality of contemporary society, in regards to

women’s equality. Women’s issues like domestic violence, rape culture, and sexism are

highly prevalent within society and although interviewees discussed feminism in terms of the

importance of equality, only one interviewee talked about current problems faced by women

within society.

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 4.2.2 Kylie Jenner and the Makeover Paradigm

Kylie has changed significantly in her physical appearance; a change which Burke

describes as turning into“a fembot”, a girl who is perfect. This fembot transformation for

Kylie Jenner was described best by Amanda Hess who says, “watching her lips balloon with

fillers, her skin tone darkening, her eyes pop open and her facial features chisel—gives the

sensation of a model’s upgrade” (Hess, 2018). Nicole took notice of Kylie’s transformation,

“yeah, I mean...she’s changed a lot and like in all the right places...boobs, butt, lips.”

Kylie’s transformation into a“fembot” is being replicated by many young girls. One

transformation that has been heavily replicated is her plump lips. In April 2015, images of

young women with lips severely bruised from sucking the air out of shot glasses started to

flood social media. This disfigurement DIY lip plumping method inspired by Kylie’s pout

was called the Kylie Jenner lip challenge and the results were widely posted across the

internet, sometimes to advise others off the craze, but also due to the online audiences

voyeuristic appetite to see gruesome images (Maddeaux, 2017).

Although the results of the Kylie Jenner lip challenge might seem risky, there is a

rising amount of millennials who are going even further to alter their facial forms

(Maddeaux, 2017). In the Globe and Post news article called “The Rise of Richface: Why so

many young women are getting cosmetic surgery”, Sabrina Maddeaux looks into this recent

surgical enhancement phenomenon called “richface” for young girls that mimic Kylie

Jenner’s augmentations. As noted in the article, “the American Society of Plastic Surgeons

last year reported that in female patients aged 20 to 29, face-shaping cosmetics procedures

were on the rise: requests for hyaluronic acid fillers (Kylie’s lip injections) were up by almost

10 per cent, while Botox and chemical peels saw similar upticks” (Maddeaux, 2017). But

what is more surprising is what Sabrina Maddeaux discovered while writing her article about

the richface. She found that patients in their 20s want their “work” to be obvious and mimic

34
the “richface” aesthetic, unlike patients in their 50s and 60s who want subtler results. Having

a puffed and plumped visual is the new identifiable marker of wealth and status and unlike

generations before them, the millennial generation does not conceal their augmentations in

shame, but rather wants to display them. From videos trending #KylieJennerChallenge to

physical enhancements, Kylie Jenner’s image is affecting the millennial generation’s culture

in modifying their appearance. Kristen agrees stating in her interview that “although I

personally won’t get plastic surgery or lip fillers anytime soon, in a way, Kylie proves that if

you have enough money you can look anyway you wish...”.

Kylie Jenner has changed the way the millennial generation perceives wealth and

beauty on social media. Sabrina Maddeaux stated, “fashion and the way one dressed used to

be an easy visual marker of wealth however this has changed because of lightning-fast trend

cycles and endless cheap imitations, but having lip injections clearly says someone has

money to spend,” (2017). The millennial generation wants these enhancements to be seen,

identifiable, and noticeable—a very Kylie approach to her “unapologetic” plastic surgery.

Her clothing is not perceived to be “wealthy” or “of status”, but her face is. Sabrina

Maddeaux discusses in her article how especially in today’s camera fueled culture where the

selfie is the aesthetic, looking synthetic is part of the appeal.

Alexander Edmonds, author of “Pretty Modern: Beauty, Sex, and Plastic Surgery in

Brazil” confirms the appeal of plastic surgery and agrees that “part of the draw of duck lips is

that some people like the artificial look. I am reminded of anorexia-which is not only a

disorder of eating, but a disorder of perception. There is an addictive quality to cosmetic

surgery that can alter, not just the body, but the perception of what is natural, artificial or

beautiful,” (2010, p.12). Alexander Edmonds also notes, “there’s a vicious circle effect, the

more these procedures are done, the more normal it becomes and more people want to do it,”

(2010, p.13). Kylie Jenner confirms her appearance on many platforms and though at first,

35
Kylie Jenner’s lips might have seemed misplaced, today—because of her celebrity status on

social media, Kylie’s altered beauty seems normal. Not only does the audience become more

accustomed to an augmented Kylie, they want to become like Kylie. This is further

confirmed by her multi-million-dollar cosmetics empire that profits from how she presents

herself on social media.

Kylie Jenner’s beauty and style aesthetic is mimicked by many people. As Layan

says, “the thing about Kylie is that she changed…like she was like this average teenage girl

and then like…became super hot and partly the reason why I follow her is to see how she will

change…”. Samiha, when talking about Kylie Cosmetics discussed the appeal of Kylie’s lip

kits, “I remember thinking when I first bought her lip kits was that…like maybe, I would

look like Kylie or like my lips will look bigger, unnoticed.” Many of the interviewees looked

at Kylie through what Gill (2007) would categorize as “the makeover paradigm” within the

post-feminist sensibility. Kylie through her presentation of herself on social media showcases

a girl transformed into a star, which is a very highly appealing concept to her fans and

women in general. As Gill (2007) explains:

More broadly, it might be argued that a makeover paradigm constitutes postfeminist

media culture. This requires people (predominantly women) to believe first that they

or their life is lacking or flawed in some way, and second that it is amenable to

reinvention or transformation by following the advice of relationship, design or

lifestyle experts, and practicing appropriately modified consumption habits.

4.2.3 Social Media, Adolescents and Body Image

Another aspect of Kylie that is highlighted by the interviewees is her youth, especially

in regard to her transformation from Kim’s little sister to sex icon and general image and

brand. As Nicole states, “this is Kylie’s tool that she is young and came from the millennial

36
generation and like…they know how to use social media and on top of it, she’s still trying to

figure out herself, she’s so young and she’s young enough to keep exploring what works for

her and what doesn’t, which I don’t think any other Kardashian has.” Kristen remarks saying,

“Kylie’s most valuable asset is her youth, she can do things that say Kim and her sisters can’t

do…like Kylie can pretend innocence, that she didn’t know and Kim just can’t do that.”

Within the book Interrogating Postfeminism: Gender and the Politics of Popular Culture,

Negra and Tasker (2007) expresses how popular culture has centralized on girls and girlhood

and fusing empowerment within traditionalist identity paradigms. But especially with the rise

of social media, greater self-objectification and body dissatisfaction has been correlated with

young women adolescents use of Instagram (Fardouly et al., 2015), which is worrying given

self-objectification and body dissatisfaction are common indicators among young women of

depression and disordered eating (Helfert and Warschburger, 2011).

Sociocultural models of body image indicate how the use of social media is correlated

with negative body issues through two conduits: first is the internalization of cultural beauty

ideals and the second is the propensity to relate one’s appearance to the appearance of others

(Papp et al., 2013). Internalization means to the degree to which persons support societally

defined beauty ideals as individually important beliefs and goals (Thompson and Stice,

2001). In all, both internalization and appearance comparisons mediate the relationship

between social media usage and women’s body image concerns (Halliwell and Harvey,

2006). Fardouly et al. (2015) concluded that celebrities on social media do affect young

female adolescents and showed how young women through comparison to celebrities,

internalize societal beauty standards and appearances (Fardouly et al., 2015). As Amanda

says, “Kylie changed the game. Literally everything from what we wear to how we do

makeup has been influenced by her. Like who do you not see wearing lined lips and draw-in

eyebrows?” But Kristen noticed something a bit more critical noting that “Kylie is like…the

37
girl, you know? And I think it might be hard for teenage girls who do see Kylie and how

much she did change from like a lanky adolescent to like an eighteen-year-old

bombshell…like, they probably compare themselves to that standard which is just really

unrealistic.” Kylie within the perspective of her fans may symbolize an idealistic transition

from a young girl to young women.

4.2.4 Sexual Freedom and Female Roles

All interviewees valued the belief of female sexual freedom. Four interviewees

highlighted sexual autonomy when discussing Kylie and her image. As Norah values this as

important, "Kylie expresses her sexuality outward...and it's for her and how she feels." For all

interviewees, most concurred that Kylie has received hate for being sexual however it was

her choice to portray herself in this way. They agreed with the conclusion that Kylie is aware

about how she portrays her body and thus it is not exploitation. Norah mentioned that

although Kylie chooses to express herself in whatever way she wishes, she is still part of the

omnipresent sexualization of female celebrities across media. She also said that even though

she loves Kylie and her image she also realizes certain aspects of contemporary society

stating:

“Kylie really does whatever she wants and in a way makes you want to do whatever

you want....so like, you can dress in whatever you want, like a bra and leggings or die

your hair yellow or get green nails and everything...but at the same time she's only

twenty years old and like... I started following Kylie when she was seventeen...and

like she's a sexual object with her lips and boobs and butt and sometimes you

think...like can a girl be famous without being naked or like sexy? I don't know...it's

just like...weird in a way...but at the same time it is her choice and that's great that

she feels sexy and wants to show the world.”

38
 In many ways, interviews described what Gill (2007) calls "objectification to

subjectification" in regard to women's representation, especially women celebrities, within

the media. In the past, women's role in media was through the portrayal of being passive and

sexual, as "powerless objects" to the male gaze. Now, however, women are seen as

independent sexual subjects who choose to demonstrate their sexuality. This shift is a clear

indicator of the neoliberal ideology of choice and how women now have the agency to

choose how they want to live their lives. But as Gill (2007) argues, what females experience

presently is a deeper form of exploitation because the male gaze, instead of being external,

has become internalized and this shapes female subjectivity. Gill (2007) demonstrates how

sexual autonomy can be linked to the broader concept of sexualization within media where

representation of sex and erotic pictures of women have become commonplace. Gill explains

this phenomenon as the "pornofication of media", which is the theory that products are

marketed through the porn aesthetic (Gill, 2007). This is widely seen within advertisements

and commercials, where the porn aesthetic is used to sell products (Krijnen and Van Bauwel,

2015). Marketing agencies use feminist ideals like independence and freedom of choice, in

order to market, repackage and sell the idea back to women (Krijnen and Van Bauwel, 2015).

McRobbie (2009) also analyses what McGill (2007) calls “objectification to

subjectification” through her characterization of the “phallic girl”, where women should

express their active sexual desires but simultaneously keeping their traditional roles.

According to McRobbie, women show their desires through sexual equality and therefore

upset the traditional standards as they emulate the hedonistic style of sexuality related with

young men (McRobbie, 2009). However, women do not forsake the traditional kind of

feminine position which makes them attractive to men in the first place (McRobbie, 2009). In

truth, what is happening is therefore a re-establishment of traditional gender hierarchies

(McRobbie, 2009).

39
 In addition to the “phallic girl”, is the characterization of the “cool girl” as explained

by Gillian Flynn in her Gone Girl speech. The cool girl is a: “hot, brilliant, funny woman

who adores football, poker, dirty jokes and burping, who plays video games, drinks cheap

beer, loves threesomes and anal sex, and jams hot dogs and hamburgers into her mouth like

she’s hosting the world’s biggest culinary gang bang while somehow maintaining a size 2”

(Flynn, 2012). In a way, the cool girl compulsion strives to “attract male approval for male

approval’s sake, without appearing as if she is striving for male approval at all” (Dickson,

2018). In her fan’s eyes, Kylie fits into the “cool girl” persona. Kristen says, “Kylie is kind of

like everything…she looks hot with only leggings and a sports bra, looking like a million

bucks and has like the biggest boobs and butt and still eats like McDonalds and pizza…it’s

like dude…you’re too cool, but idk…it’s like you can’t be that small and eat so much, it’s

impossible.” In all, the “cool girl” role is more detrimental to feminism than it is helpful

(Dickson, 2018). As explained by EJ Dickson (2018):

For the Cool Girl Feminist, feminism is not so much a set of ideals as it is a

performance, a way of cloaking herself in identity politics while failing to adhere to

those principles in her life. It's the ultimate power move, by way of ensuring that she

constantly has male approval. The one trait that defines the Cool Girl Feminist above

all others; however, is that she goes out of her way to appear as non-threatening to

men as possible. The Cool Girl Feminist paints herself as the exception to the rule, the

one woman who proves that feminists don’t have to pose a threat to traditional

masculinity, that a woman can advocate for gender equality without being loud-

mouthed or hairy-pitted or grim-faced. She is polite, soft-spoken, and expertly

groomed; and if, like Jennifer Lawrence and Olivia Munn, she has the body of an

Icelandic yoga instructor, so much the better.

40
 The “cool girl” role is detrimental to feminism. Cool girl feminism seemingly

advocates for gender issues but in reality, is compliant to men and their ideals. As Samiha

explains, Kylie Jenner, a millennial icon and definite female business advocate, is not exactly

a cool girl but definitely has an aspect of this persona. She says “feminism is about breaking

up male control and power within society and Kylie does this…she made a fortune and is a

boss but at the same time, I can’t help thinking about the fact that it’s a fortune made in

like…a female market of like makeup. Like, what does this mean? Girls can only succeed by

supporting things that make us look better superficially? I don’t know…but whatever Kylie’s

doing, it works.” This places a more complex view on Kylie’s portrayal of feminism since

her success is limited to the female consumer market.

In addition to the many roles women play within society, a major aspect highlighted is

the congruence of sexual autonomy and family values. Three interviewees appreciated

Kylie’s dedication to her family including her sisters and mother as well as her maturity in

handling her pregnancy. As Kristen states, “I wouldn’t want to have a kid right now at my

age but I think Kylie really showed her dedication in making her family work with Stormi

and her boyfriend. I think it takes a lot of guts to say no to sharing this new chapter in her

life, when pretty much all her life has been open to the media.” Even Nicole says “even

though Kylie is like, Kylie fucking Jenner, sexy and new to the stage, she is like…grounded

to her family.” This support given by fans of Kylie’s sexual autonomy and family values is

what McRobbie (2009) calls “double entanglement”, which is a central indicator of post-

feminism. McRobbie (2009) states that with the increasing acceptance of different types of

kinship, there is also an increased celebration of the traditional family lifestyle which

suggests an endorsement in traditional gender hierarchies.

Many interviewees who highlighted Kylie’s family values and pregnancy, did not like

how Kylie portrayed herself sexually on Instagram. In addition, those who stressed Kylie’s

41
sexual autonomy did not highlight Kylie as mother. Although when directly asked, a majority

of the interviewees stressed Kylie’s sexual autonomy. For Nicole, who sees family as

fundamentally important, when asked about Kylie’s sexuality said:

“I don’t really always agree with how Kylie portrays her sexuality, like it's sometimes

too much and personally I wouldn’t do. But she has a right to choose what she wants

to show so…given that, I think she doesn’t necessarily use it badly… I just personally

don’t think I would. Plus, I think she’s tamed it down a lot since her pregnancy.”

Nicole’s perspective on family value contrasts greatly to Layan’s who views sexual

autonomy as important stating that all women have the choice to portray themselves in

whatever way they wish, whether that be sexually or conservative or anything in between.

This suggests that interviewees either stress family or sexual freedom and in a way these

concepts are not aligned. When looking at more family focused interviews, sexuality was

usually seen through a more conservative perspective and a certain censorship was made

known on Kylie’s sexuality and body.

The theme of family and sexuality is a more complex issue than what first appeared

and does suggest McRobbie’s (2009) “double entanglement” within Kylie’s followers.

Interviewees that communicated the need for change within traditional gender roles did show

more feminist stances. For instance, those who wanted change within society’s gender roles

wanted to stop the circulation of distorted images of what women should be or do. In

addition, many continued the conversation on how “women must be everything" and the

image that comes along with having and doing it all. As Norah states, “it’s just really weird,

women have to be everything, do everything, and still look beautiful…I’m becoming a doctor

and yet I must also be a perfect wife, ready to cook and clean and have a bunch of children.

This just doesn’t seem right, and we need to start doing something about it.”

42
 4.2.5 Body and Self through Discipline and Surveillance

Another principle of post-feminism as explained by Gill (2007) is the concept of self-

discipline and surveillance of oneself and body. This principle blossoms from neoliberal

individualism and the concept of working on oneself. In the age of social media, this

principle is increasingly highlighted and stressed within society. Before with women

magazines and now with social media posts, media culture often shows a task that needs to be

assessed, instructed, self-controlled, and then improved (Gill 2007) both visually and

internally. Through working on oneself, all members of society, though women especially,

are encouraged to become a better version of themselves. Kylie’s image has been propagated

through her lip procedure which reflects neo-liberal discourse of self-improvement and self-

management. Not only are women encouraged to work externally on their bodies, but into

their relationships and internally.

Most of the interviewees reflected this discourse when talking about Kylie’s control

of her public image on social media through her flawless makeup, fashionably laid back

outfits and perfectly shaped selfies. As many interviewees suggest, Kylie’s face and body has

become her source of power, which correlates with a theory by Gill (2007), where femininity

is looked at as a bodily property and how media has shaped having a sexy body as a chief

factor of femininity and women’s main source of power. In regard to Kylie’s image and

representation of her body, many interviewees also appreciated the way in which Kylie

presents herself, almost privately. Nicole states, “I think it was really good of Kylie for

keeping her pregnancy a secret, like that takes balls to not put something so big out into the

public, like most of her life has been.” Kristen also refers to Kylie’s selfies as a feminist

movement saying “her selfies are usually of her like…at her house, alone and that’s pretty

revolutionary in a way because she doesn’t mediate her image through like traditional media

outlets which are definitely like all about pleasing a dude’s eyes so…she’s like rejecting that

43
world and making her own one.” Many of her fans admire Kylie for controlling the way she

constructs her image.

Looking more closely into the concept of power and discipline, Michel Foucault, a

well-known French philosopher discusses how power is seen through the body by controlling

aspects of its operation (Foucault, 1975). Foucault theorizes that power is disciplined in the

body through a sequence of methods and that cultural norms become inscribed within our

physical existence. Foucault used the metaphor of the panopticon, a design for a prison where

self-surveillance was used to control prisoners to discuss discourse on power, surveillance

and discipline in institutions like prisons, factories, and military (Alessandri, 2017). In the

age of social media, Kylie Jenner’s life almost resembles a panopticon since her life is

constantly under surveillance. Kylie admits to feeling pressure from her fans to post more

selfies on Instagram and would delete images that did not please her fans instantly (Hess,

2018). The fact that Kylie deletes unpopular posts suggests Kylie’s internalized surveillance.

Nicole, although did not mention panopticon discourse, she did talk about her admiration for

Kylie’s strength in keeping her pregnancy private, “like she’s Kylie Jenner, her life is not

private whatsoever, like we know everything and I really admire that she took a step back

from social media and cherished her pregnancy.”

Sandra Bartky (1990), a feminist writer, used the theories of Foucault to discuss the

institutions of social spaces like the family, workplaces and media, and compared the idea of

femininity as discipline. As Bartky (1990) argues, successful portrayals of femininity are

women successfully monitoring themselves and this is seen through women’s constant

scrutiny of their appearances and propagated through media’s constant supply of normative

femininity images. Power is given to women through the male dominant system which

demands women to present themselves as desirable objects (Bartky, 1990). Women’s

consciousness is shaped through constant surveillance, in contrast to men, who are not

44
exposed to this surveillance to the same degree. Whatever a woman is or becomes, she must

always remember to “please and excite” (Alessandri, 2017). This creates friction within

gender issues because while women are presented as autonomous and independent, they are

still subjected to regulatory practices in regard to their bodies and partialities (Alessandri,

2017).

Social media, especially Instagram, has put a new meaning to the idea of the

panopticon. Given the fact that female users report spending around two hours per day on

Instagram each day (Tiggemann and Zaccardo, 2015) and that Instagram usage in general is

increasing among female teenagers (Perrin, 2015), what young girls see on Instagram

matters. In a study that looks into Instagram usage and young women’s body image concerns,

research concluded that “Instagram usage was positively associated with self-objectification

among young women and that this relationship was mediated by internalization of societal

beauty ideals and appearance comparison to celebrities on Instagram” (Handford, Rapee and

Fardouly, 2018, p.1323). Looking into the implications of Kylie’s monitoring of image, one

can conclude upon the negative aspects of Kylie’s documented constant manipulation of her

body and face to entertain her fans and the public. On a positive note, Kylie shows women

that women can take agency over the mediation of one’s image and make a successful

business out of it.

4.3 Otherness and Gender

Within this last section I will discuss “otherness”, an element of Kylie’s appeal that

arose spontaneously as a discussion point within interviews, as well as engage in gender

discourses. Although I had not anticipated Kylie’s factor of “otherness” as expressed by her

fans, due to numerous appearances within interviews. In the last part, I will discuss

interviewee's views on otherness and expand on third wave feminism.

45
 4.3.1 Otherness

One unexpected factor included within interviews was the appreciation and

celebration of Kylie’s “otherness” of being different, as Nicole states, “she’s just like

weird…but she owns that.” Otherness is defined as “the result of discursive process by which

a dominant in-group constructs one or many dominant out-groups by stigmatizing a

difference—real or imagined—presented as a negation of identity and thus a motive for

potential discrimination,” (Staszak, p.2,2008). The contrast in power relations is key to the

creation of otherness, in which the dominant group sets the values of their identity while

devaluing the other (Staszak, 2008). Amanda refers to Kylie’s unaware radical withering of

old societal models of gender and sexuality:

“Kylie although not really out there in her feminism…she just like chooses to be

herself and like in a way she kind of changes the way things are. Like she got married

to her best friend Jordyn in Peru even though she’s not a lesbian and like all of her

crew is weird in some way, like she found her makeup artist and wig guy are gay and

she was like really an advocate for Caitlyn. Like all of this stuff…is like big in a way

because to like society theses are all big things to be okay with and she’s like nah, it’s

cool and celebrates the differences and that’s like the thing about Kylie that’s pretty

dang cool.”

Kylie has garnered appreciation from her fans for her acceptance of people’s

differences. As Amanda says, “she like does her own thing and doesn’t judge you for being

different” or as Kristen says “It’s like all about expressing yourself, whatever you are,

whatever you wear, whatever you want.”

Many of the interviewees linked their appreciation for Kylie’s advocating for being

different with wanting to be friends or “part of her crew”. As Samiha says, “I just feel like I

46
know her...and she’s like always been there...let’s be honest, I want to be her best friend.”

Samiha expresses what Ang (2013) calls “pleasure of recognition”, meaning that something

that is more familiar is seen positively. Kristen also likes Kylie’s familiarity and boosts

wanting to be part of Kylie’s crew saying, “Kylie seems like a really rich friend who has

done well for themselves but is still like down to hang out and won’t judge you.” Amanda

say, “I would actually sell my soul to be part of Kylie’s crew...they are so cool like Jordyn,

who is like a plus size model and Ariel, her awesome gay makeup artist...like it would be so

cool to hang out with them and chill.” This feeling of “befriending and identifying” with

Kylie is what fan studies’ theorize as an essential part of para-social relationships between

celebrities and their fans, and how appearing intimate with the audience is important for

celebrities (Evans and Riley, 2013). Fan’s identification with Kylie was seen primarily

through fan’s appreciation of Kylie’s otherness which suggests that Kylie’s main attraction is

her dedication to the “other”.

4.3.2 Third Wave Feminism

Interviewees’ concept of feminism takes aspects of both theories of post-feminism and

third-wave feminism. Through the post-feminist idea that within the western world, the need

for feminism is not as necessary and through third-wave ideas of diversity and fighting

against oppression, interviewees’ concept of feminism is formed. Although many

interviewees acknowledge gender issues and discrimination within their own life, they do not

stress that women are a group that faces targeted discrimination. Many have stressed the

achievements that the feminist movement has made so far for women, their views reflect

Walby’s (2010) concept of “gender mainstreaming” i.e. that women’s issues have assimilated

into mainstream politics on a national and global level, and therefore, women’s interests are

always taken into account within institutions (Alessandri, 2017). As Amanda states, “things

47
are different now, women can do anything a man can.” Norah however portrays a more in-

depth view on the state of feminism saying:

“Here in America, we have rights, we can vote, but on another level we have a gender

pay gap, we lack females within the government and in higher leadership positions,

there is violence against women, rape culture…so there is equality but with fine-

print.”

Although some interviewees shed light onto the “fine-print” of being female, the

majority supported the idea that we have come a long way and that feminism is no longer a

necessary movement in the Western world. This concurs with Gill’s theory (2007) about the

current state of feminism, in that feminist ideas have become incorporated within political

and social agendas and gender issues have generally become “common sense” (Alessandri,

2017). As a result of the propagation of feminism within the Western world is deemed

unnecessary given the apparent agenda for gender equality.

Feminism is seen as a part of a broader scope of social justice and activism which

calls for equality for all. As Amanda stated, “I like to consider myself a humanist and

feminism is part of that. Like, I believe that everyone should be treated equally regardless of

sex, race, religion and like other stuff.” This coincides with Kylie’s portrayal of ‘otherness’,

where Kylie is seen as not only empowering women but anyone who is different.

The importance of looking at issues not only in the way they concern women, but for

example how they concern other minorities such as people of colour emphasized throughout

interviews, reflecting sentiments of third-wave feminism, which is currently a more

politically engaged movement overall (Genz and Brabon, 2018). Third-wave feminism

advocates for politics favouring diversity and difference, and has been heavily influenced by

postmodern and poststructuralist theories of identity (Genz and Brabon, 2018), where the

existence of a universal and unified subject is disputed. Third-wave feminism revels in

48
difference, multiplicity, messiness, and conflict (Showden, 2009). Third-wave feminism

looks at intersectionality where “race, sex, gender and class intersect, rather than work

additively and as discrete categories to produce both identities and political needs”

(Showden, 2009, p.29). Third-wave feminism stresses how there are multiple factors of

oppression which should be taken into consideration when discussing gender issues. Gender

is not the principal role when discussing issues of social and cultural discrimination, but

factors of sexuality, race and other social constructs are considered as, if not more, relevant

(Alessandri, 2017).

49
Chapter 5

Conclusions

This study investigates the role of feminism and post feminism in relation to celebrity

and popular culture, and the discourse around these issues that take place in the media, as

understood by Kylie Jenner’s followers. Given that celebrities can form wide-ranging

awareness around gender and other social issues, I investigated the followers and fans of

Kylie Jenner, the most followed and influential celebrity on the social media platforms

Instagram and Snapchat. This study also explores the post-feminist work of Rosalind Gill and

Angela McRobbie and investigates if Kylie’s fans and followers adhere to post-feminism

thinking.

My study contributes to research on media consumers, and confirms Duffett’s concept

that fans not only consume media and comply with prevailing ideologies, but produce media

and create points of resistance, through their critiques and through creating alternative

readings. Fandom is seen as being on both personal and social levels, creating social

connections and expanding factors of shared media culture (Duffet 2013). Within media

studies research normally focuses on textual analysis in order to understand certain cultural or

societal phenomenon, however audience research should be promoted as it gives the

opportunity to investigate how an ordinary media consumer comprehends and negotiates

dominant ideologies contained within media messages, rather than just focusing on the

message itself.

In addition, my research highlights how critical the concept of post-feminism is in

understanding and exploring feminism within contemporary society and culture. It is

especially useful in exploring the many contradictions and complexities present within

feminism today. In addition, it is important to question the portrayal of “I am a feminist” by

celebrities and media outlets and explore the meanings attached to their portrayal. Many

50
institutions claim to be feminist, but their portrayal of feminism, and to what extent they live

up to feminist standards should be investigated critically.

In all, most interviewees did adhere to post-feminist sensibility when discussing

women’s issues. This study’s interviewees’ belief in regards to gender issues was the

discourse on choice, independence, and empowerment. Their perspective on feminism was

seems to be heavily influenced by neoliberal ideology, which views women as independent

persons, free to choose and achieve whatever they wish. The feminist movement was seen

through this individual lens of personal agency, and not through collective or political action.

Many interviewees were not engaged in feminist issues through social or political action. In

addition, only a couple of interviewees could articulate feminist concerns about issues such

as gender pay gap and violence against women. Most interviewees could discuss gender

issues through personal experience, but only some could articulate broader scopes of political

and social action.

The concept of female sexual freedom was also highlighted and endorsed by

interviewees. Women are seen as independent agents who choose to express their sexuality

contrasting to past forms of feminism which viewed women as victims. The majority of

interviewees, talked about Kylie’s personal freedom in portraying herself, often in a

sexualised way, without attributing this choice as existing within the context of the pervasive

sexualisation of modern culture, which many female celebrities engage and contribute to.

Interestingly there seems to be a dichotomy between focusing on family and traditional

values and sexual freedom. Those who highlighted family and traditional values as an

important characteristic and appeal, did not stress sexual freedom. Whereas, those who

valued sexual freedom did not articulate appeal in family importance. However, not in line

with feminist arguments was interviewee’s appreciation of Kylie’s “cool girl” persona, which

re-establishes traditional gender norms.

51
 Subsequently, looking into fan’s perceptions of Kylie’s image and brand, I investigated

discourse on the self and body through discipline and surveillance, as understood through

“the self” that should be improved. Through constant discipline, surveillance, monitoring,

and in Kylie’s case, manipulation of body through hair, makeup and plastic surgery, women

hope to achieve ultra femininity. This provides dissonance between the concept of autonomy

and choice and the constant regulatory practices which are pursued by women in order to

increase their attractiveness, and that ultimately sustain established gender roles.

Interviewees focused on individualism when talking about gender issues, but were

more thoughtful when talking about the concept of otherness. This suggests that feminism,

especially within the Western world, is regarded as having already been achieved. This is

worrying, since issues specifically regarding women might be underestimated and not taken

into consideration. When interviewees described their own opinions on feminism, many

discussed post-feminist concepts but also provided third-wave feminist positions, through

discussing notions of difference and diversity. From a feminist position, although working

with intersectional identities is important in order to gather a more complete view on gender

discourse, one must remember to also produce a socio-political critique from a female

perspective.

Overall, Kylie Jenner is certainly a phenomenon that should be further studied.

Through this study, the opinions, and perspectives of Kylie’s fans and followers only hint to

the complexities that take place within feminism today. More audience research should focus

on the relationship between race and gender through an intersectional position. In addition,

further mixed content discourse analysis of Kylie’s social media platforms should be studied.

Looking specifically into Kylie, more analysis on the interpretation of her image and brand

through her role as mother should be analysed in the context of representation and feminism.

In all, further exploration of influential female celebrities, how audiences perceive their

52
image, and what this reflects about the complexities of feminism in contemporary society is

needed.

In addition, Kylie Jenner presents a complex portrayal of a female celebrity today and

the way fans and followers interpret her image and actions should be further investigated.

Kylie boosts feminist ideals of doing anything she wants but these feminist ideals could also

be seen under neoliberal ideology, that everyone is responsible for their own choices and

success. She also contradicts her feminist position because she plays a part in society that

encourages women to focus on improving their bodies, have it all, transform themselves

through plastic surgery, and therefore internalises the idea of beauty being important. And as

many studies have show, an influential person can impact how other girls and women think

about themselves, therefore it is important to investigate female celebrities and their portrayal

of feminism on social media.

53
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Appendix A

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Interview Participants

1. Nicole Franks, Marketing Associate, 23, American

2. Rayjay Debandau, University Student, Pre-Med, Biology, 21, American

3. Kristen, Master’s student in Chemical Engineering, 23, American

4. Layan Loutfi, first year Dental student, 21, American

5. Norah Zaza, second year Medical student, 23, American

6. Sarah Soliman, third year Medical student, 26, American

7. Samiha Assas, Associate at healthcare company, 25, American

8. Amanda Broches, accountant, 23, American

Appendix B

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Interview Questions Guide

1. Do you wish to stay anonymous?

2. What is your age and nationality?

3. What do you do?

4. How did you become a fan of Kylie Jenner?

5. What platform do you follow Kylie on?

6. Do you follow any of her sisters?

7. What do you like about Kylie?

8. What characteristics does Kylie have that make her stand out? Say compared to her

sisters?

9. How would you characterize Kylie’s brand/image?

10. What does her image portray?

11. Do you like/dislike her image?

12. Do you try to replicate her image in some way?

13. Do you think her image has impacted you?

14. Do you have an image of Kylie that you like the most? Why?

15. Do you think Kylie is attractive? Why?

16. Have you bought anything from Kylie Cosmetics?

17. What do you think of her line?

18. What do you think of Kylie’s pregnancy?

19. How would you describe Kylie’s portrayal of feminism?

20. What role does Kylie’s body play into feminism?

21. How do you think youth plays into her brand and image?

22. Do you think Kylie’s feminism influences your own?

23. Do you ever talk about Kylie?

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 24. Do you participate in any activities for feminism?

25. Do you have anything you would like to add?

Appendix C

65
Interview Transcript

00:07 D: For my master’s thesis, I am studying Kylie Jenner as an emerging female celebrity
on social media and as an influencer. I am interested in the way fans and followers of Kylie
Jenner relate to her and her image in media. All the names of the participants within this
study will remain anonymous unless you want your name to be visible in the research. So
would you like to stay anonymous or not?

00:51 N: No, I don’t want to stay anonymous.

00:56 D: Okay, then. So, I would just like to inform you that all interviews will be stored for
about five months and accessible online and will be used for my thesis. Also, I just want to
tell you that you shouldn’t worry about time, you can take as long as you want when
answering any questions. So some preliminary questions, what is your age and nationality?

01:43 N: I’m 24 and American.

01:46 D: What do you do?

01:50 N: I work in a healthcare company in marketing.

01:54 D: When did you become a fan of Kylie Jenner?

01:59 N: Pretty much since she was born. I’ve been a fan of the Kardashians forever and
have followed all their lives for like ever.

02:08 D: Do you follow Kylie on any social media platforms?

02:12 N: I follow Kylie on Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat.

02:14 D: Have you bought any of Kylies Cosmetics?

02:15 N: I have.

02:17 D: Why did you start following Kylie Jenner?

02:18 N: Mostly because she is a Kardashian and then I just kind of fell in love with her style
and makeup. I love to see the different things she does.

02:24 D: How is Kylie different than her other sisters?

02:28 N: She’s the youngest so she is doing her own thing. She’s like kind of…weird but like
in a good way. She isn’t afraid of like taking risks and doing whatever she wants to do. And
like, she’s real. And like I think Kylie’s tool, like the difference between her and her sisters is
that she is young and came from the millennial generation and like…they know how to use
social media and on top of it, she’s still trying to figure out herself, she’s so young and she’s
young enough to keep exploring what works for her and what doesn’t, which I don’t think
any other Kardashian has.

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02:52 D: Do you consider kylie as an image/brand?

02:56 N: Both.

02:57 D: What does her image portray?

03:01 N: Honestly, she’s different and she kind of does whatever she wants. But like she’s a
good role model with what she’s done with her brand and cosmetics line. Because she’s
fortunate in being rich already, but like through her image and promotion through her social
media she’s made a fortune.

03:33 D: Do you dislike or like her image she portrays?

03:37 N: I really like it her image but like sometimes she might be “out there” and weird but
she owns that and she’s only 20 years old. And I guess how she posts about her body and
sexuality to the extreme and she’s done work on her face. Its funny because she promotes her
brand and “beauty within” but she’s done a lot of work.

03:51 D: What are your thoughts on plastic surgery?

03:54 N: I don’t think its necessary.

03:57 D: Do you find her attractive?

03:59 N: Duh! She’s hot and like has curves and honestly, her lip fillers look really good on
her…like I wouldn’t get plastic surgery but it looks good on her. I mean I get it, she might
have gone a bit extreme with her boob job and butt surgery but like, she can do what she
wants.

04:47 D: What’s an image of Kylie you remember the most?

04:54 N: Her blue hair.

04:57 D: Do you try to emulate her image?

04:59 N: Yeah, not the blue hair (laughs), I don’t think it would suit me but like yeah I try to
imitate some of her leisure-athletic clothes.

05:12 D: How would you describe her style?

05:17 N: Very minimal and basic and she pulls it off but really its just leggings and a sports
bra.

05:26 D: What do you think about her pregnancy?

05:29 N: Good for her. But she’s in a great situation because she is rich but I think she’s still
a child. Like, honestly I would really like to have a family. And I think it is great that she
values family and I think this will be a different experience for her, like being a mother and
all, but I think it will be good for her. Like, she is like always trying to find herself and I
think she will through her baby. I mean even though Kylie is like, Kylie fucking Jenner, sexy

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and new to the stage, she is like…grounded to her family. Plus, I think it was really good of
Kylie for keeping her pregnancy a secret, like that takes balls to not put something so big out
into the public, like most of her life has been. Like she’s Kylie Jenner, her life is not private
whatsoever, like we know everything and I really admire that she took a step back from
social media and cherished her pregnancy.

06:26 D: How do you feel about her being so young and achieving so much?

06:31 N: I’m so jealous. What’s cool about Kylie is that she didn’t need to do this but she did
it anyway. She didn’t need to have a line or brand because just from the Kardashian show she
would be fine. But she made this herself and on her own. That’s really cool because she made
something for herself, an empire, its huge.

07:12 D: Do you think Kylie influences social media?

07:17 N: Oh yeah, I mean she advertises only through social media, like that’s incredible and
like I’m a marketing gal, the fact that she works exclusively through social media shows you
a lot.

07:50 D: So in a Glamour Magazine Interview Kylie said “I am a feminist and I’m a young
woman…I don’t depend on a man or anybody else. I make my own money and start my own
businesses, and I feel like I’m an inspiration for a lot of young girls who stand on their own”.
What do you think about this quote and how would you describe Kylie’s portrayal of
feminism?

09:17 N: Yeah, I mean, I think she’s a feminist. She doesn’t march or what not but she is
very for her own and all about beauty within and do what makes you happy. I think it’s great,
because of what she’s done with her business. She’s not even 21 years old, and she’s making
an empire, in this man’s world. And like the fact that Kylie has come this far in a world
dominated by men…is amazing and she deserves to be within the Forbes under 30 list. I
mean what can I say, she works hard and has been really influential.

12:34 D: What role does body play?

12:39 N: A lot, since she sells for the body and she uses to sell. And like, yeah, I mean...she’s
changed a lot and like in all the right places...boobs, butt, lips. And like, I don’t really agree
with her sexuality sometimes…I don’t really always agree with how Kylie portrays her
sexuality, like it's sometimes too much and personally I wouldn’t do. But she has a right to
choose what she wants to show so…given that, I think she doesn’t necessarily use it badly…
I just personally don’t think I would. Plus, I think she’s tamed it down a lot since her
pregnancy.

14:52 D: Does Kylie’s feminism relate to your own feminism?

15:01 N: Well…like in my feminism I believe that we are equal and women can do anything
a man can do and you know what, sometimes even better and like I’m with Kylie in the who
“do whatever you want” thing she’s got going. Plus, she’s a working girl and she’s driven but
like also values family. So yeah, I guess I would agree with her feminism.

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15:43 D: Do you talk about Kylie with others like family, friends, colleagues?

15:50 N: Oh yeah. Like just the other day I was talking about Khloe and her pregnancy.

15:59 D: How would you compare Kylie’s feminism with her sisters?
About the same…like they kind of aren’t really vocal about feminism. But they are all really
driven and have done well for themselves and also really try to be there for each other.
So…yeah.

16:23 D: Do you engage in any activities for feminism?

16:28 N: No, not really.

16:30 D: Okay then. Do you have anything to add?

16:33 N: No.

69