Essay Submission 1

Topic: Celebrities

Nguyen Thien Vu
103488612

Date Submitted: 10/29/2022

Word Count: 1251

Table of content:
1. Introduction Page: 3

2. Ideology Page 4

3. Relationship between ideologies and moneymaking function Page 5

4. Conclusion Page 5

5. Reference Page 6

Essay Submission 1 PAGE 2

 1. Introduction:
According to Braudy(1997), Celebrities are people who associated themselves with mass
communications, specifically television and print media. Their presence, personality, and private life
will always attract media attention. Now with technology so advanced if people want to know about a
celebrity all they have to do is to search for their name on google and they would be able to obtain all
the important information about that celebrity. For example, if you wanted to learn about the popular
YouTuber Markiplier google can provide all the information like his height or hobby. But how did
Markiplier even rise to fame in the first place? This essay will attempt to answer that question and
what ideology he embodied as well as how he was used as a moneymaking commodity.

According to Graeme Turner(2009), he argued that the nature of celebrity is taking a “demotic turn”
in the new century because of the appearance of Web 2.0 which thank to this “celebrity culture is
increasingly populated by unexceptional people who have become famous and by stars who have been
made ordinary” Gamson, J. (2011). That is to say, many ordinary people had become more and more
visible over the media content such as Youtube, gameshows…etc. One of them to find immense
success on a media platform known as Youtube was Mark Fishbach or known popularly as Markiplier.
Over the course of his career which he started in 2012 Markiplier has gained over 28.6 million
subscribers and one of the main reasons behind his success was because of his funny commentary
while playing videos game and he later became known for his walkthrough of horror games due to his
genuine reaction and no matter the type of viewers. In addition to those Markiplier knew how to
always keep his viewers entertained by making unique content and one the huge hit project aside
from his regular Let play videos was the series known as “Heist with Markiplier” which was edited like
a movie and viewers are the main character which would allow them to interact and make the decision
to help Markiplier in his heist. These various unique contents and other factors mentioned above had
allowed him to attract even more viewers and made him into one of the most well-known YouTubers
along with others like Felix “PewDiePie” Kjellberg and Seán “JackSepticEye” McLoughlin

2. Ideology
Essay Submission 1 PAGE 3
According to john branney(2012), ideology is a system of beliefs or ideas that are shared between a
certain group of people. For Markiplier it could be said he embodied Egalitarianism ideology, he first
expressed this ideology after a video he shoot up with another popular YouTuber Jack caused some
people that did not understand the full context to be offended and actually believe that he would
perpetuate violence against women. In response to the misunderstanding, he expressed clearly his
intention that violence is a problem and revealed that he was in an abusive relationship and would
commonly mean arguments and lead to slaps or punches. While the physical damage was not much
but the emotional toll was far greater and he wished that no one else regardless of gender should have
to go through that. Once he openly expressed this, people no longer make a fuss or cause much
backlash; instead, he gained even more support over the internet.

The other ideology he believed in was humanism, that is to say, is an approach to life-based on reason,
human experience and put prime importance on human life rather than supernatural matters. It a
belief that stressed the human potential value, goodness and focuses on human needs. Markiplier
expressed this ideology when he stated that he didn’t believe in heaven or hell and that he had various
problems in the Christian religion when he was a part of them. He valued his viewers and human
being above all else and posted many encouraging words to viewers such as this message “Don't let
anyone tell you you're not good enough, even your own mind. Every single one of you matters”.

used as a marketing or moneymaking commodity?

Due to how much influence and subscribers Markiplier has, he became a huge factor in marketing
where many companies would try and offer him money in order to promote a certain new game or
gaming product, Markiplier would advertise them at some point in his videos where he would
introduce the good aspect of this product and recommend his viewers to give it a try. It wouldn't be
unexpected if he charged more than $10,000 for each sponsorship given his enormous subscriber
base. Aside from that and his earnings from the channel Markiplier along with other YouTubers
would embark on a tour. When they traveled to certain cities, they would do comedy shows in
crowded theaters. Even Forbes estimated that Mark's annual earnings were double what they were the
year before due to the 2018 tour. Finally, Markipler online store, where he offers a variety of goods
like hoodies, socks, dog collars, hats, and a lot more, is another source of money for him. Since any
products that are associated with a celebrity would gain large attention and would always be in
demand.

3. Relationship between ideologies and moneymaking function

Essay Submission 1 PAGE 4

 Markiplier ideology of humanism and Egalitarianism made many viewers can relate and connect to
him, he always expressed that all of his viewers are important and stated that no matter what
happens, no matter how hard things get they should never stop believing in themselves. The fans
who realized that the one whom they admired also appreciate and treasured them will be even more
loyal than before and they would try to respond to his goodwill by supporting him by some means. For
example, when Markiplier got sponsored to advertise some products even if it doesn’t interest them
the fan would still give the product a try or will share those products with their own friends as a way to
support Markiplier. Similarly, any merchandise or project associated with Markiplier will attract fan
attention and support. T

4. Conclusion
In summary, Markiplier rose to fame partly because of the appearance of Web 2.0 and the
introduction of media platforms for entertainment like Youtube. It also was because of his sense of
humor and effort to create unique content. Finally, the ideology Markiplier embodied helped created a
very kind and supportive public image for him which helped him greatly in his marketing campaign
and moneymaking commodity

Essay Submission 1 PAGE 5

 5. Reference:

Jessica Scharnagle, March 14, 2021: How YouTuber and comedian Markiplier rose to fame
https://win.gg/news/how-youtuber-and-comedian-markiplier-rose-to-fame/#:~:text=Markiplier
%20has%20amassed%20over%2028.6,the%20beginning%20of%20his%20career.

Gamson, J. (2011). The unwatched life is not worth living: The elevation of the ordinary in celebrity
culture. PMLA, 126(4),
1061-1069. doi:10.1632/pmla.2011.126.4.1061
https://repository.usfca.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1006&context=soc

Exchange, T 2021, Markiplier Net Worth | The Top 5 YouTube Millionaires, The Exchange, viewed 29 October
2022, <https://theexchange.africa/business/markiplier-net-worth/#:~:text=Markiplier%20earns%20his
%20money%20through>.

Hackley, C & Hackley, RA 2015, ‘Marketing and the cultural production of celebrity in the era of media
convergence’, Journal of Marketing Management, vol. 31, no. 5-6, pp. 461–477.

How YouTuber and comedian Markiplier rose to fame n.d., WIN.gg, viewed 29 October 2022,
<https://win.gg/news/how-youtuber-and-comedian-markiplier-rose-to-fame/#:~:text=Markiplier%20has
%20amassed%20over%2028.6>.

Stewart, S & Giles, D 2019, ‘Celebrity status and the attribution of value’, European Journal of Cultural
Studies, p. 136754941986161.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/334609898_Celebrity_status_and_the_attribution_of_value

Turner, G 2010, ‘Ordinary People and the Media: The Demotic Turn’.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/292652720_Ordinary_people_and_the_media_The_demotic_turn

Essay Submission 1 PAGE 6