We live in an age where social media plays a large role in being the source of information, entertainment, communication and even a way to earn money. Content creation has become a trending field and we have seen a dramatic rise in the number of content creators especially on social media platforms like Youtube and Instagram. Content creation is producing and sharing information in a digital context targeted at specific audiences. It can be in the form of videos, podcasts, blog posts, using social media, etc. For your content to reach the target audience, it needs engagement and enough ‘shares’ so that it reaches a wide range of people. If any content creator’s content goes viral i.e. is shared rapidly and widely on the internet and social media platforms, it is considered to be a success.
Regardless of the substance or quality of the content, a video with millions of views and thousands of shares on social media is still considered as a viral video that gains popularity and recognition be it good or bad. So what makes a video go viral? Influential people introducing interesting things to a layman, unexpected bold content, and content that induces empathy, anger, awe, emotions and controversial takes are subject to virality. Controversial and bold content is usually found to have much higher engagement in form of comments and shares which increases traction.
In 2021, a YouTuber called Trevor Jacob admitted to intentionally crashing a plane for views; he had posted a video on YouTube implying it was an accident while in reality, it was not. Risking life and creating major adversity for the sake of views on YouTube is a ridiculous chance that content creators like Jacob make. Another incident in 2017, where Monalisa Perez and Pedro Ruiz, who wanted to be famous YouTubers, ended up ruining their lives when they decided to film a video of Perez shooting Ruiz with a real handgun from a close range while Ruiz held an encyclopaedia in front of his chest. Reportedly he had experimented and thought it was thick enough to protect him but the bullet passed right through him. Doing dangerous things for online fame has just increased and gotten worse.
Doing insane things like hanging a baby out of the window and asking for a certain amount of likes otherwise the baby would be dropped and posting it on social media is perceived as ‘just for fun’ or ‘humourous’. Anything that is high-risk, intriguing and gives an adrenaline boost to viewers across the screen encourages people to perform atypical activities for views.
This can also be related to the trend of Mukbang, an audio-visual broadcast in which the host consumes an unusual quantity and variety of food while interacting with the audience or doing ASMR while eating. Most of these Mukbang streamers prepare or order huge amounts of food and different varieties of food which they eat alone in front of the camera. Eating abnormal quantities of high-calorie and fatty foods on a regular basis to produce videos makes no sense as it’s visible that it would adversely affect the health of these creators. Mukbangers inhale thousands of calories, are subject to weight gain, heart diseases and gastrointestinal diseases, and might experience many more short and long-term health risks. Yet, they continue to make this content because there are people who will give them views for making videos which bring about emotions of awe and satisfaction to the viewer. Content creators like these are determined to achieve fame online and build a community to sustain their content and expand their reach.
Making purposeless videos like pouring milk and cereal in people’s mouths have become a trend which other people who are not in the field of content creation are encouraged to do. Some inane trends like Salt and Ice Challenge, Tide-Pod Challenge, The Choking Challenge, and Ice Bucket Challenge, which are mostly started by influencers go viral and ‘influence’ other people to try them out as well and there is a high risk that things could go wrong.
Fame inspires fame and makes the creator more productive and greedy for popularity. Consistency and making unique content that brings in a wide range of audiences which is also why content creators want to make content that goes viral. Viral content always leaves a mark on any netizen. Virality brings more opportunities and loyal consumers to the creator. It is not wrong to expect content to go viral since there has been so much ideation and effort gone into ‘creating’ it. While the content going viral can be for positive or negative reasons, virality cannot determine the quality or success of the content created.
