Drawing on an intersectional feminist framework, as well as the critical insights of Jefferess (2002) and Daley (2013) regarding the reproduction of neoliberal and neo-colonial tropes, the purpose of this thesis has been to articulate… As a critical intervention into existing research, the most important contribution of this thesis to scholarship on celebrity advocacy in the development studies context has been to address the emergence of social media influencers in international affairs and their role as ideal agents of neoliberal patriarchy in celebrity advocacy. To this end, my focus has been to discuss and demonstrate how representations of celebrity advocacy contribute to the reproduction of neoliberal hegemony and of colonial intelligibilities and imaginaries in relation to African subjectivity, life and history.
In order to assess continuity and change in the broader field of celebrity humanitarianism, it was necessary to examine the case study of Tanya Burr: her work as Global Goals Ambassador and the creation of her own campaign for gender equality, Time For Girls. Situating her work in the context of the girl effect: the decade-long trend in gender and development that positions girls in the global south as ideal neoliberal subject-agent hybrids who, with the right (corporate) investment, can be instrumentalised to effect transformative change in their communities, and as part of the media narrative of the Global Girls, and whose aim is to make the SDGs famous, I deployed a critical discourse analysis explicate the strategic positioning of Tanya as the ideal conduit through which to promote the neoliberal ideology espoused in the SDGs. The affective connection she has with her large and engaged following, based on her perceived authenticity and ordinariness is, I argue, performative, and enables her to be seen as a charismatic authority figure who stands in contrast to the traditional authority figures of traditional governments. Her performance of hyperfemininity also positions her as a neutral figure whose espousal of mainstream feminism does not threaten neoliberal hegemony. I have also argued that the involvement of social media influencers in humanitarianism is paradoxical because their careers are entirely dedicated to the creation, promotion and maintenance of a branded self.
In the first chapter, I delineated a brief history of (celebrity) humanitarianism, explaining how it has become ubiquitous in modern celebrity culture. Based on Chouliaraki’s (2010) conceptualisation of the three phases of humanitarianism: from shock tactics to compassion fatigue, to the current technologization of action categorised by simplified online – clicktivist – engagement practices like clicktivism, I demonstrate the ways in which … opens up a new space for…
Further, I discussed how celebrity advocacy has been studied in the literature, focusing on arguments about the re-articulation of a colonial imaginary of Africa that not only supports hegemonic western activity, but also constructs a consensus for the existing world order in which the global south is, and remains, subordinate to the west. These arguments draw on the postcolonial theories of Saïd, Mudimbe and Spivak about the ‘invention’ of the Third World, particularly how this plays out in Africa, and of the orientalism inherent to humanitarianism. I argued that humanitarianism is an organ of a rejuvenated global empire that carries out much of the same exploitative tendencies seen under colonialism under the guise of humanitarian benevolence and nation-building. I have also supported the arguments that humanitarian campaigns present poverty in an historic way that serves to disempower those in the south by obfuscating the real, structural reasons why poverty exists. Moreover, I have called for attention to be paid to rise of new forms of authority in concert with the hollowing out of the state and the emergence of new digital technologies.
In Chapter Two I examined a series of tensions within the feminist movement between mainstream feminists who have the privilege of being white, straight, cisgender, middle- and upper-class and/or able-bodied, and how the homogenization of women as a category has come at the exclusion of the most marginalised women in society. Moreover, I have shown that mainstream feminism merely addresses the symptoms of sexism rather than seeking to dismantle imperialist, white supremacist, capitalist patriarchy. The intersectional feminist framework explicated therein became my critical tools to encounter and approach Tanya’s foray into the world of gender and development to assess the extent to which she, as someone with the above privileges, reproduces this narrative. Moreover, I discussed empowerment, which is used ad nauseum in gender and development, particularly in relationship with the girl effect and in SDG five: “to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls” (UNDP 2018).
In Chapter Three, I explain the methodology deployed.
In Chapter Four, having engaged with the literature on celebrity humanitarianism, with intersectional feminist theory and with the methodological tools of critical discourse analysis, I analysed how Tanya’s presentation of gender inequality in Africa was grounded and constituted within Anglo-American discourses. Paying close attention to the rationalization of her actions, I argued that her legitimacy was underpinned by a particular reproduction of race, class and gender. In her content, Tanya presents herself as a neutral and independent western individual on a selfless crusade to end gender inequality in Africa. What is more, this presentation was successful, as evidenced by the reams of comments from adoring fans who were more focused on how admirable, kind and selfless she was than on the actual subject matter of her content. Tanya, I have argued, is an ideal neoliberal agent – altruistic, self-sacrificing, apolitical and a citizen of the world – promoting equality and empathy while at the same time undermining these very efforts for equality by making a career out of consumerism. This has not been a critique of Tanya’s choice to involve herself in gender and development. Indeed, I cannot claim to have any insight into the authenticity of Tanya’s desire to advocate for her chosen social cause, nor can I criticise her for making a fortune out of the seemingly banal activities of blogging, vlogging and instagramming; she is merely a product of her environment. Rather, this thesis has sought to comment on the way in which the neoliberal ecosystem sustains itself and the agents it uses for its own gain.
An analysis of Tanya’s visual, written and spoken content not only sheds light on the different ways in which political agency is distributed and permitted among different subjects, it also inform a broader construction of north-south world relations. By repeating and propagating the vocabulary of humanitarianism as a universal western mission, Africa remains firmly located outside western modernity, freedom and civilisation. Consequently, African development is framed as an omnipresent threat not only to the continent’s future, but to the current global liberal world order.
Limitations and Scope for Future Research
The analysis of this study was based on one social media influencer’s involvement in development. I used this one case study to illustrate the growing use of social media influencers, in addition to traditional celebrities, in the development arena. The case was selected because it was the first substantial gender and development campaign I had found carried out by a social media influencer; previous involvements were briefer. As such, it is hard to generalize the findings and apply them to future research. Further research could, with more money and time freedom, enhance the breadth and depth of such research. For example, it would also be worthwhile to interview commenters of Tanya’s videos or the videos of another social media influencer involved in development because, as was seen in the body of this thesis, they had opinions on Tanya’s work. Some commenters were shown to partake in YouTube themselves. Similarly, the analysis of this study was qualitative, it may be useful to conduct similar research quantitatively. It is hard to make conclusions about this phenomenon solely based on one individual, so future research could create more case studies on different social media influencers, and even compare and contrast them.
In addition, he case in question was centred around white, western influencer. As important as it is to continue to examine the conditions and effects of western celebrity humanitarianism, it is also crucial to explore how it operates elsewhere. Contemporary research on celebrity humanitarianism has predominantly examined that carried out by western celebrities. Accordingly, to bring complexity and depth to the research in this field, further research into influencers in the global south would be interesting, particularly because of the difference in positionality.
It is also worth emphasising that future studies of celebrity humanitarianism should provide clear definitions of the specific work with which individuals are engaged: is it activism, advocacy or diplomacy? The lack of clarity given to definitions adds credence to the argument that celebrities are not worthy of academic study in development studies. As we have seen, however, their involvement in development is certainly of academic interest at a time when the state has been hollowed out to the extent that those in the west have lost faith in figures of traditional authority.
Finally, the SDGs are only three years old and so the findings of this study must be tempered based on this fact. Further studies should and certainly will be carried out up to 2030 and beyond, just as research on the MDGs was multitudinous up to 2015 and beyond. Indeed, after 2030 it will be imperative to study the impact that the Goals have had, but this cannot be done so close to the announcement of the Goals themselves.