Celebrities have always been more familiar to us and played a bigger part in our daily lives than most people. However, we also live at a moment when much of the developed world has access to the same technology and media platforms that enabled Donald Trump to be elected President of the United States. This C+MRC podcast is a conversation about this particular historical moment and the ways in which we engage fame and the forms of publicity that create and nurture it in increasingly digitized environments.
Dr. Hugh Curnutt joins C+MRC founder and podcast host Dr. Vanessa Greenwood to talk about his current research in the area of celebrity and digital culture. He is currently examining the impact of mobile technologies and self-authored media content on contemporary celebrity and the political economy of digital labor. This semester (Fall 2018) Dr. Curnutt teaches the course “Celebrity and Digital Culture” (CMST 350) within the School of Communication and Media in the College of the Arts at Montclair State University.
Dr. Hugh Curnutt works in the areas of critical media and cultural studies. His research is broadly concerned with evolving communication technologies and the shifting intersection of media producers and consumers. His work has explored the changing televisual landscape, especially reality TV’s role in the ongoing reconfiguration of television’s institutions, performers, and audiences in a post-network era. His current project examines the impact of mobile technologies and self-authored media content on contemporary celebrity and the political economy of digital labor. Follow him on Twitter: @hughcurnutt
COMM+MEDIA RESEARCH COLLABORATORY 