My dear fellow four people that read my blog. I have unfortunately come to posting my last one….I am genuinely sad because I really enjoyed voicing out my thoughts here. It was a platform I could use to freely express my views and opinions without judgement and express them in a way that best represented me. I guess I have to get to the content for today 😦
For this week’s assignment, we were tasked to come up with a parody based on the previous media theories (which you can read about in my previous blog posts) we have learnt in class. My group decided to do go with the Uses and Gratification Theory. Our parody revolves around a young man having to deal with the toxic work environment, getting scolded by his boss and being punished for his poorly done work by the boss’ assistant. He then limps home and looks to release some stress by watching the content of a Virtual YouTuber (Vtuber) called Haachama. He forms a parasocial relationship with her by dancing along with her and donating all of his money to her during a Live stream. Realizing he used up all his money, he resorts to selling his crutches to access her new OnlyFans content.
Our teammate got his inspiration from a video titled “Me at work Me at home – a melonpan story”. Now before you take a look at the video, just a disclaimer.
DISCLAIMER: PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR MUM, DAD, SIBLINGS, AUNTY CAROL, UNCLE JOHN, PRINCIPAL, DOG, CAT, HAMSTER, PIGEON, WHOEVER’S NEAR YOU ARE AWAY FROM YOUR SCREEN. THE FOLLOWING VIDEO CONTAINS EXPLICIT SEXUAL CONTENT. I am saving your life. Lock yourself in a cubicle even. Trust me. I watched this not knowing the severity of its explicit-y with my mum beside me…and let’s just say….Michael is not the only one with crutches now.
from our parody, the uses and gratification theory can be applied as follows:
Tension Release Needs
the main character just had a rough day at work. hence when he returns home, his main motive is to escape from his harsh reality and release some stress by attending to the content of his favourite Vtuber
Social Integrative Needs
the main character doesn’t have any friends. so he is unable to fulfil his social needs by video calling them, or communicating with them through social media. hence, he tries to get the attention of the Vtuber by donating money in hopes that she would notice him.
Cognitive Needs
he watched the live stream and got some recipe ideas on how to cook the fish, and not butcher it the way she did.
Affective Needs
Mr. butt-whooped reacted emotionally to the Vtuber. whenever she was happy, he got happy and danced.
Personal Integrative Needs
this man just spent all of his savings on her. he hopes for credibility and status of him being her No.1 fan;
UGC
more freedom, can customize to your hobbies, choose what you want to put out, don necessarily have to focus on audience pov don’t need to worry about how our videos will be taken
User-Generated Content (UGC) is basically media content made by a media user. The content cannot be made by a brand, organization, etc. prod-users is another way to put it. the user is the producer of the content made. So if you just made and posted a TikTok video, you are a prod-user. made a YouTube vlog or Instagram video of you and your friends hanging out together? you are a prod-user.
Comparing this to traditional tv, UGCs have way more freedom and customizability. Traditional TV is made focusing largely on its consumers. They would focus on how the audience would take their content, because if their shows don’t do well, the ratings of the show would drop, causing them to not make money from their content or to have wasted the budget and effort put in to create the content.
UGCs on the other hand does not always revolve around the audience. I can simply post content based on my hobbies, without worrying about the benefits and drawbacks. I could post a time-lapse of a painting, not because I want to make money or because there is an audience wanting that, but because I want to. Of course, UGCs can be monetized as well. Totally up to the intention of the user generating the content! UGCs are basically more customisable to the generator because they have full creative freedom.
That being said, it has become a lot easier for us to create in this time. It makes me respect tradition TV creators because they had to put in so much effort to even become a creator for traditional media. Now, anyone could become a TikTok star or Instagram famous because it is so easy and accessible. I guess traditional TV worries more about how their content should be taken, so they make sure to put in extra effort and thought into their content, whereas with UGCs, you could put in 0.1% of effort and thought and still be satisfied, not worrying about how your content would be taken.
and that is it, folks. thank you so much to the 4 people who always take time out of your busy schedule to read what goes on in this wonky brain of mine. this was really really fun to do, never would I have thought that I would have my own blog. Maybe I will continue to post more random thoughts on here…who knows haha! well, see you guys again i guess! blonders, signing out!
References
Li, M. (2021, September 4). BCM110 Digital Story Assignment [Video]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N1lMG1ZIs4
Melonpan. (2016, June 6). Me at work Me at home – a melonpan story [Video]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZgUhN_sF6E
blondie's 
Brindha! Before I say anything else I gotta agree with the disclaimer you put before the video, though I really don’t think any amount of words can prepare an unsuspecting audience for whatever they just witnessed. It’s also nice to know you actually enjoyed writing these blog posts, as compared to so many people in class who were relieved to just be over with this all. Maybe make another blog post and post your thoughts there? I’d love to read your stuff, you’re hilarious 😛 While I agree that UGCs allow people to produce content without worry of who’s watching it, I’d say that it will still impact people to a pretty large extent considering platforms have pages dedicated to statistics and helping you improve your reach, and people usually post to fulfil their personal integrative needs. Anyways, this was a fun read and I hope to see you around in school soon~!
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