Title: “The Rise of Celebrity Presence on LinkedIn: A New Era of Worldly Stardom”
Introduction:
In today’s digital age, where social media platforms have shortened the gap between celebrities and ordinary individuals, LinkedIn has emerged as an unlikely space for stars to showcase their professional pursuits and connect with their fans or potential business partners. This article explores the growing celebrity presence on LinkedIn, discussing the motivations behind their participation and examining the evolving dynamics of celebrity culture in our corporate and media-saturated world.
1. The Celebrities’ Paradigm Shift:
1.1. The New Worldliness of Celebrity Culture:
– Comparing the flamboyant personalities of cultural icons in the past to the safer and more corporate image of modern-day celebrities.
– How social media has reshaped the relationship between stars and regular people.
1.2. LinkedIn: A Safe Haven for Stars:
– LinkedIn’s unique attributes that attract celebrities seeking a professional platform.
– The potential for expanding their networks, sharing projects, and engaging with fans or business partners.
– The contrasting perspectives on LinkedIn’s relevance among celebrities and professionals.
2. From Reel to Real: Celebrities as “Thought Leaders”:
2.1. Infiltrating the Business World:
– The emergence of celebrities leveraging their public persona to offer business advice or market their ventures.
– Examining examples, such as professional athletes becoming brand ambassadors or investors.
– LinkedIn as a platform for celebrities to showcase their business acumen beyond their known talents.
3. Blurring the Lines of Authenticity:
3.1. The Duality of Celebrity Profiles:
– Analyzing the authenticity of celebrity accounts on LinkedIn, including fake profiles and questionable information.
– The challenge of distinguishing genuine celebrity presence from imposters.
3.2. An Inside Look Into Celebrity Ventures:
– Celebrities using LinkedIn to provide behind-the-scenes insights into their projects or collaborations.
– Gwyneth Paltrow, Jessica Alba, and Karlie Kloss as examples of celebrities maximizing the platform for business purposes.
4. The Peculiar Mix of Stars and Professionals:
4.1. LinkedIn’s Growing Celebrity Shine:
– Exploring the timeline of stars joining LinkedIn, predating Twitter’s decline.
– The appeal of LinkedIn’s “top voices” badges and the promotion of thought leaders across various industries.
4.2. Marking Celebrity Metrics:
– Examining the metrics of celebrities on LinkedIn and the implications for their influence and consumer engagement.
– The importance of branding in the era of social media and its impact on celebrity endorsements.
Conclusion:
LinkedIn’s unexpected celebrity presence reflects the evolving nature of fame and the desire of stars to expand their personal and professional networks in a corporate-driven world. With the rise of social media blurring the lines between celebrities and everyday individuals, platforms like LinkedIn serve as a space for stars to deliver their curated personas and engage in the business-centric discourse. While not embraced by all, this new era of worldly stardom demonstrates the ongoing transformation within the realm of celebrity culture and the ever-changing dynamics of our digital age.
Summary:
The rise of celebrities on LinkedIn highlights the changing dynamics of the celebrity culture in the digital age. LinkedIn provides a safe space for stars to showcase their professional pursuits and engage with fans or potential business partners. While some celebrities leverage their public persona to offer business advice or market their ventures, others use LinkedIn to provide behind-the-scenes insights into their projects. The authenticity of celebrity profiles on LinkedIn remains a challenge, with fake accounts and questionable information existing alongside genuine ones. Nevertheless, the presence of stars on LinkedIn reflects the growing intersection between celebrities and professionals in today’s corporate-driven society.
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Before turning to football as co-owner of Wrexham AFC, Ryan Reynolds was best known as a film star playing Deadpool in the franchise inspired by the Marvel comic book anti-hero and for taking the lead in films such as Free boy AND The Adam Project. On LinkedIn, Reynolds lays bare his impressive acting track record, wryly describing himself as having a “proven track record” and “consistent results deliverer,” using language typically used on a regional sales executive’s professional networking site.
Reynolds’ profile, which has more than 2 million followers, also lists his skills as: “writing, re-writing, tweeting, mixing cocktails, back-end engineering software platforms and watching lower tier Welsh football matches. Competence ranges from excellent to downright bad.
He is far from the only celebrity to build a profile on the main platform for “thought leaders” (defined by Urban dictionary as a “cheeky, self-proclaimed idiot who thinks he’s an expert”). There’s Mindy Kaling, who painstakingly lists in her accolades and awards section her 2022 Tony Award for Musical A strange ride. Poor Jennifer Lopez the singer and actress has only one endorsement for her acting skills, bit tough for the sultry star Out of the field of vision and Golden Globe nominee Cheaters.
Jennifer Lopez, one of the other stellar names on LinkedIn
I doubt Jenny from the Block is up at night updating her professional experience after a hard day’s work – there’s a team for that. But even so it seems bizarre that celebrities glittering with stardust are rubbing next to white-collar workers on the house of some of social media’s most embarrassing posts. This is a site that is regularly pilloried for their early morning hustlers’ tales routinesupercars and luxury watches.
LinkedIn has made an effort to garner attention with its “top voices” badges (a category that also includes mainstream entrepreneurs and social activists). Some are invited and some are already on the platform.
Traditionally, Instagram and Twitter have catered best to celebrities, giving actors, sports stars, and musicians the chance to broadcast their next concert. Social media accounts are increasingly an integral part of branding, says Mark Cowne, managing director of Kruger Cowne, a talent and speaker agency: media?’ He creates a parameter that they are more popular than anyone else. It doesn’t mean their followers will buy anything. It’s part of the metrics.
It would be tempting to see LinkedIn’s recent celebrity shine as a result of Twitter’s decline. But the arrival on LinkedIn began before the acquisition of Elon Musk, prompted by the entry into the business of celebrities. Daniel Roth, editor-in-chief of the platform, says that over the past five years, there has been a 37% increase in professional athletes showing themselves “in a light that the public doesn’t often see them in.” US soccer player Amobi Okugo shares financial advice through his “Frugal Athlete” business. Raphaël Varane plays for Manchester United and is an investor in Kobi, which brings sport to the workplace. On LinkedIn, Roth says, “professional athletes can talk about things that don’t touch their performance on or off the pitch. They are treated like business thinkers, which they love.
So too celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow, Jessica Alba AND Karlie Kloss use the platform for business, bringing people behind the scenes of new projects, marketing to potential business partners, investors and consumers. Paltrow positions herself as the leader of a start-up that “empowers women. . . [who are] multifaceted, complicated and busy whores [sic] who can take care of the family and work at the same time”. Most of Reynolds’ profile is devoted to his serial entrepreneurship, including the gin business he sold to Diageoand his co-ownership of Mint Mobile, the telephone company acquired by TMobile.
Many accounts are obvious fakes, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, based in Kirkcaldy, Scotland, who lists his employer as Real Madrid, a soccer club that the real Ronaldo left five years ago. I hope former Arsenal captain Per Mertesacker is real. His profile highlights his “excellent leadership skills as a key figure at the club” which have earned him the responsibility of overseeing the club’s “stringent penalties on player behaviour”, once fined “Nacho Monreal £10k for wearing a poncho on match day.”
Perhaps what the presence of stars on LinkedIn represents is the new worldliness of celebrity culture. Mark Borkowski, a public relations agent, says stars like “Richard Burton in the 1960s were known for their charismatic and often rebellious personalities. They were cultural icons who embraced a more flamboyant and boisterous lifestyle. Celebrities today are different, they tread safer territory. The world has become corporate. As far as social media goes, LinkedIn is a pretty safe space.
It is a peculiarity of our times, observes Jenna Drenten, an associate professor of marketing at the Quinlan School of Business in Chicago, that as social media has shortened the distance between stars and normals, “celebrities have become more worldly while so-called people normal have become more glamorous”. Influencers can become famous for curating a lifestyle vibe on Instagram.
Yet LinkedIn, with its humble and cheeky cheeks, won’t win everyone over. I asked a friend who works with sports stars if he would recommend they go to LinkedIn. His response was curt: “I loathe LinkedIn with a furious passion.” No, in other words.
Emma Jacobs is the FT’s Work and Career Writer. Jo Ellison is absent
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