A Case for Clickbait (Issue #14)
This week’s theme is media - how it’s made, why it’s made, and the incredible creators behind it.
Hi friends!
A few weeks ago, the Daily released this episode, featuring an astronomically popular YouTuber I’d never heard of: MrBeast. Much of the episode centers around a somewhat controversial video he released called “1,000 Blind People See For the First Time” which currently sits at 151 million views (a huge number that is still less than MrBeast’s 168 million YouTube subscriber base). The video title is very literal, as MrBeast ventures across the country to cover the cost of eye surgery for 1,000 people. While many praise this seemingly generous act, others take issue with what feels like an exploitative and clickbait-y approach to helping others. Ultimately, even though his video has more views than the population of the 10 most populated US states combined, it does very little to address the complex systemic and political issues that lead to so many people having compromised vision in the first place. But at the same time, the high-energy, feel-good, clickbait-y video gets views, and these views helped pay for 1,000 surgeries that otherwise wouldn’t have been accessible to the folks that need them.
I highly recommend listening to the full Daily episode, but one section that really hit me was a conversation reporter Max Read had with Jeremiah Howard, a kid who was gifted a surgery from MrBeast. It’s this quote from Max that really has stuck with me:
“[w]hen I put this to Jeremiah and asked him about the kinds of criticism that MrBeast was facing, Jeremiah essentially said to me, well, have any of those people paid for my eye surgery? The bottom line is, he paid for the surgery.
And to the extent that Beast has a very explicit model in which he has very successful videos that make a lot of money, and that money then goes to charity or goes to prizes, if he started making 45-minute videos about the history of health care in the United States, it seems very unlikely that those are going to get the same kind of viewers that a punchy, 10-minute, feel-good video will.”
And that’s the conundrum. It’s hard to balance high engagement with quality storytelling. As a media creator myself, I often think about the ways algorithms aren’t really set up to encourage thoughtful deep dives but rather tend to incentivize quick clicks, a lack of nuance, and sensational production that easily verges on exploitation. And while I’m not sure how to perfectly bridge that gap, it’s definitely something I’m constantly thinking about and navigating in my own work.
The media landscape is vast, and there are tons of incredible creators navigating its ups and downs. For today’s issue, I compiled some of those stories, along with various tips and tricks for improving your own media creation practice. Enjoy!
A round-up of things to watch, read, and listen to as you head into the weekend
*Indicates a gift link. I know how frustrating paywalls are! When possible, I’ll try to offer gift links through my subscriptions to support access to high-quality journalism.
Vanity Fair: American Genocide: The Crimes of Native American Boarding Schools Embarks on a Quest for Truth and Healing by Maka Monture Paki
In this interview, Crystal Echo Hawk and Lashay Wesley discuss their six-episode miniseries, American Genocide. The podcast explores the impact of the hundreds of Native Boarding Schools across the United States, focusing on the actively-developing true crime story and controversy surrounding the Red Cloud Indian School in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. I have yet to listen, but I really appreciated this discussion about the creation of the podcast and the importance of the stories featured.
Hulu: The Age of Influence (TV Show)
This documentary mini-series examines the stories of six influencers and the scandals that surround them. I’m fascinated by the premise from a sociological perspective, especially given that influencer culture is still relatively young and we have yet to see its full effect.
HBO: Bama Rush (Documentary)
This documentary had a ton of buzz leading up to its release, as it attempts to tell the behind the scenes story of “Bama Rush,” the University of Alabama sorority recruitment process that took TikTok by storm in August 2021. I’m really interested in the idea of a “behind the scenes” documentary based on TikToks, especially with the video platform still being so young. There was a ton of buzz leading up to the release of the documentary, and even behind the scenes drama during the filming process! More about that in the next recommendation…
The New York Times: ‘It Wasn’t a Documentary About Bama Rush Whatsoever!’* by Madison Malone Kircher
This article takes a look at the making of the “Bama Rush” documentary. Kircher covers the slew of rumors that were circulating during the filming process, including fears about girls going undercover recording during the recruitment process and one girl even getting kicked out under suspicion she had a hidden mic. It’s a fascinating piece about the ethics of documentary filmmaking and a good example of how the observers effect can impact the filmmaking process.
Featuring someone I’m obsessed with (talking about what they’re obsessed with).
It wouldn’t be an issue about media without featuring one of my favorite media creators: Laurah Norton. Laurah is the creator and host of The Fall Line and One Strange Thing, both phenomenal true crime podcasts that are well worth checking out. The Fall Line recently returned to its long-form seasonal format, starting with Unsolved South, a six-episode series covering three cases from Georgia and South Carolina. One Strange Thing on the other hand explores paranormal stories, using archival news to explore little-known mysteries.
Laurah has also been gearing up for her new book, LAY THEM TO REST, coming out this October. For two years, Laurah shadowed forensic scientists, helping them work on the case of an unidentified woman whose remains were discovered at a rural Illinois State park in January of 1993. In the book, Laurah pairs this investigation with a historical look at forensic science, chronicling advancements through the years. Laurah said her goals with the book were three-fold: “make forensic science accessible and increase literacy in regard to how cases are and aren’t solved; introduce Doe cases to a larger audience, as they get the least attention; and follow the real story of a case being solved, start to finish, and showcase that it’s not wrapped up neatly, like on TV.” Laurah handles the cases she engaged in with such special attention and care, and I can’t wait to read this book!
Pre-orders are super helpful for authors and the success of their book, so make sure to reserve your copy of Laurah’s book here!!
Now on to Laurah’s recommendations!
Freeway Phantom from Tenderfoot - I’d hoped for a longform podcast covering the unsolved murders of Carol Spinks, Darlenia Johnson, Brenda Crockett, Nenomoshia Yates, Brenda Woodard and Diane Williams for years. I sat next to Jaime Albright from Tenderfoot—purely by chance—on a flight back from last year’s Podcast Movement. That’s how we became friends.
Anyway, we spent a couple of hours discussing the depth of the research she and her team had already done—I think they were a year or two in at that point. I was so impressed by the time and care they’d spent finding family members, tracking down reports, poring over documents, even locating an out-of-print book written by a relative of one of the victims. Jaime is an incredible researcher.
I knew then it was going to be a really powerful audio story, and it has been. It’s hosted by an absolute powerhouse journalist, Celeste Headlee. I hope that the right tip comes in to identify the killer of the six girls.
There’s got to be someone in the DMV area who knows something or remembers something.
Dark Country/Death Country and Folk Punk Music - This is embarrassing because I should list something new, but I’m stuck on the same stuff I’ve listened to forever. Right now, I’m working on the first fiction I’ve written in a long time, and it’s set here, in Georgia—but with a heavy Appalachian foothills influence. So I’ve been playing a lot of my dark country/death country and folk punk albums.
Ombre Eyebrows - Permanent eyebrows, touched up once a year, are my favorite thing ever. Some of us are not blessed in the eyebrow department and need help.
BookTube + BookTok - So lately, I’ve been getting into BookTube and BookTok. For some reason, I am most interested in the accounts that cover genres I do not read or write in, but I really enjoy hearing readers talk with excitement. I don’t care what people are reading; I’m just glad they are. My favorite BookTuber is Reads with Rachel. She mostly covers YA fantasy but the topic doesn’t matter much to me; what I get into is how she dissects her reading experience. She asks great questions and articulates the reading experience in a way that’s valuable to any writer.
Things to try + share in the group chat.
Note: Links preceded by an asterisk (*) are affiliate links that allow me to collect a small commission when you purchase something I’ve recommended. That said, I can promise that I’ll only ever share items I truly love. Buying through these links is one way to support me and my small biz. ❤️
Looking to support the next generation of media creators? I recently found Reel Works, an incredible organization worth supporting. The organization, with both after-school and in-school programs, pairs teens with professional filmmaker mentors to help them create their own original short documentaries, narrative and experimental films that they might not have the resources or support to create otherwise. You can learn more about Reel Works and support the work they are doing here.
I accidentally stumbled upon a cool Instagram reels hack that I haven’t heard a ton of people talking about – templates! All you have to do is find a trend that you like, click on a video featuring that trend, click “use as template,” and Instagram will automatically structure a reel so you can just plug in photos or videos rather than having to build the whole thing from scratch. If you’re looking for trends to get you started, I recommend this one, and this one!
I purchased *this reusable film camera as a gift for a friend who helped me with some design elements for Sincerely, Celisia and she loved it! It’s a really affordable and cute camera, which can help replace the repetitive cost of disposable cameras. With a reusable camera, you can also experiment with using different types of film or expired film. I really like this guide to shooting on expired film, and this Etsy seller has some very affordable options.
Happy creating!
Want to stay connected between now and next Friday? Don’t be a stranger!! Make sure to follow me on Instagram and TikTok. Know someone who you think would like Sincerely, Celisia? It would mean the world if you could help spread the word by sharing this newsletter through the button below!! <3