A Close Look at Emma Chamberlain’s Success: Para-social Relationships and Authenticity
“I’m a very predictable person, I do a lot of the same things. I get coffee, I like going to exercise classes, I’m always putting on chapstick when I’m driving— sometimes potentially risking my life. I love hanging out with my friends, I’m a teen girl, I’m pretty predictable” states rising YouTube creator Emma Chamberlain as she drives around in her car, filming just that and creating a vlog which would be watched by millions of people. Similar to her other vlogs, she presents herself comfortably, wearing lounge clothes with minimal to no makeup and talking freely in a raspy “morning voice”. This styled upload has become a signature framework for Emma’s videos; she drives, she gets coffee, she takes the viewer throughout her day, chatting and joking along with us as she goes. Although it sounds like a banal format, people really enjoy it— she consistently amasses millions of views and has established a loyal following on social media platforms.
Unlike her other videos however, this vlog is uploaded to Vogue Magazine’s YouTube channel— a channel that features high profile celebrities like the Kardashians, Rihanna, Ariana Grande, and Taylor Swift. Filmed in 2019, she was 18 at the time, just a predictable teenage girl who films herself while wearing sweatpants and sipping coffee, yet she was asked by one of the most popular media companies to create one of her signature vlogs to be uploaded to their platform. Currently, Emma owns a successful business, has been interviewed by late night host Jimmy Fallon, and has attended Paris Fashion Week and the Met Gala. Why is Emma Chamberlain, a seemingly normal American girl, skyrocketing to success from filming videos driving in her car?
Well, the answer is a bit of a long one.
In order to understand Emma’s unprecedented success and loyal audience, it is important to understand how traditional media has expanded with the rise of the digital age.
The landscape of today’s media applications has allowed us to connect with each other in ways that were previously unimaginable. From the click of your mouse or the tap of your finger, humans have the ability to interact with whomever they want and can develop long lasting bonds that, in some cases, only exist within the confounds of the internet. The development of YouTube has revolutionized the scope of media as we had once known it — while Americans had once turned on their television every night to watch Letterman from their living room, they now log on to YouTube at anytime, from anyplace to watch their favorite creator go grocery shopping, clean their room, or simply talk about their life. Once considered a groundbreaking feat in media, late night talk shows had completely altered the way in which viewers interacted with media personalities, as they would tune in every night to watch more of their favorite hosts tackle a variety of current topics, offering a comparatively casual environment over the glamorous world of the film industry and Hollywood. While talk shows have been a major stepping stone in the development of new media, unlike YouTube content they are marked by their adherence to typical production standards — perfect lighting, a closely designed set, scripting, and makeup artists. In contrast, the informal and accessible nature of YouTube has made it so that content creators can gain notoriety without putting in maximum production effort often seen in talk shows; all while still gaining a large and loyal audience who regularly watch their content and in turn, develop a connection to the creator despite not having made any meaningful contact with them in their own lives outside of YouTube.
Emma started her YouTube channel in 2017 when she was 16 years old. Her first video, now unavailable to view, was titled ‘City Inspired Lookbook 2017’ and was centered around city inspired outfits. During this time, Emma said that she struggled in finding motivation within high school, but was heavily inspired by fashion and loved to go thrift shopping in order to create inexpensive outfits. Immediately after she would go shopping, she would set up her camera in her bedroom, film, edit, and upload her video to show her purchases with the world. In ‘TRY-ON THRIFT HAUL’, Emma speaks quickly and is eager to show off her thrift finds — taking the clothes out of the bags and cracking jokes as she talks about them. While she seriously enjoys shopping and fashion, she is unserious in talking about it; she presents herself as a ‘goofball’, adding zoom effects whenever she makes a silly face. This vlog and others from its time are lighthearted, fun, and young. During this time, Emma had become known for vlogging while she drives — setting the camera on the dashboard and driving to wherever she needs to go. Emma began her driving vlogs not long after she started YouTube in a video titled ‘Taking My Driving Test…’ where she vlogs her activities in the day leading up to her taking her drivers test. This format has become a repeating image throughout her videos that viewers have grown to love and appreciate as it offers them a closer insight into Emma’s life. This is where Emma’s loyal following began.
Soon, Emma began to further develop a style as a creator. After picking up some editing skills, she started to incorporate visual and noise effects to make her vlogs entertaining and humorous. Unconcerned with her appearance, she would make quick cuts, zooming in on her face, distorting her face, and adding noice effects to her own voice. These edits worked as a sort of digital vandalism, except they were conducted by Emma who was eager to make people laugh at her expense. While other young creators on the platform were making makeup tutorials and selling an idealized lifestyle through their videos, Emma was eager to be comfortable, natural, and silly in her videos— aiming to make other people laugh.
And it definitely worked… her views skyrocketed and she had effectively created a style that would be representative of the time and heavily recreated by other YouTubers on the platform looking to piggyback off of her success.
As a YouTube creator, Emma has presented herself throughout her vlogs as a relatable teenage girl. Her vlogs have appealed to millions of viewers who enjoy Emma’s personality, find her humorous, and are genuinely interested in her life. Communication scholar Joshua Meyrowitz (2008) works to understand this phenomena by suggesting the theory of a “media friend”: a person in the media who viewers feel an intimate and intrinsic connection to, as their mere presence simulates that of a close friendship one would experience in “real life.” Achieved through a variety of tactics, the presence of media friends has led to an increase of para-social relationships, which has been significantly amplified with the rise of YouTube as a media behemoth. Horton and Wohl (1956) define para-social relationships as “the illusion of face-to-face relationship with the performer”. Emma Chamberlain exemplifies the notion of media friend as she consistently invites her viewers into her world to follow her as she drives around, tries out new recipes, and talks about her personal struggles— all while creating an intimate environment in which viewers feel emotionally connected to her, in relation to her innovative, close-up framing. This sense of closeness contributes to her fans’ sense of para-social relationship with her. Furthermore, her fans have been able to closely watch as Emma has grown from a teenager to a young woman pursuing a career as a business woman— all while remaining authentic to her humble beginnings as a YouTuber vlogging from her bedroom.
Para-social interactions are the one sided, non-reciprocal interactions conducted by the content creator that work to strengthen the para-social relationship with their viewers. When exploring the distinction of para-social interactions, Horton and Wohl (1956) state that “ the image which is presented makes available nuances of appearance and gesture to which ordinary social perception is attentive and to which interaction is cued”. As a twenty one year old woman, Emma aims to make her content reflect the experiences at her age, which in turn appeals to a primarily young, female audience. The majority of her content revolves around updates of what she has been doing lately, as she brings her viewers along to do errands, travel new cities with her, or watch her explore her latest hobbies. Throughout her videos, Emma approaches the dialogue in a conversational manner that is noticeably unscripted as she makes frequent pauses in between sentences while considering her next statement and often stumbles on her words — she appears to talk freely to her audience, saying whatever is on her mind, often engaging in humorous conversation. While some videos are lighthearted in content, she has uploaded videos that delve into deeper topics such as the state of her mental health and experiences with panic attacks. Meyrowitz (1986) suggests that choice of setting influences the types of discussion initiated (p. 263). The setting in the video “it will be okay” is distinctively different from her general vlogs as it takes place with her under her comforter — choosing to initiate vulnerable conversation from the comfort of her bed. Through her choice of conversational dialogue and casual setting, Emma makes the viewer feel included in the happenings of her life, treating the viewer as a friend and confidante and entrusting them with personal information. While many YouTube stars post collaborations with other YouTubers to reach large audiences, Emma notably chooses to film by herself which works to strengthen the intimacy between herself and the viewer, as the viewer can then imagine themselves driving around with Emma doing errands, or having a vulnerable bedside conversation about life. Through these para-social interactions, Emma effectively poses herself as a friend to her viewers; one they can find themselves relating to in difficult times, inspired by during times of monotony, and entertained during times of boredom.
Emma further solidifies her performance as a media friend through interpersonal distance tactics which work to indicate a sense of closeness with the viewer. Meyrowitz (1986) proposes the theory of para-proxemics to elaborate upon the usage of interpersonal distance within the television camera and states that the viewer, depending on framing variable, is able to form closer connections with characters. When applied to YouTube, the distance and framing of the camera has significant implications for the sense of closeness viewers feel towards content creators. In Hall’s (1959) seminal theory of proxemics, he developed the concept of spatial zones which work to discern the varying range of interpersonal distance in relation to types of interaction. Within Emma’s typical vlogs, she tends to use a medium to close up camera angle which works to simulate that of a “personal” relationship between her and the viewer, indicating a level of basic friendship. This angle is shown particularly when she makes coffee and chats casually with her viewers about the upcoming plans for her day; through the spatial distance, the viewer feels as though they have been invited in Emma’s kitchen. Similar to adjusting the setting of the scene, Hall (1959) recognizes the differentiation of interpersonal distance and types of interaction: “Each zone represents a range of interpersonal distance and each tends to be used for a different type of interaction” (p. 256). During intimate and personal conversations from her bedroom, Emma films from a close up framing variable and speaks in a calm serious tone to simulate an intimate connection and indicate vulnerability and trust within the viewer. This works to instill a sense of comfort and care within the viewer that mimics the feelings of a dear friend, as Emma is confiding her viewers about the difficulties she has been experiencing. Essentially, Emma utilizes spacial tactics rooted in the theory of para-proxemics to further convey closeness and comfort with her viewers, and adjusts those framing variables to fit the type of conversations she has with her viewers.
While Emma has grown since her beginnings, she has consistently remained true to herself and her interests— a quality that her fans value. She is not same girl that she was at age sixteen, and instead of trying to repeat the success she had in making videos from early in her channel, she has evolved her style of vlogging to be representative of the person she is today. The zoom cuts, voice effects, face distortion effects, and noise effects are gone and she now creates travel related vlogging content. She may not be presenting herself within her videos the same way she did when she was a teenager but the sense of closeness is there and therefore, she still attracts a steady following. Instead of resenting her for changing style of content, her fans who feel intrinsically connected with her are genuinely happy to see her evolve as both a creator and person.
As a YouTuber, Emma Chamberlain has been a prevailing force of success within the platform due to her authenticity as a creator which has strengthened the potential for para-social relationships. Her content has consistently changed in relation to the rapid changes happening in her life, not only as one of the worlds most watched creators, but also as a twenty something year old figuring life out as she goes. While her success has skyrocketed in recent years and she is regularly invited to high profile celebrity events such as the Met Gala and Paris Fashion Week, her content more so reflects the uncertainties of first entering adulthood. Through documenting her life as a young woman living in Los Angeles and addressing topics such as anxiety and friendships, Emma has cultivated a mass following of young women who feel intrinsically connected to her, relate to her, and strive to be like her. Although her editing style has been subject to change throughout the duration of her YouTube channel, she has never utilized heavy production equipment to film her content and has instead opted for natural lighting within her home, lazy makeup, and lounge clothes when addressing her viewers and providing a casual environment. Framing herself within medium-close and close-up frames, Emma embraces her closeness with her viewers, treating them as her friends when she goes about her day, or when discussing personal details about herself — inviting them to take part in her life just as “real friends” would do. Overall through her framing and dialogue, Emma has been able to simulate a welcoming, non-intimidating environment for her viewers where they feel cherished as close friends. Through uploading new content roughly once a month and limiting her media activity, she has managed to cultivate authenticity as a creator through consistently providing a familiar and reliable persona to her viewers despite massive success outside of YouTube and potential earnings if she uploaded more frequently.
In conclusion, Emma Chamberlain has undoubtedly become a trailblazer within the YouTube world, gaining millions of loyal fans who support her throughout all her ventures inside and outside the platform of YouTube. This paper has worked to explore how Emma Chamberlain has fostered success on YouTube through analyzing the intricacies revolving around para-social relationships and how they are cultivated through tactics involving style of speech, content choice, and interpersonal distances. Through examining this phenomena through its relation to YouTube, we see a distinct difference in the para-social relationships developed during the golden era of late night talk shows and those developed during the rise of YouTube. Overall, the para-social relationships developed through YouTube tend to be more intimate due to its highly accessible nature as a platform and its casual, unproduced atmosphere. With a tap of your finger, you are able to find your next friend.
Works Cited
Hall, E.T. (1959). The Silent Language. (Greenwich, Conn.: Fawcett).
Horton, D. & Wohl, R. R. (1956): ‘Mass Communication and Para-social Interaction: Observations on Intimacy at a Distance’, Psychiatry 19: 215–29
Meyrowitz, J. (1986). Televisual and Interpersonal Behavior: Codes of Perception and Response. In Inter/Media: Interpersonal Communication in a Media World
Meyrowitz, J. (2008). From Distant Heroes to Intimate Friends. In Susan Drucker and Gary
Gumpert, (Eds.), Heroes in a Global World, Hampton Press, 2008, 99–128.