YouTubers

Zusatztext

YouTube didn't just disrupt television ¿ it quietly reinvented fame, creativity, advertising, and power itself. YouTubers by Chris Stokel¿Walker is the definitive, deeply reported account of how a scrappy video¿sharing website became one of the most influential cultural forces of the 21st century, creating a new generation of stars, entrepreneurs, and global media brands. From the very first shaky upload to today's billion¿view channels, YouTubers explores how ordinary people turned cameras on themselves and built vast audiences, lucrative businesses, and devoted fan communities. Through vivid storytelling and behind¿the¿scenes access, Stokel¿Walker follows the rise of vloggers, gamers, pranksters, beauty creators, child stars, and influencers ¿ and reveals what success on YouTube really costs. This is not just a book about internet celebrities. It is a sharp, authoritative guide to the creator economy, unpacking how YouTube actually works: the algorithm that decides what goes viral, the metrics that govern visibility, and the hidden systems that reward some creators while quietly burying others. You'll learn how watch time, recommended videos, monetisation, demonetisation, and brand safety shape online video ¿ and why creators are often forced to adapt at breakneck speed just to survive. YouTubers also examines the business of influence. As traditional advertising faltered, brands moved to YouTube, fuelling the rise of influencer marketing, sponsored content, and creator¿led brand deals. The book explains how creators make money through ads, partnerships, merchandise, Patreon, and live events ¿ and why relying on any single revenue stream can be dangerously unstable. The "Adpocalypse," burnout, and platform crackdowns expose the fragile reality behind the glamour. Crucially, the book doesn't shy away from YouTube's darker side. It investigates extremism, conspiracy content, children's programming scandals, and the ethical challenges of algorithmic recommendation at scale. As YouTube grows more powerful, YouTubers asks urgent questions about responsibility, regulation, and what happens when a private platform becomes the world's most influential broadcaster. Inside, you'll discover: How YouTube's algorithm and recommendation system shape culture and attention The rise of vloggers, influencers, and internet celebrities How monetisation, ads, sponsorships, and brand deals really work Why burnout, authenticity, and parasocial relationships define creator life The global expansion of YouTube across languages, countries, and cultures The battle between YouTube, traditional TV, Facebook, and emerging platforms Written with clarity, insight, and narrative drive, YouTubers is essential reading for content creators, marketers, entrepreneurs, media students, parents, and anyone curious about internet culture and digital media. If you want to understand how YouTube reshaped entertainment ¿ and what that means for the future of creativity, influence, and power ¿ this book is your indispensable guide. Reviews 'No one understands the intricacies of YouTube like Chris Stokel-Walker. His reporting on the platform and its creators has been groundbreaking and unparalleled.' ¿ Taylor Lorenz, The Atlantic 'For anyone trying to understand the bonkers world of YouTube, this is essential reading.' ¿ Sam Parker, Esquire

Autorenportrait

Chris Stokel-Walker is a British journalist whose work regularly appears in WIRED, The Economist and Newsweek. He is known for breaking major news about YouTube and often reports on the site for television, radio and podcasts. For YouTubers he travelled around the world, speaking to behind-the-camera producers and powerbrokers, including key creators KSI, Hank and John Green, and Emma Blackery. As an example of his extensive research, see the Table of Contents for YouTubers: PART I POWER AND BEGINNINGS 1. Uploading: Casey Neistat and the power of YouTube 2. Jake Paul: cars, money, and a burning swimming pool 3. Me At the Zoo: Jawed Karim and the worst video of all time 4. Viral comedy: YouTube laughs all the way to the bank 5. Grace Helbig and the first stars of vlogging 6. From Russia to Latin America: YouTube goes global PART II ENGINE ROOM: HOW YOUTUBE WORKS 7. The Algorithm: YouTube's secret formula 8. Policing YouTube: extremism and the Adpocalypse 9. Sponsored content: the tale of Dodie Clark and Heinz beans PART III CHARTING THE STARS 10. Know your YouTube: elite, macro-influencer and micro-influencer 11. Elite influencers: fighting their way to the top 12. Child stars: meet MattyB, who gets two million views a day 13. Macroinfluencers: beauty, crime and DIY 14. Microinfluencers: speaking to a devoted audience PART IV BEHIND THE SCENES: SNAPSHOTS 15. Summer in the City: a gathering of the influencers 16. Collaboration: Sapphire builds a career 17. Management: Sarah Weichel, star agent 18. Training camp: with the 11-year-old YouTubers 19. YouTube school: with the adult entrepreneurs PART V CAUGHT IN THE MACHINE 20. Pranks for views: why Monalisa Perez shot her boyfriend 21. Authenticity: the fourth wall for YouTubers 22. Burnout: slaves to the algorithm 23. Fanatical fans: obsessive relationships PART VI THE BATTLE FOR CONTROL 24. YouTubers found a union 25. Patreon: seeking independent support 26. Merchandise: from books to pop sockets PART VII THE FUTURE: YOUTUBE v TV 27. Invasion of the Hollywood stars 28. Is YouTube killing traditional TV? 29. Online video war: YouTube v Facebook PART VIII CONCLUSION 30. A flawed winner Glossary Acknowledgements Notes Index Chris' follow-up book is TikTok Boom: The Inside Story of the World's Favourite App (Canbury, 2021).

Weitere Details