Behind every successful virtual influencer, there is a human

Abstract

From collectors and vocalists to creators, this chapter centralises the human subjects involved in the virtual influencer industry. Identifying key ideological and ethical implications relating to the political economy of virtual influencers, the chapter investigates three areas of income-generation: a) (i)non-fungible tokens ([i]NFTs); b) brand partnerships; and c) additional content creation. The discussion problematises the patriarchal, heterosexualist, racist, and androcentric mechanisms which facilitate the circulation of virtual capital, which in turn reinforce dominant ideologies of identity. Here, the relationship between virtuality and the Other is explored through the proposed concepts of andro-sociality , hetero-reality/homo-virtuality , and White-virtuality/Other-reality , arguing that virtual influencers are part of an online political economy of gender, sexuality, and race, where virtuality is a technology – sometimes a weapon – for the commodification and further oppression of Others through the interplay of realities and economic exchange. Furthermore, and in the process of these discussions, the chapter also problematises issues surrounding inequality as relating to human labour, rights, and ownership, highlighting the need for more robust socio-legal and economic frameworks to safeguard humans against the potentially harmful consequences arising from the virtual influencer industry.