The Dual Strategic Persona: Emotional Connection, Algorithms and the Transformation of Contemporary Online Reviewers

Abstract

Through a particular study of online entertainment reviewing, this chapter explores the emergence of a new strategic persona in contemporary culture. It investigates the way that the production of entertainment-related commentary, reviews and critiques online is increasingly defined by a complex relationship and intersection with what is described as a dual strategic persona. Along with a public presentation of the self as reviewer across multiple platforms, the new online film reviewer is also negotiating how their identity and value are aggregated and structure into algorithms. These algorithms construct a second persona that reviewers are constantly working out to construct and improve to make themselves more visible in this different online world of reviewing. The chapter investigates how the prominent website, Rotten Tomatoes, is connected to reviewers and how these same reviewers maintain their presence and visibility for their followers via sites like Rotten Tomatoes and other platforms and pathways to their audiences.