Throughout the entire time I read Camgirls, I found myself learning so much more about something (the internet) that I thought that I already knew a lot about. Cam Girls delved into an internet culture that I honestly hadn’t considered or had much knowledge about, and I found the research done by Senft to be really eye-opening. Caming as discussed in the book isn’t as prevalent now as it used to be, however I think it makes a number of important points about women and media.
The idea behind being a Camgirl according to Senft is that some kind of celebrity status will be reached. Is this status really worth compromising your privacy though? Furthermore, is this kind of celebrity the kind one really wants to have? These questions lead me to be interested in what prompted many Camgirls to start cam websites in the first place. Obviously, most people would suggest it is the need for attention, however I wonder if it is something more than that just because of the sacrifices these girls make? One cam webmaster said, “They burn out after a few months when they realize that sustaining a creative edge to the cam isn’t all that easy, or instantly financially rewarding.” (49). This made a lot of sense to me, because just as other avenues on the internet, like blogs for instance, many people often give up because of lack of resources, creativity, time etc.
Vera Little’s experience as a Camgirl who was also an amputee was extremely interesting to me. She discusses how her viewers were mainly artists who viewed her amputations as body modifications and people who had a fetish for her amputated body parts. Although initially she had no problem with being labeled and sexualized, she later grew tired of her cam life, she states (51). Specifically, she states that she had less and less of an interest in keeping an online persona, a statement that I found interesting. Like celebrities, Camgirls too have to keep up appearances and create a persona for themselves in order to reach success. This leads to an important discussion about identity on the internet. Girls can create entirely new identities for themselves on the web, without much consequence. Although I feel this can help develop their identity in real life, one can also argue that it can hinder it because it allows them to create a persona that may not really reflect who they are, leading to confusion and blurred lines.
Another part of the book that really struck a chord with me was Karen’s story on page 69. Karen was a Camgirl who attempted suicide in front of her cameras, and her thousands of viewers save for a couple did absolutely nothing,. This was absolutely disturbing and definitely said something about the “friends” you can amass on the internet. Although a Camgirl can be classified as an Internet celebrity, Karen’s story proves that no amount of celebrity on the Internet can ensure that you have people who will help you when you need it.
Overall, I found the research Senft did about Camgirls fascinating. It led me to think a lot about the evolution of the internet and how people have changed how they seek to gain attention and popularity on the internet, which is what my question for Senft focuses on.
My question for Senft is, how would she compare cam websites and the way girls express themselves on them to social networking websites that are popular today, like Facebook, Twitter etc? Although all of them allow people to be very candid, open and to some voyeuristic, they are still very different. Furthermore, how would she compare the popularity and celebrity that comes from camming to the popularity a lot of current bloggers now receive? Is one more legitimate than the other?
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