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Inspired by the hyperreality of YouTube vlogs following a day in the life of the creator, Deanna See (’22) decided to launch a channel of her own—@deansodium. Publishing video snippets of everyday life with titles such as “College Finals Week,” “here’s why u should scuba dive,” and “Intern Swag,” Dean wondered about the motivations of her fellow female YouTubers. Were they like her and creating content for the simple love of art and communication? Or were they more interested in monetizing their life experiences? These musings turned into the research question of her Media Studies Distinguished Majors Program thesis. 

Dean’s research showed that her fellow YouTubers were much like her—their postings stemmed from a desire to journal and share their experiences—and led her to a theory she calls “chasing nostalgia.” “My work explores how we portray our realities in a virtual interface,” said Dean. Further analysis revealed that her fellow female YouTubers often posted videos of how they wanted their day to be, not necessarily how they were. Dean surmised that in 20 years, YouTube would serve as a kind of diary for her peers. Vloggers could look back on the good old days, even if their portrayals weren’t completely accurate.

Driven by her passion for video, art, and communication, Dean’s vlog continues to grow. And while she wouldn’t mind becoming the next big YouTube star, her main hope is to inspire others to create content just because they love to. “The Internet can be an echo chamber, and it can make you do things that you see other influencers doing, but if you want to do something online, you should just do it.”