The Impact of Social Digital Platforms on Artistic Production : What is Content Creator Today ?

The rise of content creators heralds a new paradigm in media production. This emergence of content creators also changed consumption. Previously, creative expression and artistic production were primarily on traditional media institutions and gatekeepers. Whereas in the past, creation and distribution seemed to be in the hands of corporations and governments, the rise of digital platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, and blogging websites appears to have transferred that power into the hands of the individual. This shift away from traditional structures of production into a more decentralized mode is an act of democratization in the minds of many. Blogging, YouTube, and other digital content creation have broadened the idea of what art is and can be, what creation means, and how that affects the making and distribution of art. Social media have opened opportunities for content distribution. The platforms enable communities and audiences to be created and engaged worldwide, taking the title "content creator" to a whole new level. We can give examples of forms of expression such as: vlogging, influencing, blogging and so on. This shift has also blurred the lines between professional and amateur production. Running parallel to this transformation, a new form of consumer has emerged to describe those actively participating consumers who create content. They now combine elements of production and consumption. In the old form, there was passive consumption. Today, audiences are creators in an interactive digital landscape. They produce their own content as part of the creation process. However, despite the gains of accessibility and democratization, there are further complications in emergent systems. The presence of platform algorithms, platform capitalism, and digitized monetization is not necessarily visible. Digital platforms foster this illusion of unlimited creative freedom. They do and can place constraints on visibility and engagement. Understanding these dynamics is important to evaluate whether the digital revolution is as liberating as it seems. The scope of this thesis is to examine these developments through a structured analysis, focusing on the differences and similarities that exist between traditional artists and modern content creators, particularly in their interaction with audiences, their means of consumption, and the role of digital mediation in shaping their work. In comparing these two categories, one sees how things change or, rather, change forms and stay the same. What this means is to assess whether the shift towards digital content creation represents a genuine disruption or reinforces existing economic and social structures. It probes how Web 2.0 has contributed to the so-called democratization of media, while considering at the same time the impact of capitalist forces, content production design, algorithms, and platform-driven economies and their transformations on artistic communities. Case studies of individual content creators: how different well-known figures-for example, Mr. Beast, Ryan Trahan, Kim Kardashian, and Bretman Rock-approach the space. We will look through these examples at how content creators position themselves in the digital space and build their personas. Finally, we present alternative takes on the current content creation landscape by investigating desires and motivations of content creators themselves. Exploring possible solutions for the limitations imposed by existing platforms: feedback mechanisms, new platform possibilities, and alternative models that place creative expression over algorithmic profitability. This thesis tries to explain the digital shift in creative production: how historical contexts, economic structures, and individual case studies seek both opportunities and shortcomings in the contemporary content creation ecosystem. The research tries to show ongoing problematic structures and unseen problems that seem like false liberties.