Hannah Robinson

The profile of the rich and famous is changing from possessing millions of dollars, air time on cable TV and faces in tabloid magazines, to possessing millions of followers, shout-outs and selfies galore.

And it’s not a bad thing.

Instagram, along with Vine and other social media applications are rapidly giving fame to those who wouldn’t gain it any other way. 20 years ago, most Instafamous users would only have had a minimal following of surrounding friends and acquaintances who kept up via phone calls and possible small articles in fashions and pop culture magazines. Now, it seems like almost anyone can possess a following of millions with a simple Internet connection and mobile device.

Speculation has been made that there can be both bad and good implications when it comes to the use of Instagram. While there is logic in the argument against the use of the photo sharing application, there is a stronger argument for the good of the app. The way that the app has been utilized in recent years has shown there has been a shift in our media use.

For the first time, people are taking the matter of what is cool and what’s important into their own hands, literally. With each tap of a finger, users tell others what they like and then use the comment section to further explain their appreciation or express their dislike. While the comment section opens a door to a potential fighting ring for cyber bullying, it rarely occurs.

In the short documentary “Instafame,” the producers follow a 15-year-old Shawn Megira who garnered over 81,000 followers in under a year. Megira witnesses that in the rare case when negativity is found, followers ban together to stop it.

Beyond the overall positive environment found on Instagram, inspiration can be found in every corner, and if not that, at least a different pleasing aesthetic on each different feed.

There is no mediator, like E! News or a tabloid magazine, telling you to follow an Instagram user. Each decision that brought someone to fame was made on an individual level. We can look to the Instafamous for inspiration or to escape reality.

It’s not just for teens. An NYC blogger Amber Clark, has about one million followers and is a mother and wife. Everyday she posts pictures of her lifestyle in New York giving her followers a glimpse of what her life is like.

Considering there are several others on the platform that are just like Clark, there is something that will get across to those that are looking for inspiration. Despite their millions of followers, many of those who are Instafamous are documenting their everyday lives, showing their own reality.

In addition to Clark, there are several other experiences to see and seek inspiration from. Whether that is an adventurer account, photography, graphic design or a poker star.

It can be found by quick research on Instagram that the Hollywood celebrities have fewer followers than some of those that found their fame just through the app. It proves that here the fame is chosen by the general use, other than editors and cheap celebrity news show hosts of Hollywood.

Often in the case of the Hollywood fame, the lifestyle is not attainable. The Instagram celebrities’ lives have been published by themselves, not by anyone else, showing their everyday situations. These celebrities on social media experiencing their seven seconds of fame are much more attainable ideas than the celebrities of Hollywood.

The fame of social media gurus is not something that should be looked down upon, but something that should gain a following.