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If the rumours are true and Justin Bieber’s taking over the prank show Punk’d from Ashton Kutcher, then it would go a long way toward proving the real-world correlation between popularity on Twitter and leverage in the old-school media world of television.
Kutcher, with 5,895,036 followers, is the third-most popular person on Twitter. With 5,606,252 followers, Bieber is No. 4. Assuming Lady Gaga, Twitter’s most popular person, doesn’t want to host an MTV joke show and Britney Spears, Twitter’s second most popular entertainer, isn’t up for the job, that would make Bieber Twitter’s best-suited candidate.
“It’s not shocking to think that social media is influencing network executives, they know users of these sites can become obsessive,†says Douglas McIntyre, founder of 24/7 Wall Street, which recently ranked Gawker No. 1 on the 10 most valuable American blogs. “However, the behaviour of people on social networking sites ... isn’t logical -- it’s a mass of people more than happy to react negatively at any time.â€
With most estimates claiming that Twitter has more than 100,000,000 members, it seems like a good time for TV executives to pay attention to the site. Punk’d, which premiered on MTV in 2003, turned Ashton Kutcher into a star and became a water cooler program with jokes played on the likes of Kanye West, Tyra Banks and the Rock. The show was discontinued in 2007 and, after plans to have Asher Roth host were discarded, some industry watchers believe Bieber might be the perfect person to inject the franchise with new blood.
“Ashton had a pretty good hair flip back in the day, maybe someone at MTV saw a resemblance?†says Amber Dowling, editor of TV Guide Canada.
Andrew Rosen, producer of Todd and the Book of Pure Evil, a new high school-set series on the Space network, says Bieber is an obvious choice. “He’ll bring a younger set of fans to humiliating people,†says Rosen, who nevertheless, like McIntyre, cautions against believing too much in internet fame.
“You can have a million fans on Twitter, but that might mean there’s a million people ignoring your tweets,†Rosen says. “On Twitter, you feel like you’re broadcasting to tons of people, but you have no idea if anyone’s there.â€
Justin Bieber’s fame shines beyond the Internet. Currently on a world stadium tour and working on his memoirs, the 16-year-old is inarguably one of the hottest stars working today. Simon Dumenco,
editor-at-large of Advertising Age, says that Bieber’s cross-promotion across new and old media outlets makes him ideally suited to revitalize Punk’d.
“Justin Bieber is, arguably, the first true social-media-
created star. YouTube made him famous and Twitter helped make him an obsession among his core demographic,†Dumenco says. “Bieber will bring a huge built-in audience with him and the show, actually, was really entertaining as Kutcher conceived it. It’s overdue for a revival.â€
Read more: If Justin Bieber gets Punk?d, can we thank Twitter?
If Justin Bieber gets Punk?d, can we thank Twitter?
I liked the show, only if they can make it as good will I watch