Slashdot Mirror
The Latest Crop of Instagram Influencers? Medical Students. (slate.com)
An anonymous reader shares a report: Celebrity physicians often catapult to fame via their mastery of traditional media, like television or radio or books or magazines, and we're used to seeing medical advice and expertise there. What you may have yet to encounter, or haven't fully noticed yet, is the growing group of current medical students who are perhaps on track to achieve even greater fame, through their prodigious and aggressive use of social media, particularly Instagram. Even before receiving their medical degrees, these future doctors are hard at work growing their audiences (many have well into the thousands of followers), arguably in ways even more savvy than the physicians on social media today.
I first learned of the medical student Instagram influencer community a few months ago, when a friend shared links to a few of these accounts with me, asking if this is what medical school was really like. Curated and meticulously organized, these accounts posted long reflections after anatomy lab sessions, video stories of students huddled around a defibrillator during a CPR training session, pictures of neat study spaces featuring board-prep textbooks next to cups of artisan coffee, and 5 a.m. selfies taken in the surgery locker-room before assisting with a C-section. Initially, I cringed. Sure, they looked vaguely familiar -- they were (literally) rose-tinted, glamorized snapshots of relatable moments dispersed over the past few years of my life. But interspersed, and even integrated, into those relatable moments were advertisements and discount codes for study materials and scrub clothing brands. Something about that, in particular, felt impulsively antithetical to my (perhaps wide-eyed) interpretation of medicine's ideals, of service to others over self-promotion.
Sufficiently intrigued, I fell into a digital rabbit hole that surfaced dozens of fellow med students moonlighting as social media influencers, and the partnerships grew ever more questionable. Some accounts featured sponsored posts advertising watches and clothes from Lululemon; another linked back to a personal blog that included a page that allowed followers to "shop my Instagram." A popular fitness-oriented account, hosted by an aspiring M.D., promoted protein powder and pre-workout supplements. A future dermatologist showcased skin care products. Another future M.D.'s account highlights the mattresses, custom maps, furniture rental services, and food brand that, according to the posts, help her seamlessly live the life of a third-year med student.
I first learned of the medical student Instagram influencer community a few months ago, when a friend shared links to a few of these accounts with me, asking if this is what medical school was really like. Curated and meticulously organized, these accounts posted long reflections after anatomy lab sessions, video stories of students huddled around a defibrillator during a CPR training session, pictures of neat study spaces featuring board-prep textbooks next to cups of artisan coffee, and 5 a.m. selfies taken in the surgery locker-room before assisting with a C-section. Initially, I cringed. Sure, they looked vaguely familiar -- they were (literally) rose-tinted, glamorized snapshots of relatable moments dispersed over the past few years of my life. But interspersed, and even integrated, into those relatable moments were advertisements and discount codes for study materials and scrub clothing brands. Something about that, in particular, felt impulsively antithetical to my (perhaps wide-eyed) interpretation of medicine's ideals, of service to others over self-promotion.
Sufficiently intrigued, I fell into a digital rabbit hole that surfaced dozens of fellow med students moonlighting as social media influencers, and the partnerships grew ever more questionable. Some accounts featured sponsored posts advertising watches and clothes from Lululemon; another linked back to a personal blog that included a page that allowed followers to "shop my Instagram." A popular fitness-oriented account, hosted by an aspiring M.D., promoted protein powder and pre-workout supplements. A future dermatologist showcased skin care products. Another future M.D.'s account highlights the mattresses, custom maps, furniture rental services, and food brand that, according to the posts, help her seamlessly live the life of a third-year med student.
You have Dr. Jon & Dr. Chris.
The medical community wrote the book on advertising, given they deal with all the pharmaceutical campaigns and have a strict code of conduct. Are all students aware of just what they are passing on through their feeds? No, but many of their fellow students are, and the teachers are certainly paying attention. In all, this is probably the group of least concern for instagram usage. Other kinds of students? Well, it depends on their school and community, but it is still pretty common and the ads are generally ineffectual. More of a problem is targeted ads, having little or nothing to do with mainstream or mainstream social media, just as it is a problem for the rest of the population.
People pay a lot to get their medical profession from a great university.
Selection on merit.
Years of study and professional standing the in community.
Show their university as the best now keeps value in their resume for decades.
Domestic spying is now "Benign Information Gathering"
If you were going to owe $200k (or more) before your first job, what would you do? If they have room on their plate for this, and still have ability to earn, more power to them!
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Or influenZers?
Ezekiel 23:20
Oh, so they are the new generation of Dr Oz, who promotes non proven and pseudo-scientific products?
Getting on that train early I guess ...
2bits.com, Inc: Drupal, WordPress, and LAMP performance tuning.
A name they have to hope you don't look too closely at.
Good call!
Old-School high quality troll. You just don't see this level anymore.
"Eve of Destruction", it's not just for old hippies anymore...
Where is this 'middle of nowhere' you refer to? _____________________________________ https://8ballpool.onl/ https://googlehangouts.ooo/ https://omegle.onl/
So you're this Otto I keep hearing about - Otto Correct!
I put all my chips in on becoming a /. influencer.
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Do quantitative measures exist for labeling someone an influencer? Oprah's book club certainly moves books, other daytime hosts can move a lot of product with their endorsement, but the so called "influencers" are more like commissioned sales people. After all, they are just using the "social" media to find paying customers and collecting a commission. I'm not convinced that the term "influencer" is merited here. They're not really changing someone's mind about any particular topic the way Oprah and, alas, Hannity can. They are selling stuff, moving product, liquidating inventory, shilling junk, etc. They are social media salespeople. There is no distinction between them and people on QVC and Home Shopping Channels. Let's call them what they are. Influencer my a__.
"...who search the reason of things
Are those who bring the most sorrow on themselves." --Euripides, The Medea