PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES

Perceived Effects of User-generated Music Video Parodies: A Case Study of YouTube Parodies of Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus Isis Hung Michigan State University

Author Note Isis Hung, Department of Advertising, College of Communication Arts & Sciences, Michigan State University. This research was assigned by the Media Innovation course. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Isis Hung, Department of Advertising, College of Communication Arts & Sciences, Michigan State University. Contact: hungjoyu@msu.edu

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES Abstract What is the impact of user-generated music video parodies on the parodied entity the celebrities and the original music videos? This question arises from the scarcity of research on the impact of user-generated music video parodies. The present study aims to explore how usergenerated music video parodies on YouTube influence viewer attitude towards celebrities and the original music videos that users spoof. Two dimensions of music video parodies will be

examined: perceived mockery and perceived truth. Also, positive emotions as a popularity factor that drive music video parodies to go viral will be studied. We predict that the results will demonstrated that, both perceived mockery and perceived truth are negatively related to viewer attitude towards celebrities as well as the original music videos. We also predict that perceived mockery in a music video parody will positively relate to popularity of a music video parody Keywords: user-generated content, music video parody, attitude, popularity, viral

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES Perceived Effects of User-generated Music Video Parodies: A Case Study of YouTube Parodies of Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus Introduction The former Disney star, Miley Cyrus, has been a hot topic since her controversial Twerking Balls performance at Music Video Awards 2013, where she performed a series of twerking dance moves with giant stuffed bears in a nude bikini costume. In response, the media and celebrities had heated debates on her performance, for instance, Los Angeles Times stated that Miley Cyrus did her best to shock the audience (Day, 2013), and American comedian Bill Maher tweeted "haven't been in a strip club in a while (Maher, 2013) as a

comment on Mileys performance. However, no matter how harshly Miley Cyrus was judged by public opinion, after this stunning performance, she has certainly gained a significant amount of publicity, as have her other works. Miley Cyrus Wrecking Ball, her second single, was the sixth most searched keyword on Google Trends in September 2013; the ranking was even higher than iPhone 5S and iOS 7. The Wrecking Ball music video has reached over 173,000,000 views on YouTube within three weeks after it was released. Miley Cyruss fame and the popularity of this music video lead to the emergence of parodies of Wrecking Ball. As of November 2013, there are more than 500 parodies of Wrecking Ball on YouTube, and the most watched one has gained over 2,000,000 views in ten days, followed by hundreds of other parodies of Wrecking Ball. The popularity of the Wrecking Ball music video has evidently influenced viewers to create a trend of parodies on YouTube. In the YouTube era, the domain of parody producers and distributors has grown beyond a group of professionals (Allen, 2014). Parody creation and distribution are no longer done by professional commercial production teams exclusively; it has

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES

evolved from carefully planned work to a casual and social video generated by a random Internet user, and can be disseminated throughout and enjoyed by the general public. That is to say, any Internet user now possess the opportunity to influence music video parodies, a form of popular culture (Benkler 2006; Jenkins 2006). Speaking of users power, Vanden Bergh et. al (2011) also asserts that web 2.0 allows Internet users to gain influence and credibility by creating and disseminating user-generated content (UGC). With the growth of online video platforms such as YouTube as well as amateur production on the Internet, it is crucial to address the impact of user-generated music video parodies on viewers as well as on popular culture. Past empirical studies have investigated the impact of advertising parodies on viewer attitude toward advertising sponsors (Roehm and Roehm Jr., 2013), the impact of advertising parodies on brand attitudes and consumer attitudes towards the original work (Vanden Bergh et. al, 2011), the perceived influence of political parody videos (Lim and Golan, 2011), the effect of humor on attitude toward the brand parodied (Jean, 2011), and audience responses to musical parodies (Skageby, 2012). However, there is a scarcity of research examining the issue of music video parodies. Therefore, one of the goals of the present study is to investigate how usergenerated music video parodies on YouTube influence viewer attitude towards celebrities and the original music videos that users spoof. Two dimensions of music video parodies will be examined: perceived truth and perceived mockery. Another interesting aspect of UCG on YouTube is that strong reinforcement of popularity or unpopularity is absent (Cha et al., 2009) as opposed to the early days of TV when everyone watched the same channel at exactly the same time. That is to say, nowadays any videos on YouTube have chances to be popular, as known as go viral, a phenomenon of an online video becoming highly popular through rapid, user-led distribution via the Internet. However, the

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES popularity characteristics of UGC have become complex and such popularity is hard to predict

compared with those of TV content at the early days. Therefore, another main goal of the present study is to examine the factors that contribute to the popularity of user-generated music video parodies on YouTube. Literature Review Characteristics of Parody The term parody was first used exclusively in literature as from of vulgar narrative (Jean, 2011). After the 18th century, the term was no longer monopolized by the literature field; it took on to a broader meaning that refers to a caricature or satire. Today a parody can be generally defined as a work that broadly mimics a particular author or artists characteristic style and deliberately aims to ridicule or mock the original work. As such, a parody represents the act of borrowing (Zinkhan and Johnson, 1994), thus it contains references to the work it spoofs. Only by using enough of the original work in a parody, can the audience recall the original (Johnson and Spilger, 2000). Researcher Gray (2006) also states that references enables a parody to talk back to more authoritative texts and genres, to recontextualize and pollute their meaningconstruction processes, and to offer other, improper, and yet more media literate and savvy interpretations. Since borrowing is the nature of a parody and an inevitable process of creating a parody (Zinkhan and Johnson, 1994), the author is well informed that he or she is interpreting others work while creating his or her own vision. Aside from borrowing, there remain several prominent characteristics of a parody. First, a parody contains a critique aims at either the original work it spoofs, a recognizable third party, or the author of a parody. In Ericksons (2013) pilot study, he categorized parodies on YouTube into four types: 1) target parody, which directs a critique on an author or artists

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES original work; 2) weapon parody, which is created as a critique on a third-party or a phenomenon; 3) self-parody, which turns the primary focus of the critique against the creator of the parody themselves; and 4) mislabeled parody, which possesses no notable object critique. Please note that, according to Erickson (2013), the purpose of mislabeled parody as a type of parody is to provide an additional dimension of caparison to other types of parodies in studies. Since the parody videos in this category contain only sincere or earnest imitation of their references, they are not technically parodies. Indeed, the first category, target parody, encompasses the certain kind of music video parody we are examining. In this study, we focus on music video parodies that contain critiques target on the original material it spoofs.

A parody is also noted to demonstrate humor, which arises from distorted imitation of the original work. A previous empirical study argues that humor in parody might be derived from mockery (Zinkhan and Johnson, 1994). In accordance with this argument, a recent quantitative study asserts that parodies may generate humor that originates from mockery from incongruities between a parody and original material (Roehm and Roehm Jr., 2013). Another empirical study states that incongruity occurs when there appears some perceived confusion in parodic context (Vanden Bergh et. al, 2011). Viewers find a certain level of incongruity between their expectations and the actual parodic content they are watching, and with the help of being engaged in cognitive problem solving, viewers get the jokes. To apply this problem solving process in a music video parody, a parody must generate humor through mocking the original music video by providing content that is beyond viewers expectations. For example, a nude guy with heavy make-up sitting on a giant metal ball mocks Miley Cyruss performance in her Wrecking Ball music video. Another notable characteristic of parody is that a parody serves as a means of revealing

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES folly (Johnson and Spilger, 2000); in other words, there is expected to be so-called truth lying in a parody that works as commentary or response to the original material. In a past study examining perceived effects of ad parodies on consumers, truth in an ad parody speaks on

behalf of consumer perceptions of advertisers misleading or exaggerated claims about a branded product (Vanden Bergh et. al, 2011). In another empirical study on consumer responses to parodic ads, truths in parodic ads are related to marketing technique used in parodied advertising (Roehm and Roehm Jr., 2013). Truth has been tested to be one of the natures of parodic ads and has been observed under the cover of humor. To wit, the lyric of a Wrecking Ball parody, My hair was long I had clothes on but now I get nude and cry, reveal the perceived truth that Miley Cyruss appearance has changed compared to what she used to look like. The last characteristic of parody that should be addressed is its potential to be popular and influential among online viewers. In YouTube era, parody is a form of user-generated content that is created and disseminated voluntarily by any Internet user, and it is accessible and affordable to the general public. As such, parody videos become popular and influential among online users who have access to video sharing sites such as YouTube. Scholars have argued that political parodies have a potential influence on candidate evaluations among younger online viewers (Baumgartner, 2008). Similarly, Lim and Golan (2011) have claimed that the emergence of YouTube has made political parodies increasingly popular and opened among viewers online. Taking the observation of impact of political parodies on online users into consideration, the goal of this study is to test the factors in music video parodies that influence the attitude of young viewers. Findings of recent researches are in accordance with the centrality of these characteristics

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES of parody. Vanden Bergh et al. (2011) dissected consumers' perceptions of noncommercial parodies and found perceived mockery and perceived truth as two of the factors that reflect consumer perceptions of ad parodies. Roehm and Roehm Jr. (2013) also found these two factors lie within the context of parodic ads, or commercial messages that mimic other advertising. In light of the previous empirical studies, one goal of the present research is to retest these factors, perceived mockery and perceived truth, within the context of music video parodies. In addition, we probe the relationships between the parody dimensions and multiple attitudinal outcomes on the basis of the Vanden Bergh model. These outcomes include 1) viewer attitude towards the celebrity that the music parody spoofs; and 2) viewer attitude toward the original music video that is spoofed. Perceived Mockery Parody demonstrates humor through mockery, an act of ridicule, mocking and making fun of the original material (Roehm and Roehm Jr., 2013; Johnson and Spilger, 2000; Zinkhan

and Johnson, 1994). Parody viewers experience humor by recalling the pre-existing work that the parody mocks. In user-generated music video parody, the mockery might target on anything from lyrics of a song or plot of a music video, to a broad scale such as the celebrity in a music video and the music video as a whole. An instance of the latter can be found in one of a Wrecking Ball parodies published on YouTube in September 2013 in which the actress intentionally keeps sticking her tongue out. Via exaggeration (Roehm and Roehm Jr. 2013), a way of mocking, such performance obviously makes fun of the fact that Miley Cyrus shows her tongue regularly in her music video. Please note that humor is generated and presented to viewers only if theres enough amount of mockery that makes a user-generated music video parody associate with the original material.

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES Before delving into the impact of perceived mockery on viewer attitude, we have to recognize that mockery is a form of disparaging humor (Roehm and Roehm Jr. 2013; Jean, 2011), which generates amusement through mimicry with criticism or belittlement. In other words, mockery is a form of condescending humor. Thus, for example, when an audience member watches a music video parody of Miley Cyruss Wrecking Ball, he or she may feel a

certain degree of derogatory amusement in seeing the parodied entity, Miley Cyrus, being teased for something. Such perceived tone of mockery or teasing has been found to have a positive relationship between attitudes toward the parotic ad (Roehm and Roehm Jr. 2013; Vanden Bergh et al. 2011). It may increase attention, comprehension, cognitive responses, positive emotion, purchase intentions, recall, and recognition (Jean, 2011) in the context of parodic ads. However, what are the effects of such disparaging humor on attitudes toward the parodied entities the celebrities and the original music videos? A critical observation of such disparaging humor may be that disparagement can affect perceptions of social order by providing a means of communicating or reiterating hierarchical attitudes and beliefs (Hodson et al., 2010). Accordingly, the parodied entity may suffer from perceptions that are affected by the use of disparaging humor. In accordance with such a claim, in a case of parodied advertising, perceptions of mockery in a parodic ad are found to be negatively related to attitude toward the parodied advertising and its sponsor (Roehm and Roehm Jr., 2013). Similarly, Jean (2011) found that the use of brand parody by a competitor significantly and negatively affects attitudes towards the parodied brand. The purpose of the study is to measure the effect of music video parody on the attitudes towards the parodied entity the celebrities and the original music videos. In the context we study, it is clear that the main goal of music video parody is to mock the parodied entity, certainly with disparaging humor, but also with negative intentions

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES

10

particularly on attitude toward the parodied entity. With all this in mind, we therefore summarize the predictions regarding perceived mockery in H1 below: H1: Perceived mockery in a music video parody will a: negatively relate to attitude toward the parodied celebrity b: negatively relate to attitude toward the parodied music video Perceived Truth Revealing truth is expected to serve as one of the crucial responsibilities of a parody. In the cloak of humor, truth in a parody might enlighten the audiences in a profound sense by providing commentary on the parodied entities the celebrities and the original music videos (Roehm and Roehm Jr., 2013). In the context of advertising parody, Vanden Bergh et al. (2011) suggested that perceived truth might be related to puffery, an advertising technique aiming to exaggerate and isnt taken literally by reasonable consumers, in the original advertising. Since puffery is considered to be information that should be neglected, parody that reveals puffery truths positions the parodic ad as a helpful identifier and exposer of advertising technique (Roehm and Roehm Jr., 2013). Indeed, this consumer advocacy function is acknowledged and valued by consumers. However, puffery, in relation to the perceived truth, is limited to the advertising context. It cannot be used in music videos since it is an advertising exclusive concept. So, might we still assume that there is perceived truth within the context of user-generated music video parodies? The answer is certainly. In user-generated music video parodies, authors tend to pay attention to certain factors in the original work and distortedly imitate these factors. These specific factors in a music video that are considered to be more worth mimicking than other factors might account for authors portraits of truth. The exaggerated imitation of certain factors in a music

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES video, such as a costume of a celebrity or a certain plot in a music video, might represent a parody authors viewpoint toward these factors. To simplify, parody authors present his or her

11

perceived truth of factors he or she chooses to portray in a music video parody. For instance, in a Wrecking Ball parody that was published on YouTube in September 2013, the actress presents her perceived truth of Miley Cyrus a female singer who sticks her long tongue out all he time. Such perceived truth may not be politically correct, and it might be biased as well. However, in light of the observations of prior studies that perceived truth in parodic ads as a consumer advocacy function, we argue that the effects of perceived truth in user-generated music parodies should not be neglected. The present study aims to examine the relationship between perceived truth in usergenerated music parodies and viewer attitude toward the parodied entity. By presenting an authors perceived truth in a distorted imitation, the true image of a celebrity in a music video as well as the true aspect of a music video are manipulated with a condescending viewpoint. The more disparaging humor is implemented in a music video parody to portray an authors perceived truth, the more the discrepancy between truth in an original work and perceived truth in a music video parody. Accordingly, less favorable attitudes towards the parodied entities may emerge. We therefore predict that evaluations of the parodied celebrity as well as the parodied music video will negatively relate to perceived truth in a user-generated music video parody. The more the user-generated music video parody is perceived to debunk truths about the parodied entities, the less favorably the parodied celebrity and the music video will be viewed. H2 below summarizes the predictions for perceived truth. H2: Perceived truth in a music video parody will a: negatively relate to attitude toward the parodied celebrity

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES b: negatively relate to attitude toward the parodied music video Popularity Factors of User-generated Videos Past studies have investigated video popularity distribution on YouTube (Cha et al., 2009), popularity factors of online videos (Elliott, 2008), and determinants of viral videos (Southgate et al., 2010). Cha et al. (2009) suggested that for both YouTube and Daum, the

12

Korean version of YouTube, 10% of the most popular videos account for nearly 80% of views, while the remaining 90% account for total 20% of views. Such phenomena might results from the fact that search requests and recommendations on video sharing sites are highly skewed towards popular videos. Also, those popular (or unpopular) videos might keep remaining popular (or unpopular) because peer-to-peer (P2P) distribution of popular content contributes significantly to online video popularity. Namely, those people who are distributing the videos serves as a key element that shapes popularity distribution. In accordance with such findings, Wallsten (2008) suggested that the popularity of a video is about the opinion leaders who act as catalysts to drive viewing; Bondad-Brown et al. (2012) also concluded that word of mouth accounts for the successful spreading of online videos. What are the viral components of a parody video that either drive opinion leaders to share them with peers or that trigger word of mouth? Past researchers agreed that emotion plays a large role in viral success, no matter what the medium is. Berger and Milkman (2012) concluded that positive emotionally evocative content may be particularly viral; the higher the positive emotional arousal lies in online content, the more people are likely to share such content. Lin et al. (2006) concluded that positive emotions can trigger participants to forward email, thus they serve as key component of email marketing. Phelps et al. (2004) found that participants were more likely to forward an email that contained a joke, while the top four out of six reasons given

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES

13

for communicating through passalong-emails was enjoyment and entertainment. In light of these findings, we assert that positive emotions are psychological arousals that incite peoples online sharing behavior, thus such positive emotions lead to popularity of music video parodies. As previously mentioned, parody demonstrates humor, a positive emotion, through mockery. Since positive emotions lead to popularity of music video parodies, perceived mockery that lies in music video parodies might contribute to such popularity. We thus assert that the higher degree of perceived mockery in a music parody is, the more it is possible for people to share such a parody. Therefore, a parody with such a high degree of perceived mockery is more likely to be popular among online users, and thus to go viral online. H3 below summarizes the predictions for popularity of music video parodies. H3: Perceived mockery in a music video parody will positively relate to popularity of a music video parody Method A case study of YouTube parodies of Wrecking Ball will be executed to measure viewer attitudes toward parodied entities and popularity of music video parodies. However, little is known about the dimensions of music video parodies since there is a scarcity of past research on the subject. With such little knowledge, it is difficult to test how they might affect viewer attitudes toward the parodied entities and popularity of music video parodies. Therefore, to test the hypotheses, first we will need to resolve the lack of empirical research on the nature of music video parodies by implementing a sentiment study to explore the dimensions of music video parodies. Once the important dimensions regarding music video parodies are determined, a survey will be used to test H1 and H2, and a content analysis will be executed to test H3. Sentiment Analysis

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES

14

A sample of Wrecking Ball music video parodies on YouTube and their comments will be needed to find the dimensions of music video parodies. By the random sampling procedure, a sample Wrecking Ball music video parodies will be first selected. Dimensions of these parodies, perceived mockery and perceived truth, that are indicated by comments of each music video parody will be measured by an auto-sentiment software. It will work mainly by identifying sentiment-related words in a text (e.g., true, funny, etc) and using all the sentiment words found in a scoring function to predict the overall sentiment of the text, and any non-English comment was discarded. Survey After determining the dimensions of music video parodies, a survey questionnaire will be employed for testing H1 and H2. During the survey process, each participant will be assigned to watch a Wrecking Ball parody that possessed either high level of perceived mockery or truth (determined by previous auto-sentiment) along with the original Wrecking Ball music video by Miley Cyrus. Two filler music videos will be placed between the original music video and the parody. Every time they finish one video, each participant will be asked to fill out one survey questionnaire indicating their attitude toward parodied entitles. After watching the last video, one of the user-generated Wrecking Ball music video parodies, participants will be asked to fill out a different questionnaire indicating their attitude toward the parodied entitles. Content Analysis To test H3, a content analysis will be needed. Analysts will be trained first, and they will analyze the degree of perceived mockery that lies in our pre-selected Wrecking Ball parodies (determined by previous auto-sentiment). We will then compare the degree of perceived mockery with the current popularity of the video on YouTube (in terms of view count).

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES Results and Discussion

15

We predict that findings of the study will support all of the three hypotheses. The present study will extend previous empirical researches regarding parodies by examining viewer attitude toward user-generated music video parodies. Also, it will be the first empirical study that investigates the popularity factors of music video parodies. In accordance with previous research findings that two dimensions of ad parodies, perceived mockery and perceived truth, negatively influence consumer attitude toward parodied brands as well as parodied advertising (Roehm and Roehm Jr., 2013; Vanden Bergh et. al, 2011), we predict that the study will confirm that such a theoretical framework also exist within music video context. The study will conclude that perceived mockery, conceptually defined as an act of ridicule, mocking and making fun of the original material, and perceived truth, conceptually defined as a parody authors viewpoint to certain factors in the original work, of a music video parody negatively affects viewer attitude toward parodied entities. Another finding that perceived mockery in a music video parody positively relates to its popularity will be in accordance with what was previous stated in the literature review: positive emotions are arousals that encourage online sharing behavior, thus such positive emotions contribute to popularity of music video parodies. Theoretical and Managerial Implications The study will be one of the first researches that makes a significant contribution to the communication literature by studying the widely used, but often neglected, parody genre music video parodies. However, the study only examined two dimensions of music video parodies: perceived mockery and perceived truth. Future empirical researches may probe into other dimensions of the parody genre for a more comprehensive understanding of the

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES relationship between music video parodies and viewer attitude such as perceived offensiveness and playful humor. Also, this study highlights the need to analyze the use of user-generated music video parodies. Even when they are funny, these videos can damage reputations of celebrities in terms of negative attitude toward the parodied entity.

16

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES Reference Baumgartner, J. C. (2008). Polls and elections: editorial cartoons 2.0: The effects of digital

17

political satire on Presidential candidate evaluations. Presidential Studies Quarterly, 38, 735-758. Benkler, Y. (2006). The wealth of networks: How social production transforms markets and freedom. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. Berger, J. and Milkman, K. (2012). What makes online content viral? Journal of Marketing Research, 49(2), 192-205. Bondad-Brown, B., Rice, R.E., and Pearce, K.E. (2012). Influences on TV viewing and online user-shared video use: Demographics, generations, contextual age, media use, motivations, and audience activity. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 56(4), 471-493. Cha, M., Kwak, H., Rodriguez, P., Ahn, Y., and Moom, S. (2009). Analyzing the video popularity characteristics of large-scale user generated content systems. Ieee/Acm Transactions On Networking, 17(5), 1357-1371. Day, P.K. (2013, August 26). Miley Cyrus' VMA performance: Media react in shock. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved from http://articles.latimes.com/2013/aug/26/entertainment/laet-st-miley-cyrus-vma-performance-media-reacts-in-shock-20130826 Elliott, S. (2008). What makes a non-professional video go viral: a case study of Im farming and I grow it. Unpublished master's thesis. Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas. Erickson, K. (2013). Evaluating the impact of parody on the exploitation of copyright works: An empirical study of music video content on YouTube. The Intellectual Property Office. Gray, J. (2006). Watching with the Simpsons: Television, parody, and intertextuality. New York:

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES Routledge. Hodson, G., Rush, J., and MacInnis, C. C. (2010). A joke is just a joke (except when it isn't):

18

Cavalier humor beliefs facilitate the expression of group dominance motives. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 99(4), 660682. Jean, S. (2011). Brand parody: a communication strategy to attack a competitor. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 28(1), 19-26. Jenkins, H. (2006). Convergence culture: Where old and new media collide. New York,NY: New York University Press. Johnson, M., and Spilger, U. (2000). Legal considerations when using parodies in advertising. Journal of Advertising, 29(4), 7786. Jung, Allen. (2014). User-generated parody videos on YouTube: Do they have a successful fair use defense under copyright law? Student Scholarship. Paper 131. Lim, J.S., and Golan, G.J. (2011). Social media activism in response to the influence of political parody videos on YouTube. Consumer Research, 38(5), 710-727. Lin, T., Wu, H., Liao, C. and Liu, T. (2006). Why are some emails forwarded and others not? Internet Research, 16(1), 81-93. Maher, B. [billmaher]. (2013, August 25). Watching VMAs. Haven't been in a strip club in a while, but good to see nothing has changed [Tweet]. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/billmaher/statuses/371808588609490944 Phelps, J.E., Lewis, R., Mobilio, L., Perry, D. & Raman, N. (2004). Viral marketing or electronic word-of-mouth advertising: examining consumer responses and motivations to pass along email. Journal of Advertising Research, 44(4), 333-348.

PERCEIVED EFFECTS OF USER-GENERATED MUSIC VIDEO PARODIES Roehm, M.L. and Roehm Jr., H.A. (2013). Consumer responses to parodic ads. Journal of Consumer Psychology.

19

Skgeby, Jrgen. (2012). Dismantling the guitar hero? A case of produced parody and disarmed subversion. Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies, 19(1), 63-76. Southgate, D., Westody, N., and Page, G. (2010). Creative determinants of viral video viewing. International Journal of Advertising, 29(3), 349-368. Vanden Bergh, B.G., Lee, M., Quilliam E.T. and Hove, T. (2011). The multidimensional nature and brand impact of user-generated ad parodies in social media. International Journal of Advertising, 30(1), 103-131. Wallsten, K. (2008). Yes we can: How online viewership, blog discussion and mainstream media coverage produced a viral video phenomenon, Journal of Information Technology & Politics, 7(2/3), 163-181. Zinkhan, G. M., and Johnson, M. (1994). The uses of parody in advertising. Journal of Advertising, 23(3), 3-8.