Weekly new and digital media story 1

Vine star Dapper Laughs is not laughing any more after ITV turn-off

Controversy over vlogger shows that online popularity is no guarantee that talent will flourish in the mainstream

ITV2 show Dapper Laughs: On the Pull had already attracted criticism – “the same old misogynistic shit for a new generation of teenage boys,”said one reviewer – before footage emerged last week of a stand-up gig in which he said a female audience member was “gagging for a rape”. ITV had previously stood by its man (“comedy is subjective,” it said) but a 60,000-strong online petition and Dapper’s “guide to rape” at the same gig (“go down the shops, get some rope, bit of duct tape, rape the bitch”) was no laughing matter.

• 60,000-strong online petition to get the show off the air

• O’Reilly’s fanbase of nearly 600,000 followers on Vine and 370,000 on Twitter generated a modest TV audience, ending with 262,000 viewers on 3 November.

• Media regulator Ofcom received 37 complaints from viewers that it was degrading to women and is considering whether to launch a formal investigation

• ITV recieved around 29 complaints

I think that this story again highlights the power of new and digital media as it was the online criticism on social networks such as twitter, as well as online petitions to get the show taken down that eventually made it happen. The video footage of his "guide to rape" recorded at one of his live gigs again shows the power of new and digital media as it was recorded citizen journalism that was posted online that was the final straw before ending the show. 

Therefore had it not been for new and digital media the show may not have been taken down as there would not be a place for people to express their anger and offence at the show, and the footage from his gig that got his show off the air would not have been filmed.