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Prohibited advertising on social networks, lobbies and arms manufacturers do not hesitate to use "gun influencers" to promote their products on Instagram.
Smiling lips, a young woman posing in front of a Christmas tree surrounded by colorful gift packages. While retouched, the image could still look like any photo taken during the holidays by one of millions of users of Instagram. With the difference that Lauren Young holds an impressive assault rifle in her hands.
It is common to cross on the social network of men and women who stage themselves with beauty products, household appliances, fashionable clothes .... These "influencers", whose weight varies according to the community that follows them, are generally paid by brands to promote their product. An advertisement that does not say its name, in short. And it happens that the day cream or the food supplement is replaced by a machine gun.
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A publication shared by LAURENYOUNG (@misslaurenvictoriaa) on 24 Dec. 2018 to 9: 09 PST
Spotted and solicited by the arms manufacturers, dozens of influencers like Lauren Young are paid for the position and up to their notoriety on the network. Models, athletes, veterans, hunters, they earn more or less their lives by shining on the shooting stand, in the nature or at home, in their garden or living room, drinking a cup of coffee or eat a yogurt, with their dog or their family. Trellis or bikini. But always with a weapon in the hand or in range.
To the American media Vox who conducted the investigation , influencer Liberte Austin entrusts for example ask 175 dollars per publication. When Kimberly Matte, she earns an average of $ 100 and presents per shift. Young, Austin and Matte, with 191,000, 204,000 and 85,000 subscribers respectively, are considered "middle-level" influencers, but most of their sisters are more like "micro-influencers" sailing between 10,000 and 50,000 .
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A publication shared by Liberte Austin (@liberteaustin) on June 26, 2019 at 7:39 PDT
For the actors of the environment, these influencers represent an important marketing potential, but especially one of the only ones available to them on the networks. Because the regulation of Facebook (which belongs to Instagram) prohibits companies to advertise for weapons. The actors in the field are forced to go through the accounts of individuals - who are not subject to the same restrictions - to highlight their products.
These women are " hens with golden eggs " according to a manager of Liberty Safe, a specialist in the sale of gun safes, interviewed by Vox. " They can promote our products better than us," says DeeAnna Waddel, who works for a company that has been shooting from helicopters in Las Vegas. We can pay them to promote our product, but we can not do it ourselves. With regard to Facebook and Instagram, this is really the only way for weapon manufacturers to expand. "
A community and a lifestyle
Especially since, if they do not have as many subscribers as the stars, they are however closer to their community, more reactive. And have, in a way, more impact. " Campaigns that use micro-influencers have a commitment rate 60% higher and push 6.7 times more followers to a purchasing behavior than large prescribers " estimates the agency HelloSociety, which connects influencers and advertisers, responding to the online DNA media . An analysis shared by Vox: " Smaller audiences tend to be more engaged, and a lifestyle seems more real and accessible when those who promote it are too ."
"A lifestyle" is also what lobbies and arms manufacturers are looking for to sell to women who stage their lives. Whether it's the lingerie bimbo, the young mother or the hyperactive athlete, they are the ambassadress of a way of life where activities such as hunting, shooting sports are combined and superimposed. , a military imagery, sometimes even survivalism and, often, patriotism to varying degrees, with positions in favor of the respect of the 2nd Amendment .
" The right to arms is pegged to the American, says Didier Combeau, associate researcher at the Institute of the Americas. It's a philosophy and a passion. And in this philosophy, the weapon is an everyday companion, an everyday object. Even when it comes to his child, as evidenced by the publications of veteran Charissa Littlejohn (395,000 subscribers), which alternates between photos of his baby and pictures of his rifles.
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A publication shared by Miss Gat (@charissa_littlejohn) on Oct. 2, 2018 at 6:40 AM PDT
For gun makers and lobbies, these influencers have the advantage of advertising by circumventing Facebook bans, but they are also a way to target a more specific market: that of women, who " are an important issue for the NRA [National Rifle Association] , a very predominantly male lobby ", points out the specialist of the United States, Didier Combeau.
" In the 1980s, the main arms market - that is, white men - came to saturation, so they opened up to other markets, such as women, " says the author. of Americans and guns: Democracy and violence in the United States . Didier Combeau recalls that the manufacturers began to " propose smaller and more manageable models, practically presented as jewels to go into the handbag, or even pink assault rifles ... "
The "feminist" argument
The gun lobby also does not hesitate to poach on the lands of feminism to reach this audience. The idea put forward is that women must arm themselves to defend themselves against the violence they suffer. "The more we risk being attacked, the more we must arm ourselves: this is the logic advanced by supporters of the port of arms, " analyzes the political scientist Didier Combeau. They also believe that equality between women and men passes by and that holding a weapon is a means of emancipation.
For example, activist and influencer Antonia Okafor is playing on the slogan " Gun rights are women 's right " and NRA spokeswoman Dana Loesch said in 2016 that A ban on the AR-15, the most popular rifle among women, would be " a war against women " and an attempt to " disarm " them. She also estimated in February 2018 that possession of rifles could prevent young women from being assaulted.
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A publication shared by Antonia Okafor (@antonia_okafor) on Nov. 20, 2018 at 8:59 PST
The British Guardian newspaper recalls in a 2018 article, however, that "a very large body of research shows that women are more likely to be killed by a weapon than to be saved by them. And a Pew Research Center study from 2017 points out that in the United States, a woman is shot on average every 16 hours in a domestic violence case.
These figures are chilling, but they will not prevent us from continuing to use the image of the woman to sell firearms. It is a major social issue in the United States. " The manufacturer sees the market side, but the NRA sees the political side, summarizes the researcher Didier Combeau. They want to show that it is not a matter of man, but of citizen. "
With each new shootout, the debate over control resurfaces . Supporters and opponents of regulation compete in the media or networks. The stakes are high for the arms lobby, especially since, " women are very involved, " said the political scientist. The NRA therefore has a strong interest in putting women forward in its communication . And in this war of words and images, these influencers are useful muses: they aestheticize as much as they normalize the use of deadly devices in the heart of incessant controversies.