1887
  1. Home
  2. e-Journals
  3. Journal of Asian Pacific Communication
  4. Volume 35, Issue 1
  5. Article
Volume 35, Issue 1
  • ISSN 0957-6851
  • E-ISSN: 1569-9838
USD
Buy:$35.00 + Taxes

Abstract

Abstract

This article applies Roland Barthes’ semiology in analyzing the content of the 15 most popular vlogs by Cong TV, a top Filipino vlogger. Using Barthes’ framework, the study uncovers hidden myths and ideological discourses embedded in Cong TV’s works that often reinforce the perspectives of the ruling class, whether consciously or unconsciously. The analysis identifies rhetorical strategies, including identification, erasure of history, inoculation, and intertextuality, while also identifying beneficiaries and victims within these narratives. The findings show the subtle ways in which humor and relatable content perpetuate social inequalities, discrimination, and colonial mentalities. The study highlights the significant role influencers play in shaping societal norms and calls for greater awareness and responsibility among content creators. It challenges the audience and scholars alike to scrutinize seemingly harmless content for deeper, often overlooked, cultural implications.

© John Benjamins Publishing Company
Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1075/japc.00115.jos
2025-07-31
2026-03-09

  • From This Site

    /content/journals/10.1075/japc.00115.jos
    dcterms_title,dcterms_subject,pub_keyword
    -contentType:Journal -contentType:Contributor -contentType:Concept -contentType:Institution
    10
    5
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Abadilla, B.
    (2002) Epistemolohiyang Filipino sa Karunungang Pilipino. Filipinolohiya: Opisyal na Dyornal ng Kaguruan ng Kagawaran ng Filipinolohiya, 11, 7–8. https://pdfcoffee.com/epistemolohiyang-filipino-bayani-s-abadillapdf-pdf-free.html
     [Google Scholar]
  2. Abidin, C.
    (2016) Visibility labour: Engaging with influencers’ fashion brands and #OOTD advertorial campaigns on Instagram. Media International Australia, 161(1), 86–100. 10.1177/1329878X16665177
     https://doi.org/10.1177/1329878X16665177 [Google Scholar]
  3. Adami, E.
    (2018) Styling the self online: Semiotic technologization in weblog publishing. Social Semiotics, 28(5), 601–622. 10.1080/10350330.2018.1504713
     https://doi.org/10.1080/10350330.2018.1504713 [Google Scholar]
  4. Antonio, C., & Rivera, A.
    (2017) Mental health stigma among Filipinos: Time for a paradigm shift. Philippine Journal of Health Research and Development, 21(2), 20–24. https://pjhrd.upm.edu.ph/index.php/main/article/view/172
     [Google Scholar]
  5. Barthes, R.
    (1972) Mythologies (A. Lavers, Trans.). Jonathan Cape Ltd. (Original work published 1957)
     [Google Scholar]
  6. Baudinette, T.
    (2023) Boys love media in Thailand: Celebrity, fans, and transnational Asian queer popular culture. Bloomsbury Publishing. 10.5040/9781350330672
     https://doi.org/10.5040/9781350330672 [Google Scholar]
  7. Biong, I.
    (2021, March17). ‘Pawer!’: Cong TV hits 8 million subs on YouTube. INQUIRER.net. https://entertainment.inquirer.net/405912/pawer-cong-tv-hits-8-million-subs-on-youtube
  8. Booryazadeh, S. A., & Faghfori, S.
    (2014) Barthes’ irreversible codes: An intertextual reading of James Joyce’s “Araby”. International Journal of Applied Linguistics and English Literature, 3(1), 137–142. 10.7575/aiac.ijalel.v.3n.1p.137
     https://doi.org/10.7575/aiac.ijalel.v.3n.1p.137 [Google Scholar]
  9. Boutaud, J.-J.
    (2004) Semiotics and communication sciences: From misunderstanding to reconciliation. Hermès, La Revue, 38(1), 96–102. 10.4267/2042/9431
     https://doi.org/10.4267/2042/9431 [Google Scholar]
  10. Bramming, P., Gorm Hansen, B., Bojesen, A., & Gylling Olesen, K.
    (2012) (Im) perfect pictures: snaplogs in performativity research. Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management: An International Journal, 7(1), 54–71. 10.1108/17465641211223465
     https://doi.org/10.1108/17465641211223465 [Google Scholar]
  11. Cong TV
    Cong TV (2008, December1). Silent Sanctuary — Rebound (MTV) [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBLFfNOCMEU
     [Google Scholar]
  12. Constantino, R.
    (1982) The miseducation of the Filipino. Quezon City, QC: Foundation for Nationalist Studies.
     [Google Scholar]
  13. Demeterio, F.
    (2013) Isang semyolohikal na pagsusuri sa mga kontradiksiyong nakapaloob sa panlipunang kritisismo ni Gloc-9. Malay Journal, 26(1), 17–35. https://www.academia.edu/7636613
     [Google Scholar]
  14. Dondero, M. G.
    (2019) Visual semiotics and automatic analysis of images from the Cultural Analytics Lab: How can quantitative and qualitative analysis be combined?Semiotica, 2019(230), 121–142. 10.1515/sem‑2018‑0104
     https://doi.org/10.1515/sem-2018-0104 [Google Scholar]
  15. Falzone, A.
    (2020) Natural performativity: How to do things with body constraints. InA. Pennisi & A. Falzone (Eds.), The extended theory of cognitive creativity (Perspectives in Pragmatics, Philosophy & Psychology, Vol. 23, pp.217–227). Springer. 10.1007/978‑3‑030‑22090‑7_14
     https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22090-7_14 [Google Scholar]
  16. Gibson, W., & Andersen, E. M.
    (2024) Legitimation, Authenticity, and Communicative Entitlement in YouTube “Lifestyle” Vlogs: The Case of “Hygge”. International Journal of Communication, 181, 2343–2367. https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/20554
     [Google Scholar]
  17. Hasyim, M., & Arafah, B.
    (2023) Semiotic multimodality communication in the age of new media. Studies in Media and Communication, 11(1), 96–103. 10.11114/smc.v11i1.5865
     https://doi.org/10.11114/smc.v11i1.5865 [Google Scholar]
  18. Jensen, K. B.
    (2015) Semiotics. InJ. D. Wright (Ed.), International encyclopedia of the social & behavioral sciences (2nd ed., Vol.211, pp.592–597). Elsevier. 10.1016/B978‑0‑08‑097086‑8.95033‑5
     https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-097086-8.95033-5 [Google Scholar]
  19. Keane, W.
    (2018) On semiotic ideology. Signs and Society, 6(1), 64–87. 10.1086/695387
     https://doi.org/10.1086/695387 [Google Scholar]
  20. Luoma-Aho, V., Pirttimäki, T., Maity, D., Munnukka, J., & Reinikainen, H.
    (2021) Primed authenticity: How priming impacts authenticity perception of social media influencers. InN. S. Borchers (Ed.), Social Media Influencers in Strategic Communication (pp.119–132). Routledge. 10.4324/9781003181286‑7
     https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003181286-7 [Google Scholar]
  21. Marwick, A. E., & Boyd, D.
    (2011) I tweet honestly, I tweet passionately: Twitter users, context collapse, and the imagined audience. New Media & Society, 13(1), 114–133. 10.1177/1461444810365313
     https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444810365313 [Google Scholar]
  22. Regio, K.
    (2022, October21). Esquire Philippines hails Cong TV as one of the 100 most powerful people in the Philippines. Viyline Media Group. https://mediagroup.viyline.net/2022/10/21/esquire-philippines-hails-cong-tv-as-one-of-the-100-most-powerful-people-in-the-philippines/
     [Google Scholar]
  23. Reyes, K.
    (2020, January3). How online vlogging and streaming changed the world for Cong and Team Payaman. SPIN.ph. https://www.spin.ph/life/people/how-a2442-20200103
     [Google Scholar]
  24. Shtern, J., Hill, S., & Chan, D.
    (2019) Social media influence: Performative authenticity and the relational work of audience commodification in the Philippines. International Journal of Communication, 131. https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/9615/2634
     [Google Scholar]
  25. Sonderen, P.
    (2015) Performing arts and fine art: Busy with bodies, what body?InWith (Out) Trace: Interdisciplinary investigations into time, space and the body (pp.97–106). Brill. 10.1163/9781848884410_009
     https://doi.org/10.1163/9781848884410_009 [Google Scholar]
  26. Spence, J.
    (2016) Performativity. InPerformative experience design (Springer Series on Cultural Computing, pp. 25–44). Springer. 10.1007/978‑3‑319‑28395‑1_2
     https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28395-1_2 [Google Scholar]
  27. Stein, J.-P., Koban, K., Joos, S., & Ohler, P.
    (2022) Worth the effort? Comparing different YouTube vlog production styles in terms of viewers’ identification, parasocial response, immersion, and enjoyment. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 16(3), 426–436. https://psycnet.apa.org/buy/2020-90013-001. 10.1037/aca0000374
     https://doi.org/10.1037/aca0000374 [Google Scholar]
  28. Tolson, A.
    (2010) A new authenticity? Communicative practices on YouTube. Critical Discourse Studies, 7(4), 277–289. 10.1080/17405904.2010.511834
     https://doi.org/10.1080/17405904.2010.511834 [Google Scholar]
  29. Tyson, L.
    (2006) Critical theory today: A user-friendly guide (Vol.21). Routledge.
     [Google Scholar]
  30. Vlahović, A., Ercegovac, I., & Tankosić, M.
    (2023) Unraveling the narrative structures in YouTube vlogs: A qualitative content analysis. Media Studies and Applied Ethics, 4(2), 25–42. 10.46630/msae.2.2023.03
     https://doi.org/10.46630/msae.2.2023.03 [Google Scholar]
  31. Wikitubia
    Wikitubia. (n.d.). Cong TV [Web log comment]. Retrieved fromhttps://youtube.fandom.com/wiki/Cong_TV
     [Google Scholar]
  32. Withalm, G.
    (2006) Media: Semiotics. InK. Brown (Ed.), Encyclopedia of language & linguistics (2nd ed., pp.631–643). Elsevier. 10.1016/B0‑08‑044854‑2/01426‑7
     https://doi.org/10.1016/B0-08-044854-2/01426-7 [Google Scholar]
  33. Zhang, H., & Wei, Y.
    (2024) Visual frames in promotional video: A semiotic analysis of What is Peppa?. Semiotica, 2024(257), 177–201. 10.1515/sem‑2022‑0006
     https://doi.org/10.1515/sem-2022-0006 [Google Scholar]
  34. Zhu, L., & Wang, Y.
    (2025) Acting real: A cross-cultural investigation of finfluencer strategic authenticity. International Journal of Advertising, 44(1), 164–183. 10.1080/02650487.2024.2437289
     https://doi.org/10.1080/02650487.2024.2437289 [Google Scholar]
/content/journals/10.1075/japc.00115.jos
Loading
Barthes meets vlogging
Journal of Asian Pacific Communication 35, 29 (2025); https://doi.org/10.1075/japc.00115.jos
/content/journals/10.1075/japc.00115.jos
/content/journals/10.1075/japc.00115.jos
Loading

Data & Media loading...

  • Article Type: Research Article
Keyword(s): Cong TV; Filipino vlogger; Roland Barthes; semiology; YouTube

Most Cited

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was successful
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error