Jameela Jamil, activist, actress, host and founder of the I Weigh movement and community, will share tips for Maintaining Authenticity Across Platforms on the Main Stage at the 2024 NAB Show.
Jamil will address the importance of authenticity for content creators at 3 p.m. (PT) on Tuesday, April 16 during a conversation with Really Famous host Kara Mayer. You can register to attend for free with code AMP05.
Here, she answers questions from NAB Amplify’s Emily M. Reigart about showing up on a plethora of platforms, breaking through in the Creator Economy, the impact of AI on self-image and her work in podcasting.
Tell us about your social media philosophy. How do you approach creating content and balance the need to “show up” on so many different platforms?
I make and post content that I would want to watch. That way I create a community online of people who have similar interests to me. This makes it far less draining to be consistent. When you’re not being yourself, it is far more taxing.
Regarding showing up across all the platforms, I mostly am able to use the same content, so it’s a low lift. These apps all have such different users and audiences that it has not drawn fatigue from my followers yet!
What advice would you give to someone who wants to work in the Creator Economy?
Find something sustainable and honest. People are sick of over-produced, empty content. This is constant work; it requires planning, thought and vulnerability. Do not fake it, or it will feel like swimming upstream all the time.
Also ask your audience what they like and don’t like. Doing so for me, has helped me grow my podcast, and my online following, because it makes my page feel like a community, rather than a stage just for me. I thrive on honest feedback.
You’ve long been outspoken about the impact of edited photos and Facetuned social media. Now, with the popularization of generative AI tools, we’re facing new conversations around content authentication and personal authenticity. How are you thinking about this?
I’m just terrified of it all. Terrified that now people won’t know that they’re comparing themselves to literal AI digital perfection. This is a crisis beyond our understanding. It also opens the doors for so much hostility online, rumors, deep fake incriminating videos, revenge pornography. It’s a nightmare.
You have recorded more than 200 episodes of your podcast, “I Weigh.” What have you learned from working on this project consistently for four years?
I have learned that I have so much still to learn!!!
The arrogance of our current society when we look down on others who are openly learning is something that really concerns me. There are so many fascinating subjects and outlooks on this planet. We cannot possibly expect to know it all. Learning is so much fun and can be such a bonding communal experience.
This podcast has repeatedly blown my mind and expanded my horizons. I’m a more tolerant, humane, humble and thoughtful person for it.
Does your background as a presenter and actor impact how you function as a podcast host?
Absolutely, because my job is to zoom out and think about the show at large. Not just myself. I am constantly producing in my head while I’m interviewing. I’m carving a full picture of someone with my questions, which makes for hopefully a multi-dimensional and thorough conversation.
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