YouTubers more loved than Hollywood stars with teens, says survey

11 Aug 2014

Ian Andrew Hecox and Anthony Padilla of Smosh. Images via Wikimedia Commons

YouTube’s influence with young people appears to be at an all-time high, as a recent survey has found the video-sharing site’s biggest stars outshine those from traditional Hollywood by a considerable margin.

The survey conducted by Variety had asked 1,500 teenagers a series of questions relating to 20 celebrities and scored them on a range of factors, including approachability as well as their overall stature as familiar personalities.

The top 5 highest-ranking people within the survey originated from the online world, with many of the traditional Hollywood faces lagging behind.

Top of the list registering a score of 93 out of 100, was Smosh, the YouTube comedy duo of Ian Andrew Hecox and Anthony Padilla, with another YouTube duo, the Fine Bros, registering a score of 92.

Others making up the top 5 include YouTube’s most subscribed to channel, PewDiePie, who currently has more than 29.5m subscribers, as well as KSI and Ryan Higga.

In what might appear a strange choice, the highest-ranked Hollywood celebrity with a score of 75 was Paul Walker, the actor who recently died in a car accident when returning home after filming Fast & Furious 6.

Celebrity brand strategist Jeetendr Sehdev undertook the survey, and said the results appear to show teenagers appreciate the perceived authenticity of YouTubers in comparison to Hollywood stars.

“If YouTube stars are swallowed by Hollywood, they are in danger of becoming less authentic versions of themselves, and teenagers will be able to pick up on that. That could take away the one thing that makes YouTube stars so appealing.”

Colm Gorey was a senior journalist with Silicon Republic

editorial@siliconrepublic.com