Fairhope student watches Alix Earle, influencer. Photo by Hayden Self.
Fairhope student watches Alix Earle, influencer. Photo by Hayden Self.

Alix Earle influences youth of Gen-Z

February 14, 2023

Gen-Z it Girl Alix Earle

by Hayden Self, reporter

Alix Earle gained her fame from the app TikTok by creating get-ready-with-me videos. This is a trending category of videos on TikTok right now largely because of Alix, where people film themselves getting ready for an event. When doing her TikToks she recommends beauty products such as makeup, tanning and hair products. Her main audience is teenage girls who aspire to be just like Alix. She is gorgeous, blonde, skinny and rich.

Gulf Shores resident 17-year-old Kruiz Bates has been following Alix for a couple of months now. She recently bought all new makeup products that she found from Alix’s recommendation TikToks and Amazon storefront.

“I would never have thought I could be influenced into buying $250 worth of makeup products. Her makeup just always looks so good, well blended and put together so I had to try the products she was using to try it out for myself,” Bates said.

Fairhope junior Blakleigh Stephens is another Alix Earle fan.

“She feels like your best friend when watching her videos, it feels like you have a connection with her just by watching her videos even though I actually don’t know her,” Stephens said.

I also follow Alix and watch all her videos, but I feel she’s not a healthy figure to look up to. I feel her life is unobtainable and unrealistic. She’s rich, currently in college, gorgeous, blonde, tan and famous. Looking up to Alix isn’t helping my self-esteem.

Child Mind Institute wrote an article about how social media affects teens’ body image.

A survey of 24 year olds conducted by the Royal Society for Public Health asked 14 individuals in the UK how social media platforms impacted their health and wellbeing. The survey results found that Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat all led to increased feelings of depression, anxiety, and poor body image.

With Alix Earle’s following being mainly teen girls, there is a wanting-to-be-her mentality under her comment sections on TikTok. Many of her comments are “I wish I was you” or “Alix Earle is my god.” These comments aren’t healthy.

Yet, Gen Z girls are still worshiping her and believe she a worthy role model.

“If I could be her for at least a day I would. She’s perfect,” Bates said.

Alix Earle is very entertaining to watch and listen to, getting an inside look at her lavish lifestyle full of designer clothes, makeup, popularity and partying. But teen girls need to realize this lifestyle isn’t always obtainable, and her looks aren’t always obtainable. Sometimes it is okay to hit the block button, so they don’t have to see her videos in their feed which might leave them with bad thoughts or make them question how they feel about themselves.

 

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