The treatment of fatphobia on Youtube and TikTok: the case of Itziar Castro el caso de Itziar Castro

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Published: 04-07-2025
Accepted: 05-02-2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7195/ri14.v23i1.2219
Keywords:
Fatphobia, Youtube, TikTok, Itziar Castro, Hate speech, , social networks
Supporting Agencies
Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities
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María del Mar Rodríguez-González
(ES)
University of the Basque Country image/svg+xml
mariadelmar.rodriguez@ehu.es
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9121-1468
Yazmina Vargas-Veleda
(ES)
University of the Basque Country image/svg+xml
yazmina.vargas@ehu.eus
https://orcid.org/0009-0009-6143-0841
Iñigo Marauri-Castillo
(ES)
University of the Basque Country image/svg+xml
inigo.marauri@ehu.es
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0883-8003

Abstract

This investigation was born with the objective of analyzing the presence of fatphobic content that was published on YouTube and TikTok following the death of Spanish actress Itziar Castro. The methodology focuses on the study of 16,296 comments made to 239 videos on YouTube and 34,073 comments made to 547 videos on TikTok. The results obtained from the study of each of the videos and comments reveal that YouTube is the social network of hate, characterized by messages full of ridicule for his image, homosexuality, where he is blamed for his own death and a fat stigmatization and hate speech. Tik Tok, however, turns out to be the social network of love, where the content is loaded with love for the actress and words of admiration for her work and her activism against fatphobia. This case highlights the debate between freedom of expression and hate speech on digital platforms aimed especially at vulnerable women who are overweight or obese. Given the lack of ethical and legal limits, a paradigm shift is proposed in the way fatphobia is addressed on social networks, so that those who judge and ridicule fat people do not find in them the most appropriate medium to spread. offensive messages hiding behind that freedom of expression.

 

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Article Details

Issue

Vol. 23 No. 1 (2025): hallenges and Opportunities in Digital Communication: Reflections and Advances in 2025

Section

ST4. COMPUTATIONAL METHODS AND BIG DATA IN COMMUNICATION
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Author Biographies

María del Mar Rodríguez-González, University of the Basque Country

Associate Professor of the Department of Journalism of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Communication of the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU). Barrio Sarriena s/n 48940 Leioa (Spain). mariadelmar.rodriguez@ehu.eus. With more than thirty publications in journals such as El Profesional de la Información, Revista Latina de Comunicación Social, Estudios del Mensaje Periodístico, Comunicación y Sociedad, Revista Mediterránea, Doxa, Revista Española de Comunicación en Salud and Mediatika, her lines of research address the relationship between communication and nutrition, digital journalism, crisis communication and social media.

Yazmina Vargas-Veleda, University of the Basque Country

Predoctoral researcher in the Department of Journalism of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Communication of the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU). yazmina.vargas@ehu.eus. Barrio Sarriena s/n 48940 Leioa (Spain). She has a degree in Journalism and a Master's degree in Social Communication from the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), and has a predoctoral contract granted by this institution to develop her doctoral thesis. The research focuses on the phenomenon of fatphobia and its ramifications in contemporary society, with particular interest in its reflection in textual and audiovisual media, as well as in social networks and television and film fiction products. In addition, she stands out for her commitment to dissemination and social awareness, giving informative talks with a feminist perspective on fatphobia, the representation of fat bodies and their effects.

Iñigo Marauri-Castillo, University of the Basque Country

Associate Professor of the Department of Journalism at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU). Barrio Sarriena s/n 48940 Leioa (Spain). Inigo.marauri@ehu.eus. He has participated in ten research projects with funding obtained from competitive calls, three of which were granted by Ministry of Economy, Trade and Business (MINECO) and the Ministry of Universities. Professor Marauri-Castillo also served as the Principal Investigator (PI) in the project entitled "The media’s coverage of obesity prevention: cybermedia, social networks, and institutional communication"(PID2020-118090RB-I00). His main lines of research, which are digital journalism, communication and nutrition, social media, crisis communication, and crime and trauma reporting.

How to Cite

Rodríguez-González, M. del M., Vargas-Veleda, Y., & Marauri-Castillo, I. (2025). The treatment of fatphobia on Youtube and TikTok: the case of Itziar Castro: el caso de Itziar Castro . Journal ICONO 14, 23(1), e2219. https://doi.org/10.7195/ri14.v23i1.2219

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