Why is standup comedian Margaret Cho so popular on social media? Many stars like her take to apps like Twitter and Instagram and see a modest degree of success here and there, and others go viral by just existing. Case in point, Johnny Depp earned millions of Tik Tok followers the day he joined the app before he had posted a single video. But Cho is different from most celebrities on social media. She engages with her fans over both social and political issues, and she has a different etiquette on social media than many celebrities who don't really engage with their followers and just post to advertise themselves and their projects.
Not many celebrities engage with their fans on their social media accounts. Sure, they will occasionally retweet a fan's comment or say thank you here and there, but most stars just post about upcoming movies, new products they are making, or use the platforms to release statements. Cho, however, is more cordial and direct with her followers. She follows quite a few of her fans on social media; she follows almost 10,000 of her fans on TikTok alone.
Many stars use social media but do not share their true selves. Granted, it is very common for the biggest influencers on social media to use fancy lighting, camera filters, makeup, staging, and other techniques to sell a less authentic version of themselves. However, Cho does not bother with that. Take a deep dive into her accounts and one will see plenty of photos and videos of Cho as her natural, unashamed self. This is perfectly in character for Cho as her standup is notorious for being honest, blunt, and unfiltered. As such, so is her social media content.
Fans also love Cho for her staunch political stances, not just her outrageous style of comedy. Cho posts regularly about an array of issues ranging from racial justice, like Black Lives Matter and Stop Asian Hate, as well as LGBTQIA+ causes. Cho is bisexual and is out, loud, and proud about it. She is supportive of other LGBTQIA+ people who might be struggling or are being vocal about their issues.
Margaret Cho is loved by her fans on all accounts, and that is not a turn of phrase. She is loved on all her social media accounts because it would seem she has followed her fans to every app and website. She is active on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok to list just a few. No word as to whether or not she kept up a MySpace page though.
One could explain away Cho's online popularity like it was a new phenomenon, but in reality it is just a continuation of the adoration she has gotten from fans for many years. Cho is already a wildly successful standup comedian with years of work on her credit list, including several major tours and standup specials. She has also had recurring roles on several shows, like when she played Kim Jun Il on 30 Rock, lampooning the North Korean dictator as an effeminate weirdo.
Her role as Kim Jung Il may be considered controversial by today's standards, but Cho has never shied away from controversy. As already mentioned, she is very political and outspoken about things like LGBTQIA+ issues, and as such she is not afraid to push the envelope to make bigots and detractors uncomfortable. Again, this is perfectly in character for Cho. Anyone who is familiar with her standup knows she is not afraid to talk about anything, whether it is race, gender, or sex. Those on social media know that it is the edgier posters that tend to garner the most attention.
Cho does not just follow back many of her loyal fans, she gives them shout-outs regularly. Many fans, especially her LGBTQIA+ fans, will often post about how excited they are that they got a follow back from the legendary comic. Cho reciprocates that love very often in TikTok videos and Twitter retweets.
Lastly, Cho can thank her fans who have stuck with her for so long. From her early standup days back in the 1990s to today, Cho has always had a set fan base. That fan base continues to follow the comic as she moves from one platform to another. In a way, her success on social media is owed not just to her work, but to the fans themselves. Not many comics can attest to having such a loyal and progressive fan base, but Cho is not like most comics.
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