Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Influencers and OnlyFans models are dominating U.S. O-1 visa requests

theguardian.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

311–320 of 350 posts

Re: Influencers and OnlyFans models are dominating U.S. O-1 visa requests

#311

Post by throwaway2037 »

ericmcer wrote: post #55
areoform wrote: post #9

Such articles are interesting because they're tacit disapproval, but I would argue that this use of the O-1 is the most American way to use it. There's a reason why Hollywood became the Earth's center of cultural gravity post-WW2, https://goldenglobes.com/articles/exiles-and-emigres-hollywo... You may argue that these people aren't of such import, but I would beg to differ. This is the future of culture. These people…

Influencers as the future of culture is not great. Hollywood had a ton of issues but it at least had some... class? If you watch an interview with Mr. Beast or other famous influencers they are concerningly ignorant, have little self-awareness and a child-like approach to reality. It makes total sense given these are teenagers who were lauded with fame for entertaining other teenagers on social media. I watched the M…

When I was a kid, I used to world WWF (World Wrestling Federation) with my best friend. We loved the interviews (pre/post "fight"). Those guys were idiots and certainly "detached from any sort of reality", but also very funny to 10 year old boys! I also liked Jean-Claude Van Damme movies. I turned out just fine.

Re: Influencers and OnlyFans models are dominating U.S. O-1 visa requests

#312

Post by throwaway2037 »

ryandrake wrote: post #146
ericmcer wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Influencers as the future of culture is not great. Hollywood had a ton of issues but it at least had some... class? If you watch an interview with Mr. Beast or other famous influencers they are concerningly ignorant, have little self-awareness and a child-like approach to reality. It makes total sense given these are teenagers who were lauded with fame for entertaining other teenagers on social media. I watched the M…

I think things like "classiness," "grace," and "tact" are all but dead, both in Hollywood and across the population. Everyone seems to be mentally teenagers, but in middle-age bodies.

I understand this sentiment. When I look at my own life, one culture constant has been the decline of "formalism" -- dress, language, jobs, inter-generational relationships, privacy. If anything, the average YouTuber is a pretty average person -- not too good looking, not too well coached by a PR team, not too well dressed. Isn't this a cultural "win" because we are getting more authentic content, instead of ~10 major TV networks and film studios deciding who we should watch?

Re: Influencers and OnlyFans models are dominating U.S. O-1 visa requests

#313

Post by throwaway2037 »

password54321 wrote: post #81
drdaeman wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> exploited Isn’t that a derogatory stereotype? Aren’t those men (and women and other folks) as “exploited” as a reader of a book or a player of a game, who understands they’re about to be a part of a fantasy but willingly suspend the disbelief for a short while? It’s only exploitation if this suspension of disbelief is artificially prolonged in nefarious way, with a self-reinforcing fantasy so the person loses touch…

Parasocial relationships are inherently exploitive.

I am going to push back here. I follow a variety of YouTubers, and I'm pretty sure that I have a parasocial relationship with most of them. I never heard the term before I watched a Tom Scott video about it. It made perfect sense me, and I saw it in myself. Literally, sometimes I talk to the screen, like we're in the room together. But it's only entertainment, and it's a fun way to "escape" after a long day at the office. I don't take it too seriously. Am I being exploited by a channel of funny people in their 20/30s who fix cars, or lift weights, or talk about relationship problems? I don't think so.

Re: Influencers and OnlyFans models are dominating U.S. O-1 visa requests

#314

Post by throwaway2037 »

aforwardslash wrote: post #97
areoform wrote: post #9

Such articles are interesting because they're tacit disapproval, but I would argue that this use of the O-1 is the most American way to use it. There's a reason why Hollywood became the Earth's center of cultural gravity post-WW2, https://goldenglobes.com/articles/exiles-and-emigres-hollywo... You may argue that these people aren't of such import, but I would beg to differ. This is the future of culture. These people…

> why Hollywood became the Earth's center of cultural gravity post-WW2 The reason why Hollywood even exists is because it was a way of escaping the enforcement of patents and royalties. And it is easy being the cultural center of the western world when everything other cultural-relevant city in the western hemisphere is somewhat in ruins. Other than that, the lettering is a racist monument of a bygone era. > You may…

Another reason why US media is so dominant: It has the largest population of any English-majority speaking nation. Another thing: English is the second language for an large portion of people under 40 in the world.

I remember when I first learned about the size of the Japenese media market (TV, film, music). It is ENORMOUS. I could not understand how, as 99% of Japanese language speakers live in Japan. Then I realised that Japan is highly developed (wealthy) and has a huge internal market of ~120 million people.

    > My daughter couldn't name a single actor even if she wanted to
I doubt it. You should ask her. If she is 10 years or older, she certainly has some favourites. If she has social media, ask her who she follows. I am sure there are a bunch of actors & actresses in her list. I'm not saying this to pass any judgement on you as a parent. Only that I doubt the authenticity of your statement.

Re: Influencers and OnlyFans models are dominating U.S. O-1 visa requests

#315

Post by throwaway2037 »

jonahrd wrote: post #133
aforwardslash wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> why Hollywood became the Earth's center of cultural gravity post-WW2 The reason why Hollywood even exists is because it was a way of escaping the enforcement of patents and royalties. And it is easy being the cultural center of the western world when everything other cultural-relevant city in the western hemisphere is somewhat in ruins. Other than that, the lettering is a racist monument of a bygone era. > You may…

I think you misunderstood GP's point, that it's now the _influencers_ and social media stars who are shaping culture. Not Hollywood or its stars.

I disagree. I think the attention economy is a new, parallel universe of fame. Yes, old Hollywood and new social media interact and affect each other, but they are still fairly independent. Most Hollywood actors don't have a very large social media presence -- it is probably mostly managed by their PR team. And few social media influencers make it in Hollywood as actors or actresses.

Re: Influencers and OnlyFans models are dominating U.S. O-1 visa requests

#316

Post by joenot443 »

Schiendelman wrote: post #280
natas wrote: post #266

One of my past manager was on a O-1 (in a tech company); he was from india. So, it goes like this, you register to be a presenter in a conference, copy some material from another tech talk and (re-)present it there as a novelty (rince and repeat). Pretty Simple. Step #2, create your facebook, youtube channel (etc.) and buy subscribers (from mediamister.com, getafollower.com, views4you.com, socialwick.com, buzzoid.com…

Do you have evidence this was true? This sounds like a good story but I thought getting these visas was mostly about revenue receipts, and if he bought a lot of subscribers, they must've been subscribing to something that paid him.

Outside of naming and shaming the guy, what kind of evidence are you asking for?

To my knowledge an O-1 visa isn't about revenue receipts.

Re: Influencers and OnlyFans models are dominating U.S. O-1 visa requests

#317

Post by throw0101d »

hnlmorg wrote: post #129
NewJazz wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The internet is global, but having folks in our midst who make a living that way has more of an effect on our culture than if they are just on the internet.

Why? I actually worked in the adult industry earlier in my career so have a better insight than most. and I can tell you that these models are just normal people like you an I. They aren’t interested in corrupting your children nor throwing wild sex parties in public spaces.

> They aren’t interested in corrupting your children nor throwing wild sex parties in public spaces.

RFK Jr., the current top health official in the US, is not interested in harming children either, and thinks he is doing a good public service: what is the reality though?

* https://arstechnica.com/health/2026/01/measles-continues-rag...

* https://arstechnica.com/health/2026/01/under-anti-vaccine-rf...

* https://arstechnica.com/health/2026/01/warning-about-bogus-a...

One's intentions and the results of one's actions can be two different things.

* https://acpeds.org/the-impact-of-pornography-on-children/

* https://www.sciencefocus.com/the-human-body/is-pornography-h...

* https://extension.usu.edu/relationships/research/effects-of-...

* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_pornography

Re: Influencers and OnlyFans models are dominating U.S. O-1 visa requests

#318

Post by Schiendelman »

joenot443 wrote: post #316
Schiendelman wrote: post #280

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you have evidence this was true? This sounds like a good story but I thought getting these visas was mostly about revenue receipts, and if he bought a lot of subscribers, they must've been subscribing to something that paid him.

Outside of naming and shaming the guy, what kind of evidence are you asking for? To my knowledge an O-1 visa isn't about revenue receipts.

You're right! I looked it up. It's not about followers either though:

https://www.uscis.gov/policy-manual/volume-2-part-m-chapter-...

I'm not asking for evidence. I'm asking if he has evidence.

Re: Influencers and OnlyFans models are dominating U.S. O-1 visa requests

#319

Post by hnlmorg »

throw0101d wrote: post #317
hnlmorg wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why? I actually worked in the adult industry earlier in my career so have a better insight than most. and I can tell you that these models are just normal people like you an I. They aren’t interested in corrupting your children nor throwing wild sex parties in public spaces.

> They aren’t interested in corrupting your children nor throwing wild sex parties in public spaces. RFK Jr., the current top health official in the US, is not interested in harming children either, and thinks he is doing a good public service: what is the reality though? * https://arstechnica.com/health/2026/01/measles-continues-rag... * https://arstechnica.com/health/2026/01/under-anti-vaccine-rf... * https://arste…

Last time I checked, “cam girls” don’t run the country. So I don’t think you can make a comparison there.

Plus the issues with JFK Jr are specific to him. It’s a bit of a stretch to imply that his view points are in any way related to his exposure pornography. That is unless “brain work” is some kind of euphemism I’m unaware of ;)

> One's intentions and the results of one's actions can be two different things.

Those articles mention just as many positives as negatives.

Porn isn’t inherently bad. It’s like alcohol, exercise, and other past times: moderation is the key.

Humans can get addicted to any kind of behaviour. The absolute worst thing you can do is make a topic a taboo because then you cannot keep people safe. This is as true for pornography as it is for weightlifting.

And frankly, hadn’t you got better things to do than worry about what consenting adults do in their private lives? It’s all a bit silly and prudish don’t you think?

Re: Influencers and OnlyFans models are dominating U.S. O-1 visa requests

#320

Post by notnaut »

throwaway2037 wrote: post #312
ryandrake wrote: post #146

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think things like "classiness," "grace," and "tact" are all but dead, both in Hollywood and across the population. Everyone seems to be mentally teenagers, but in middle-age bodies.

I understand this sentiment. When I look at my own life, one culture constant has been the decline of "formalism" -- dress, language, jobs, inter-generational relationships, privacy. If anything, the average YouTuber is a pretty average person -- not too good looking, not too well coached by a PR team, not too well dressed. Isn't this a cultural "win" because we are getting more authentic content, instead of ~10 majo…

Yep. But give it a few decades for the money to figure out how to wall off outsiders, insulate their little cadres of influencers and firm up networks of fake and real methods to direct popularity.

Still - probably better than Hollywood in the long run, and more accessible, even in the hellish direction it will undoubtedly go.

Post reply on HN