This meme I found on TikTok paints a pretty accurate picture of what’s going on in the digital world lately. These days it seems like the only match for the world pandemic is a Netflix documentary about big-cat breeders.
Buzz about this show has spread almost as fast as the virus itself, with Nielsen reporting that the docuseries averaged 19 million viewers within the first 10 days it was available on the streaming service.
So, how did this bizarre crime series, Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness, become one of Netflix’s biggest shows to date? Some have argued that its success can be attributed to the recent quarantine, and as The Federal’s Kavitha Shanmugam puts it, “In any other time, it probably would have been passed off as an outlandish documentary.”
However, I would argue that Tiger King’s success should be attributed to social media. Even now, months after its release, it’s almost impossible to go on social media and not see something about Tiger King. Nielsen reported 1.8 million total organic interactions on Twitter about the seven-episode series.
Research conducted by Jhih-Syuan Lin, Kuan-Ju Chen, and Yongjun Sung suggests a connection between social television and the potential acquisition of new audiences. So, every time you share a hilarious Tiger King Meme, you’re essentially recommending the show to all of your followers.
Also, research from communication scholars, Emil Steiner and Kun Xu, suggests that one primary motivation for binge-watching is cultural inclusion. As strange as it may be, Tiger King has found a way to embed itself into pop-culture —so, maybe everyone watching it because they want to take part in this cultural phenomenon.
Regardless of whether you’ve actually watched it, I would be willing to bet in the last two months you’ve come across some Tiger King content on social media. Here are the 5 things showing up in your timeline that might make you want to watch Tiger King:
1. The Memes
People love the memes from this show so much there are even Facebook Groups dedicated to Tiger King Memes, with over 700k members.
2. The Reactions
Sonya Field’s writes on Hypable, “The only thing better than Tiger King is everyone’s reactions,” and that’s the truth. It’s hard not to watch a show when people are explaining it like this:
3. The Looks
The show’s colorful characters have inspired quite a few social media users. Whether it is a makeup tutorial or just fashion inspiration, a Tiger King look is sure to find its way onto your feed.
4. The Debate
There were so many people on social media discussing whether or not Carole killed her husband, that the sheriff’s department had ‘no choice’ but to reopen his case.
5. The Song
Even if you’re new to TikTok, you won’t be scrolling long before you find the Carole Baskin song. The song that goes to the beat of Megan Thee Stallion’s Savage has gone very viral and will be stuck in your head for weeks.
Did you watch Tiger King? What made you want to watch? Do you have a favorite Tiger King Meme? Let me know in the comments below.
Wow, this is such a great post! I know personally, my family couldn’t stop watching Tiger King once we started it. I kind of agree that quarantine played a huge role in its success because it came out right when people didn’t have a choice but to watch trash television.
Tiger King has definitely caught my attention, but I had such a hard time watching it! I am an avid tik tok fan, so I’ve been seeing many tik toks about the show! I may even think the tik toks are better than the show itself. I honestly never even made it through the entire show because I couldn’t stay interested. I felt like I was missing out because society made me feel obligated to watch it and like it. You’re right though, it sure made for some great content!
I have this thing about not watching the big social media/meme shows. People just hype it so much, I get turned off. I will probably watch it later, but I still haven’t watched GoT for the same reason.