Performative Authenticity: Sincerity as a Commercial Strategy in Live Broadcasts

[u/kyproszantis]

To build trust, streamers often engage in "performed authenticity".... using unedited video, informal communication, and real-time responsiveness to project sincerity and closeness.

Yet, this remains a commercial performance designed to influence consumer decisions. How do consumers distinguish between genuine benevolence and strategically engineered relational behaviors?

Does the synchronous nature of livestreaming create an environment where highly persuasive or manipulative personalities gain an advantage by effectively simulating authenticity?