He got a number of people replying with their own tonic videos: the view from a Norwegian train as it wound its way from Trondheim to Bodø, people walking through Japanese forests, and 4K GoPro skiing.

It reminded me that I’ve been doing the same thing, including spending hours watching a Chinese farmer plant crops, cook food, and build a cat-shaped bread kiln.

While in the vast majority of these cases the videos pre-date Covid-19, clearly something about them has drawn people in, even those who may have scoffed at watching YouTubers or streamers before.

Boredom, free time, and the search for new content all play their part, but what if there’s something else that’s attracting us to this type of content?

What nearly all of them have in common is that they offer the viewer the chance to live vicariously, and to explore some inaccessible part of the world. The videos are often more personal and intimate than a regular TV show, too.

With that in mind, this bulletin is split into two-parts. Today we’ll be looking at living vicariously through the internet, and on Monday we’ll be looking at how people are ‘exploring from home’.

I’ll have what they’re having

Living vicariously through online videos is nothing new. The Hidden Brain podcast covered the topic back in February 2019. That offered a bleak view at times though, suggesting that as we watch more videos of people woodcarving or cooking, we feel guilty that we’re not putting time into learning these skills ourselves.

But 2019 was a different world. While many have made valiant efforts to learn new skills under Covid-19, there is full sympathy (from us at least) for those who haven’t. It’s a pandemic. We’re stressed, people are out of work, parents are having to homeschool, and so on. There often isn’t even time to feel bad about it.

Whatever the case, talk of vicarious living is up.

We also found that 65% of the mentions we were able to categorize by sentiment were positive. This suggests that, for many, guilt certainly isn’t on their mind.

But what kind of vicarious living are people doing? We’ve already touched on hiking and skiing. We also found mentions of watching others play video games, or doing it through games like The Sims.

Interestingly, an old fad has also seen a resurgence. One that falls under vicarious living, but in a very unique way.

Back with a mukbang

The concept of mukbang, a form of media originating in Korea, is simple: a person films themselves eating a huge amount of food and interacts with the viewers. It’s been around for about a decade, but interest jumped during the pandemic and is showing early signs of rising again.

While there’s not too much exploring to be done in a mukbang video (although it’s a perfect way to introduce you to the culinary world of other cultures), they can be pretty intimate. With restaurants closed around the world, maybe there’s something comforting about watching someone eat as though they’re across the table from you.

This interest in connection when we’re so disconnected helps to explain the rise of a similar Korean fad: gongbang (공방). In these videos you simply watch someone study, often with a cosy or relaxing backdrop. They offer a way to study without being ‘alone’.

What’s clear is that people are looking for content that does more than pass some time. Instead there’s a clamor for education, exploration, and connection.

A bloke on YouTube

We spoke to Simon, who runs the Simon, a bloke in the woods YouTube channel. Simon is a UK-based outdoors enthusiast, and his channel mostly features videos of camping, canoeing, and campfire cooking (plus Maggie, Simon’s black dog who guest stars from time to time).

He told us that his channel’s growth has been exponential “especially during the pandemic.”

He says that there’s been a specific spike in interest from viewers who have been unable to get into the countryside, with people in cities and towns unable to travel or having to shield. Simon said that he’s had “many, many comments and messages from people who have found watching the videos to be a huge help to the tedium and to the state of their mental health.”

This backs up the idea that it’s not all about boredom, but that channels like Simon’s reconnect people to a world that’s been shut off to them, helping them get through the pandemic as best they can.

Simon himself has been curtailed by the UK’s lockdowns, forcing him to adapt by filming what videos he can in his back garden or on walks near his house. But he’s carried on, saying that the positive effect his videos have on his viewers drives him to keep filming despite the circumstances.

Be sure to subscribe to Simon’s channel. It’s been a personal favorite of mine since last summer.

Getting out and about

With this in mind, on Monday we’ll be taking a look at exploring from home, and the tools and platforms people use beyond YouTube to see new parts of the world.

Don’t miss it by subscribing to the Brandwatch Bulletin right away.

Stay safe,

Joshua,
Brandwatch React team