An excellent question.
And because many consumers are also participants in multimedia platforms, they are willing "accomplices."
But I say they are also creators of culture.
It's a fact that while many, many human artists and human YouTube producers have millions of followers, they create culture, but not just one of spectatorship, since many human spectators themselves go on to produce human internet content.
The internet created a new generation of stars from diverse platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Vine, and Tumblr, including musicians like The Weeknd, Justin Bieber, Halsey, Carly Rae Jepsen, along with actors/comedians like Darren Criss, Liza Koshy, Lily Singh, and general influencers (MrBeast, Addison Rae, PewDiePie, Logan Paul), which showcases how raw human talent and personality can build massive global followings and transition into mainstream fame.