Hi.
Thank you for coming to our presentation,
"Spontaneous Yet Studious, Esports Commentators' Live
Performance and Self-presentation Practices."
I am Lingyuan Li, a PhD student at Clemson University.
I will be presenting on behalf of my co-authors Jira, Dr. Geo
Freeman, and Dr. Yvette Wohn.
Esports commentating refers to the practice
of reporting, expanding, and elaborating
live competitive gameplay to spectators.
It is an essential component of today's growing gaming
and live streaming ecosystem.
In this paper, we focus on three main research questions
to explore the unique challenges that esports commentators are
facing in their practices which are studied in CSC, Berkeley
First, how do esports commentators prepare
for their performances before the game?
And second, how do esports commentators manage and present
the information during the game?
Third, what aspects are important to esports
commentators' self-presentation online?
To collect the data, we interviewed the 19 participants
who are amateur or professional commentators
for popular and competitive games.
We then used the in-depth qualitative analysis
to analyze the data.
To answer RQ1, we found three key ways
through which esports commentators
would be ready for their live performances.
The first is aesthetics.
Esports commentators expect that their public image
to show enthusiasm and then professionalism.
The second is physical function including activities
such as meditation, vocal exercise, and [? hygiene ?]
beforehand to act as a warmup, mentally and physically.
Third, participants also reported strategic preparations
that involve the extensive research
to gain background information and analogy before casting.
For RQ2, we found that esports commentators performed
a variety of practices to help them
make quick decision on which information
they should approach to deliver high quality content.
For example, based on their different commentating styles,
they would take different divisions of commentating work
and then focus on different aspects in their commentaries.
In addition, they would take their fellow's opinions
and actions into account to present the best information
to the audience.
They would also analyze the style of the specific event
to decide on the content, direction,
the tone of their commentary.
Lastly, commentators follow what actually happen
in the event or gameplay.
To answer RQ3, most esports commentators
tended to keep their online and offline identity or personality
consistent, which makes them look more natural and authentic
to the audience.
They also focus on two dimensions of professionalism
on commentating.
The language should be used as an analogy about the game.
Lastly, the expression of passion and enthusiasm
throughout the casting also reflects the seriousness
and devotion of commentators.
One of the implications of the work
is the complex interaction dynamics
in esports commentating.
Typically, the streamer-viewer interaction
is the core in the general live streaming ecosystem.
Thus, in the context of the esports commentating,
the fast-paced nature of the esports
and the intense and time-sensitive workload
don't leave too much room for real-time interaction
with the audience.
Another implication is the nuances
of the esports commentators' self-presentation.
Our study highlights the importance of professionalism
in their self-presentation, which is not to selectively
present the commentators themselves or to perform,
rather it does suggest one's deep acknowledgment
and embodiment of the esports culture itself.
Also, the focus on co-commentators'
social presence shows that esports commentators still
tend to engage in social learning process.
In conclusion, in order to execute
the stimulus and spontaneous commentary,
commentators must be studious and engage
in much prior research and have a clear sense of self.
This points to the need for future research
to reconsider the role of the interactivity
in live streaming.
The importance of professionalism
and social presence may also lead
to potential new perspectives to study self-presentation
online by taking this [?] of the subculture into account.
Thank you.
I'm happy to take questions.