Human Being

The first theme that we identified from the interviews as an aspect of the Gen Z informants’ perception of Mette’s brand identity is what we refer to as human being. This theme is based on words and descriptions mentioned several times by the informants, hereunder human, personal, behind the scenes, down to earth and humble (Appendix 3; 4; 5). It is argued that the informants’ descriptions and meanings of these perceptions form a brand image of Mette as human being which we in the following sections will elaborate further on.

All of the six Gen Z informants mention Mette as human when describing how she appears on her Instagram (Appendix 3; 4; 5). Hakan expresses in the focus group that Mette’s Instagram reflects her as “a human and not just a machine” (Appendix 3, l. 166) and points out that Mette in the live Q&A

74 makes jokes so that she does not appear superior. In addition, Maria points out that during the corona pandemic, Mette has been the angry and strict person in the front but “with these pictures (red. on Instagram), you get an impression that she is also just a human who likes mackerel, takes selfies and is out for walks” (Appendix 3, l. 263-264). This is also backed up by Simone’s statement as she expresses the following about Mette; “she is the prime minister, but she is also just a human being like everyone else and she goes through all these everyday things like the rest of us” (Appendix 4, l. 98-99).

Sofie specifically points out that she thinks it is pleasant to see Mette watch Eurovision and act as a regular human being (Appendix 5). Also, Jacob expresses that “it is cool to see that she can also be like that – human. It is for sure something that separates her from many people, I think” (Appendix 3, l.

226-227).

It is our interpretation that these above-mentioned statements indicate that even though one usually only sees Mette as prime minister in official contexts, her Instagram reflects that she also has a human side. Additionally, Jacob’s comment that is stated above, indicates that Mette is quite unique in this way. Ultimately, human being is arguably something that the majority of the informants thought of when looking at Mette’s Instagram profile. Also, considering that the above statements merely represent a selection of many, it indicates that this understanding of Mette’s brand is quite strong.

The description of Mette as human naturally goes well with this stated theme, human being, as they almost have the same wordings and are interpreted to carry the same meanings.

Further, several of the informants emphasize that they perceive Mette as personal and showing herself behind the scenes. Julie explains that since we are led behind Mette’s façade, we get to know her a bit instead of just seeing her talk about politics. To this, Julie also points out that “now we can see her more personal side” (Appendix 3, l. 216-2017). Similarly, Simone expresses “I can see the idea in why she does it and that she shares quite a lot of aspects of her daily life and I feel like this gives her a personal touch” (Appendix 4, l. 97-98). Later in the interview, Simone adds that Mette is good at bringing out her personal aspects as “she can talk feelings and put herself in our place” (Appendix 4, l.

141-142). In addition, Sofie also comments, several times, on the personal aspects that she thinks Mette’s Instagram reflects (Appendix 5).

Even though not all of the informants express this certain perception of Mette’s Instagram, it can still be argued to be relevant since it is emphasized by half of the informants in the interviews. As researchers, we argue that Mette displaying self-disclosure is what makes her appear as a normal human being since the audience hence gets to know the person behind the official title. Thus, we argue that the description of Mette as personal supports the overall theme, human being, quite well.

75 Down to earth is another description that the informants use in relation to Mette. Specifically, Jacob points out that “she in some way appears more open or at least more down to earth than what you would expect from a prime minister” (Appendix 3, l. 162-163) which indicates that this down to earth characteristic is out of the ordinary for a person like Mette. Simone expresses that she could imagine Mette being an empathetic and quiet person because she “is good at slowing down in a way and meeting us at eye level” (Appendix 4, l. 279-280). Thus, it can be argued that Mette’s ability to slow down results in how she generally is seen as a good person. The description as down to earth is also supported by Sofie who directly says that she views Mette as down to earth (Appendix 5).

Additionally, humble is another word the informants use to describe Mette. Maria explains that she perceives Mette as authoritarian, but also humble, after which Maria acknowledges the contrast between these two adjectives (Appendix 3). This contrast indicates that there might be two sides of Mette, in this context in the live Q&A, where one of the sides is Mette as a humble person. Also, Hakan expresses directly that Mette “appears humble and human” (Appendix 3, l. 377). Another aspect we interpret to support this description of Mette as being humble is when Sofie expresses how Mette’s Instagram indicates her as vulnerable when she shares her personal life during the corona pandemic and the many challenges that are related to it (Appendix 5). As we interpret that being humble relates to not being selfish nor thinking with great importance of oneself, it is viewed that Sofie’s description of Mette as vulnerable supports this humbleness the other informants describe her with as Sofie hereby indicates that Mette does not just show how strong and powerful she is.

We interpret that these descriptions of Mette as down to earth and humble are traits of Mette’s perceived personality on her Instagram. In this relation, we assess that personality traits in general are what makes a person, or Mette, appear human rather than just a name. Thus, we argue that these descriptions of Mette all refer to Mette appearing as a normal human being where the informants take notice of her personal side where she lets people into her personal life and presents herself as down to earth and humble.

However, it should be noted that the informants’ perception of this human being aspect of Mette’s brand identity is not only presented positively. Several of the informants also express confusion about this characteristic (Appendix 3; 4; 5). Nevertheless, these interpretations will be further explored in the fifth theme called two-sided.

76 In addition, several of the informants also express their more negative suspicion upon this reflection of Mette as human being and suggest that she might have a hidden agenda behind appearing as a human being (Appendix 3; 4; 5). However, this suspicion will be further explored in the sixth theme called hidden agenda.