Celebrities, gender-based violence and women's rights: towards the transformation of the framework of recognition?

Introduction. Due to the limitations of the current framework of recognition of gender-based violence, this article analyses the possibilities of the actions performed by celebrities in the transformation of such framework and in the fight for women's rights. To this end, we propose the concept of. ethical witnessing.. Methods. The study proposes an analytical model based on the operationalisation of this concept applied to the examination of the representational practices that may destabilise the current hegemonic configuration and re-signify the subject-victim relationship of violence. The four dimensions of analysis are: the relations generated between the subject-victim and the witness; the degree of transgression of the reified representational models of the subject-victim; the focus on agency; and the connection with women's fights for their rights and other social movements. This model is applied to three case studies: Beyonce's musical performances; the interview with actress Carmen Maura, and Emma Watson's #HeForShe media campaign. Results. The study discusses the possibilities of the discursive practices stemming from postfeminist principles. A new image emerges to contrast the image of women as victims: the image of successful women who find a balance between feminist vindications and the fight against gender-based violence with consumerism, materialism and capitalism. This image enables the destabilisation of the narrative about violence, but it does not constitute a re-signification of the framework of recognition, as it can be co-opted by the "celebrity economy", can be absorbed by liberal feminism, or can be disassociated from the collective fight, which complicates the comprehension of the shared nature of vulnerability.