Oriane Edwards wrote this blog post as part of her work with Modernist Remediations to think through affective relationships to technology.

ASMR, or autonomous sensory meridian response, is a recently coined term describing a tingling sensation at the top or back of one’s head, neck and spine. Online discussion about this phenomenon began in 2009, in the SteadyHealth medical forum, under a post entitled “WEIRD SENSATION FEELS GOOD.” This same period saw the beginning of “whispering” Youtube channels, whose aim was to trigger this tingling feeling in viewers. In the decade since, ASMR has grown into an immensely popular video genre on Youtube, TikTok, and other video platforms, with many ASMR content creators (ASMRtists) amassing millions of subscribers. The videos follow a handful of sub-genres. These include: mukbang (videos of people eating), tapping (where the performer taps their fingers or fingernails on objects), and role-plays. Fans often say they watch the videos to enjoy the tingle sensation, to fall asleep, to ease stress, and to generally relax. To non-fans, however, ASMR can appear eerie and causes feelings of discomfort or disgust. How can we situate ASMR in the intertwined histories of electronic media and emotion? What does ASMR accomplish?

Stuplification

ASMR tends to the minor feelings of anxiety and un-ease, and abates these feelings with its own physical sensation of gentle prickling on the scalp — an ambiguous feeling, seemingly empty of moral or political aim. ASMR pushes towards de-intensification, fantasy, sleep, and (perhaps) comfort. Despite their typical classification as minor feelings, Sianne Ngai argues that anxiety, boredom, numbness and other discomforts nonetheless shape everyday life in profound ways. Could ASMR operate as “stuplification” as Ngai defines it—numbed out, dumbed out, sublime?

Wonder

Tapping videos are a mainstay of the ASMR genre. In these videos, ASMRtists tap on various objects using their finger tips or fingernails. Sometimes the items are curated (ie. wooden objects only), and the ASMRtist may narrate a story about the object. The items are usually stroked lovingly and, for lack of a better word, are adored before the tapping begins. The tapping is sometimes slow and deliberate, or faster. In all cases, the objects are treated with respect and care, verging on reverence, suggesting a significance beyond mere sound production. If the physical feeling of ASMR may be one of that wonder or magic, then might the underlying desire be that objects become wondrous, or that humans regain rapport with objects?