This study examines the dual identities of Chinese international student vloggers on the Red Book platform

exploring their roles as both content producers and audiences through the theoretical lenses of Abercrombie and Longhurst's spectacle/performance paradigm and Goffman's self-presentation theory. Based on semi-structured interviews with five independent vloggers documenting their overseas daily lives

the research identifies three sequential phases of identity performance: pre-vlogging

where participants engage as diffused audiences motivated by information-seeking and emotional immersion in aestheticized vlog content; vlogging

where they adopt frontstage self-presentation through selective editing and backstage suppression of negative experiences

embodying Goffman's dramaturgical model; and post-vlogging

where their engagement shifts to critical viewing

prioritizing skill learning and cultural comparison. Findings reveal a paradox between the pursuit of authentic life documentation and performative spectacle

highlighting how vloggers negotiate identity through dynamic media engagement. The study concludes by emphasizing the cyclical interplay of spectacle

self-representation

and cultural imagination in shaping vloggers' dual roles

advocating for future research to integrate digital mediation theories.