AUSTIN, Texas — The distance between a normal person and a celebrity can often be measured in degrees. Just ask actor Kevin Bacon — who, during a SXSW session, proved that he could instantly cut the distance down to one degree by including every audience member in a Vine video (below).

It was a reminder about the power of technology for direct connection and how easily social media can break down once virtually impenetrable barriers.
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Some entertainers like Kevin Bacon are quick learners when it comes to leveraging social media for making connections or for social good. And when they need a little guidance, Dustin Bramell, Facebook's strategic partner development manager for entertainment, is quick to step in. Bramell is part of the team at the social network tasked with connecting the dots among celebrities, Facebook's tools and audiences sitting on the opposite side.
I met Bramell, 30, at a Facebook mixer event just outside the heart of Austin's vibrant hub. He joined the company less than a year ago, but has been connecting celebrities and social media for years.
After studying communications at St. Mary's College of California, Bramell switched gears and turned his passion for cars and technology into a business. He helped launch Vishnu Performance Systems, a company devoted to race car computer systems.

That job led him to the late actor Paul Walker; the star of The Fast and the Furious had a real-world interest in race cars (as we tragically found out). Bramell eventually began working for Walker, combining his love of technology and communications into a unique role: He served as one of Walker's first digital advisors and convinced him to join Facebook. This move that would become critically important later.

Bramell started advising other celebrities and politicians on connecting online. He wouldn't reveal the names of his clients in politics, but said none are currently in office.

On the night in December when Walker was in a fatal car crash, the news spread like wildfire— as did many rumors, including that Walker's daughter was in the car, too.

For Bramell, the incident had one small bright spot: One of the few places where people, especially fans, were getting real-time facts was Paul Walker's Facebook page, a destination that may not have existed had Bramell not encouraged him. Walker's team used the page to set the record straight, and eventually it became the go-to source for celebrating the work of the late actor.

Perhaps this is the reason celebrities like Bacon — and other clients of Bramell — are ultimately drawn to platforms like Twitter, Vine and Facebook. It allows opportunities to not only cut down barriers to fans, but also to control the conversation and their images.

Bramell said that many big names choose to create posts and answer questions lives — themselves. "These guys feel empowered to post as much as they want or not," he said.
Many celebrities sign up for 30-minute sessions on Facebook's Q&A platform and then stick around for 45 minutes or an hour. Some are talking to millions of fans.

At the top of the heap are music artists like Rihanna (her Facebook page has 80 million Likes) and Beyoncé (57 million likes). Even when they're not speaking directly to fans, they often drop in tidbits to keep fans engaged. Beyoncé, for example, posts frequently on Instagram, which is owned by Facebook. When she surprised fans with the release of an entire new album in December, she announced it on Facebook, and the album skyrocketed to the tops of charts.

But what if that engagement fails? It’s not unusual for a celebrity to tweet something spontaneously and then hastily retreat. Actor Alec Baldwin has famously joined and left Twitter multiple times.

Bramell couldn’t recall a time when a celebrity engagement on Facebook has gone wrong, which isn't to say it hasn't happened. "When they're doing it right, it will always work," he said.

Throughout SXSW, Bramell guided stars like Bill Cosby, Ian Somerhalder, Jon Favreau and others through the paces of these Facebook live Q&As. These days, since stars are coming to Facebook, Bramell doesn’t have any "great white whale" targets; instead, he's excited to help connect the rich and famous with their audiences.

At its core, the most fundamental role of social media is to break down barriers and create connections, so it makes sense that celebrities gravitate to networks to speak to their fans; it gives them the benefit of direct control over their messages (with the obvious risks), without having to actually "connect" with anyone. Fans may feel they know Beyoncé or Kevin Bacon better than ever thanks to social media, but as always, celebrities pick and choose what they share. The connection remains digital, not physical.
Those who Like the Beyoncé fan page on Facebook may not be directly connected to her, but when she posts a personal image or thought, they feel closer — like all those degrees of separation have suddenly melted away.

Even without that physical connection, fans are using technology to play their own form of Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon, where the distance is as short as a tweet or an Instagram post.
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