Celebrity Influence
Much like the oxymoron “jumbo shrimp” contradicts itself, many citizens of our country follow celebrity example in an effort to better themselves. Like citizen sheep being led by famous shepherds, celebrity media dictates too many what is socially acceptable. With marriages in the West already increasingly unstable, celebrity influence is just the catalyst needed to encourage irrational and immoral decisions. The proof is in the pudding. Take Rudolph Valentino, for example, who divorced his actress wife Jean Acker after a wonderful six-hour marriage (Harris, 2007, p. 60). The celebrity marriage, as Harris explains, is created and ended based on public attention (p. 61). Why we observe them, whether we admit it or not, is centered upon their latest dramatic event (Harris, p. 61). Without our observations, celebrities hold no power. But is this really the example that our country should be following?
Additionally, celebrities use our obsession to fuel their careers and have been for some time now. Harris (2007) examines how the divorces of Jessica Simpson, Britney Spears, and Whitney Huston were no random dissolutions of marriage, but in fact a tactic used to revive a floundering career or launch a new album (p. 61). The celebrated, the seemingly perfect, the innocuous – these icons use our love and affection to make their money. Only a delirious person would believe celebrities care about how their image affects marriages or how their example corrupts the traditional morals of marriage. In fact, quite the opposite is happening, as Harris observes, “Celebrities embody an extreme example of how the economy of marriage has changed. The pre-nup is the symbol of the new politics of marriage, a legal contract that many celebrities use to specify, not only how much alimony their spouse will receive, but how many hours a husband can watch, how often a mother-in-law can visit her grandchildren, and even how much weight a woman can gain during pregnancy (one pre-nup stipulated that a star’s trophy wife pay a $100,000 fine if she exceeded 120 pounds (p. 62).” With such unrealistic parameters placed on a celebrity marriage, is it not obvious the odds are stacked against it? When two people, regardless of sexual orientation, put their hearts together but refuse to link their assets, there is a clear problem.
Furthermore, the rate at which we follow our prized celebrities has climbed to an all-time high with the advancement in social media, as Choi & Berger (2010) suggest (p. 313). In fact, the domain of the modern celebrity has traversed that of their older counterparts from days long past. No longer is the sway of celebrities confined to the constraints of “entertainment” adds Choi & Berger, but instead expands to politics (p. 313). It is imperative to understand the social effects added by this change. For example, when Jude Law, an actor, took it upon himself to seek out Taliban officials in an effort to discuss peace, the perceived importance of the actor changed (Choi & Berger, p. 313). Couple social media, the ability to follow anyone at any time, with the blurred lines of a celebrity’s importance, and we have a misinformed audience: spectators that believe what is put in front of them. In a survey conducted by Choi & Berger, teenagers chose fame as the most important quality a person can possess (p. 315). Our country should be ashamed that such merits as intelligence and honesty are no longer important to our youth. Social media and the new-aged celebrity are contributing to the negative shift in Western values.
Additionally, celebrities use our obsession to fuel their careers and have been for some time now. Harris (2007) examines how the divorces of Jessica Simpson, Britney Spears, and Whitney Huston were no random dissolutions of marriage, but in fact a tactic used to revive a floundering career or launch a new album (p. 61). The celebrated, the seemingly perfect, the innocuous – these icons use our love and affection to make their money. Only a delirious person would believe celebrities care about how their image affects marriages or how their example corrupts the traditional morals of marriage. In fact, quite the opposite is happening, as Harris observes, “Celebrities embody an extreme example of how the economy of marriage has changed. The pre-nup is the symbol of the new politics of marriage, a legal contract that many celebrities use to specify, not only how much alimony their spouse will receive, but how many hours a husband can watch, how often a mother-in-law can visit her grandchildren, and even how much weight a woman can gain during pregnancy (one pre-nup stipulated that a star’s trophy wife pay a $100,000 fine if she exceeded 120 pounds (p. 62).” With such unrealistic parameters placed on a celebrity marriage, is it not obvious the odds are stacked against it? When two people, regardless of sexual orientation, put their hearts together but refuse to link their assets, there is a clear problem.
Furthermore, the rate at which we follow our prized celebrities has climbed to an all-time high with the advancement in social media, as Choi & Berger (2010) suggest (p. 313). In fact, the domain of the modern celebrity has traversed that of their older counterparts from days long past. No longer is the sway of celebrities confined to the constraints of “entertainment” adds Choi & Berger, but instead expands to politics (p. 313). It is imperative to understand the social effects added by this change. For example, when Jude Law, an actor, took it upon himself to seek out Taliban officials in an effort to discuss peace, the perceived importance of the actor changed (Choi & Berger, p. 313). Couple social media, the ability to follow anyone at any time, with the blurred lines of a celebrity’s importance, and we have a misinformed audience: spectators that believe what is put in front of them. In a survey conducted by Choi & Berger, teenagers chose fame as the most important quality a person can possess (p. 315). Our country should be ashamed that such merits as intelligence and honesty are no longer important to our youth. Social media and the new-aged celebrity are contributing to the negative shift in Western values.