As I write this it is a few days away from the end of 2007 and a new year is just around the corner. A new year full of possibilities and potential adventures that may wipe the slate clean and get a new chance to make changes or get things to the potential you wish them to be. This article isn't about those chances or possibilities.
Instead I wish to write about the state of celebrity and its status in our society right now. Currently celebrities have earned a position in our society somewhere between role models and gods. We expect them to be the source of our entertainment as well as the object of our mostly unobtainable fantasies. Along the way, we follow their ups and downs, taking delight in the former and seeming to gleefully trash them when they fall short. It is in the latter that many in our society seem to take hold of in strange ways.
In the past year or so there have been a number of celebrities having their fall from grace. Between Paris Hilton's jail term and the most recent revelation of Jamie Lynn Spears' unplanned pregnancy at 16, 2007 has been rife with scandals involving those assumed to be famous. These incidents range from arrests for DWIs to entering rehab to divorces and car accidents to name just a few (the only reason I'm not giving specifics on these is there are too many of them and we've heard them all in the news anyway). Then there's Jamie Lynn's sister Britney, who went from being a pop princess turned mom to an apparent walking train wreck (between the head shave, losing child custody rights and constant paparazzi stalking, there was too much of her in the news for reasons we'd all rather forget). These stories garner news coverage and guarantee that we all know what they've done on an almost non stop basis.
Then there's the reality TV celebrity twist. This, of course, has become standard over the last few years but the shows are plentiful with everyone from rapper Snoop Dogg to actor Scott Baio having shows detailing the minutiae of their personal lives. Then there are the reality dating shows where people seem to battle to the death to gain the love of either B to D list celebrities (Poison singer Bret Michaels, Flavor Flav) to internet sensations few may have heard of outside their fan base (Tila Tequila). Never mind that these shows don't end in marriage the majority of the time when the object of the contestants' affection is not a known celebrity, many people in our society sit glued to their televisions to see what happens next to someone in the public eye going through these motions and what happens to them.
Why are things this way? Personally, I don't understand it myself. However, we have become a society where we trade our own dreams for various reasons (some noble, some pathetic) and are too willing to witness a somewhat known “celebrity” do the things we probably should be doing in our own lives. We watch celebrity dating shows and are genuinely interested in who they end up with- hoping for a happy ending. People discuss the contestants they like and dislike while at work and in other conversations. While it may not be the totality of their lives, many people do play a role in carrying on this scenario, thus guaranteeing that more such shows are made and aired. Then there are the celebrity train wrecks we all have heard too much about. On the surface, it appears we shouldn't be that concerned.
We don't actually know this person, so tales of their mistakes shouldn't really have an impact on our lives. However, people still seem to react in tones ranging from feigned shock to (in the case of the younger Spears) some genuine concern to their plight. We have our opinions and spend time that could be spent discussing the economy or various other serious news stories commenting on this trend or some pop singer ending up in jail or rehab. In either instance, there appears to be a disconnect here from the forces that control people's lives and what may actually affect them in favor of the love problems of someone we're told is important.
Why we seem to enjoy their downfalls is especially telling, with people seeming to delight in somebody's life blowing up in their face. However, an element of cruelty appears to be present here, it's not always that simple. People watch television for entertainment, for a diversion from the stresses and problems they face. In a world where so much suffering and unpleasant things happen (ranging from various wars to natural disasters to people losing their jobs, to name a few) it's understandable that many people would feel paralyzed by this and prefer to avoid issues that may negatively impact them. By watching celebrities' problems they can live vicariously through these people in some ways (the reality dating shows) or take comfort that their lives could be worse (too many celebrity train wrecks to mention).
A coworker of mine told me a while back that one of the scarier things about human nature is the ability to want to witness lots of other's suffering while wanting none of their own. I think that applies here as people can witness a possibility of true love or delight in someone's fall from grace (especially if it's a celebrity they don't like). It serves as a catharsis of sorts, allowing people to get away from their problems and the hassles they face. It is unfortunate that, in these instances, we seem to have to see other people suffer to do it.
So where does that leave us as we end one year and start another? It's difficult to say. However, as long as our media favors diversion over hard news and people remain trapped by fear over the big issues around us, it's safe to say that the rise of fall of celebrities and their sometimes troubled lives will continue to be a prime source of entertainment for many people in our society. Whether right or wrong, this is unlikely to change any time in the future.
