Today I pose a question to you instead of
putting forth my views on this certain matter. Why is it so important to us what is going on in the lives of those in
the spotlight?
“We believe ourselves to be much close to
them than we are to individuals with whom we might have regular, professional
contact” (Leslie 2011, p15)
We often know more about celebrities than
we do our closest friends. Hours can be happily spent reading and gossiping
about what their latest adventures are. Whether its Kristen Steward cheating on
Robert Pattinson, John Travolta getting a massage, Charlie Sheen having a
meltdown. We are so obsessed with what is going on in the lives of these people
we have never met, even more so than our own lives. This to me is hard to comprehend
even though I find myself getting caught up in it from time to time.
The act of idolizing stems from the
religious tradition of idolizing gods and saints, and in my thoughts its quite
possible that the celebrity is acting as a substitute for this in the decline
of faith in western culture.
Don’t you think it’s time for us to stop
worrying about the turmoil’s in the life’s of those in the spotlight and start
worrying about our own lives which usually aren’t that much better held
together?
References
image from http://cheezburger.com/4533004032
Leslie, Larry Z 2011, Celebrity in the 21st
Century: A Reference Handbook, ABC-CLIO
