Celebrity Culture

The world today is obsessed with celebrity from what they are wearing to whose dating who.  People flock to the cinema, read about their favourite stars in celebrity gossip magazines and watch the premieres and festivals admiring the glamour especially the dresses as was witnessed with the recent Titanic 3D and The Hunger Games premieres.

Kate Winslet in Jenny Packham, Titanic 3D premiere, London

Elizabeth Banks in Bill Blass, The Hunger Games Premiere, London 

Jennifer Lawrence in Prabal Gurung, The Hunger Games Premiere, Los Angeles

        

There are two schools of thought on celebrity.  On the one hand, some theorists view celebrity as cultural decline.  Boorstin (1987) falls within this camp as already discussed in the Berlin Film Festival 2012 post (19/02/12).  On the other hand, other theorists view celebrity as populist democracy stating celebrity culture has resulted in social levelling as anyone can now become famous regardless of their background.  Consequently, they argue, it is no longer only white male aristocrats who are famous.  This has led to more women than ever before becoming famous actresses but with this has come the focus on their weight and appearance, rather than their acting ability, which has led to body image issues.

Rojek (2001) explains our obsession with all things celebrity as being due to the decline of religion and magic.  He argues that the majority of people in the Western world no longer go to church but are united in their opinions on celebrities and view them as God like.

Fans desperate to reach out to George Clooney at The Oscars

Do you enjoy the glamour of the red carpet viewing it as escapism and view film stars as God like and aspire to be the next big thing?  Or do you agree with Boorstin that these people and associated events represent cultural decline?