Celebrities have become the highest and most respected class in modern-day society, sometimes surpassing global political leaders. The media glorifies a celebrity’s fame and wealth, and attracts a growing audience of fans to an already large population of obsessed individuals. Seemingly average citizens have been placed on a pedestal and praised for being members of some elite class. Even in grocery stores and nail salons, there is no escape from tabloids about the recent happenings in a celebrity’s life, thus encouraging the idea that they are somehow more important than everyone else. Social media and news channels also highlight the lives of celebrities, making it impossible to avoid interacting with celebrity news. All of this makes the status of celebrities appear to be much more impactful on the lives of average citizens than it actually is.
The reality is, celebrities are very similar to the average person in that there is nothing that makes them inherently better than the next person.
Celebrities are also susceptible to making bad decisions and committing wrongs, thus emphasizing the importance of needing to stop glorifying them. Because of their pedestal, we have placed celebrities at a level that implies they are not allowed to mess up in any way. Similarly, when they do mess up (and in some cases, it’s much more than just a mess up), their entire fanbase is either extremely hurt or jumps to defend them.
Furthermore, celebrities are often given a free pass for their errors because of their positions. They are allowed to make comments that greatly offend an entire demographic or break COVID-19 policies and have those actions mostly excused, simply because we are afraid of admitting that our “role models” are capable of committing wrongs. This is especially harmful because celebrities, in their glorified positions, have the capability of presenting terrible behavior as acceptable behavior, leading to a group of fans who believe that they are justified in making the same comments or engaging in the same actions. When fans accept or justify problematic actions committed by their admired celebrities, they encourage a culture in which celebrities are allowed to continue to make those decisions without consequences.
Ultimately, we must stop glorifying celebrities and viewing them as superior human beings. It is possible to admire someone without placing them in the ultimate position of power and disregarding their wrongs. We must also remember that the lives of celebrities are not representative of what life is or what life should be like. If celebrities are to continue to play a significant role in people’s lives (which they will), we must maintain a certain degree of separation and hold them accountable when necessary. While it is impossible to escape the media and celebrity culture, it is possible to regulate how much of an influence it has on our lives and thus reduce celebrity glorification.
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