NationStates Jolt Archive

Why is it that in America we the people(not including myself) are obsessed with the lives of those who have it better than us, such as famous people. Everywhere i look someone is talking about the life of some actor or singer. Ill read in a magazine that britney is pregnant, and people are buying it. All i can think is "why do you care." If you want to know about them well....I fell off my bike today and hurt my leg. If you want to know about them, then why not me.

I dont know why the people care so much about it, maybe someone can explain why because i dont know.

Because it's part of our culture. I don't really know why it started, but it was around the last half-century.

Celebrity worship seems to be a natural thing in some form or other, all throughout history. Though it's pretty sickening in the US, especially when it's politicized and the media zooms in on people who, frankly, I don't want to zoom in on. Like Michael Jackson, or Paris Hilton, or Michael Moore, or Terri Schiavo. But they just have to point their cameras somewhere, and they prefer pointing them where others have pointed them before, and people enjoy living vicariously the lives they will never have - for better or worse.

I don't understand it either. Maybe it's just because they show up a lot more often. (movies, papers, TV, magazines, tabloids, etc)

It started in the 1920's..basicly Post-WWI. The Car, movies, radio, and other entertainment came about. People wanted to get away from life. Many people were struggling during this time and they turned to Charlie Chaplin, Babe Ruth, Henry Ford, radio personalities and whoever. They wanted someone to look up to. My guess to most people your just like them and they want someone who has more to look up to. But Politicans were looked up to or people were infatuated forever with them..don't know why though.

I think because most celebrities are hot looking people. I agree with you on this though I don't really care all that much about your leg. I can't stand show like Cribs or anything that depicts how good the rich and famous have life. I'm not poor but I do know it's not nice to gloat.

Meh!

I really don't care about the well to do or the famous.

My granddad was that way so I guess I learned it from him.

My wifes family is sorta that way. Her Great-Grandfather was that way.

The family later learned he was one of Jack Londons favorite guides!

They were pissed the old man never mentioned it but again to him Jack was just another guy.....

It's not only in America. :rolleyes: And I suppose you can call it escapeism, personally however I think we like to feel some sort of connection with these people we see in our homes via TV. After all, would you want a stranger in your house?

Doom777']Because it's part of our culture. I don't really know why it started, but it was around the last half-century.

I think it goes beyond that. Homer wrote about the accomplishments of the aristocrats in the Illiad (Troy for you Brad Pitt fans), when most historians believe that the success of the Greek armies was due to the discipline of the foot soldier (phalanx). Shakespeare also wrote mainly about kings and queens, who were considered the celebrities of their day.

As far as why humans are interested in celebrities, I've often wondered about that and I came to a conclusion when I observed the behaviour of a flock of pidgeons. I think most living creatures possess a "herd mentality". None of us really knows what we're doing, so we look for guidance. Some look for it in God, others in historical figures, and I guess there are those who look for guidance in the behaviour of celebrities.

Yes, the old Historical "dead white men" bias. Indeed, look at other culture and it can be changed to, "Dead rich men" in any nation I've studied.

China, Japan, most/perhaps all of Europe, etc. All have the same institutional reporting bias. Very few ever report on the state of the people, other than semi-idealistic reports on how they reacted to the business of the elite.

Thrusting that bias into the present, we have managed to expand out worship of the elite to include some women. Moreover, fewer and fewer claim to be dieties. I do belive we can call that progress.

the way I see it is as follows:

-The media, being what it is, looks to what people are waatching/listening to/reading, and develops its articles and so on based on that.

-People (in general) need some form of guidance, be it what to wear, what to eat, what part of your body to be enlarged/reduced, so they look to what the media is showing.

-the mnore people look at celebrities in the media, the more the media displays celebrites, which causes more people to look at celebrities


-damn I hate vicious circles!

Why is it that in America we the people(not including myself) are obsessed with the lives of those who have it better than us, such as famous people. Everywhere i look someone is talking about the life of some actor or singer. Ill read in a magazine that britney is pregnant, and people are buying it. All i can think is "why do you care." If you want to know about them well....I fell off my bike today and hurt my leg. If you want to know about them, then why not me.

I dont know why the people care so much about it, maybe someone can explain why because i dont know.


I could give a half crock about Brittany Spears being pregnant or Christina Agumalaria getting crabs.

What I do enjoy watching, are shows on some of the Great Homes in the US and abroad. Great Vacation Homes on Travel Channel also. They give me ideas and information on what I might want to build and how to build it when I have that kind of moolah!

I'm a positive thinker ;)

I also watch various cooking shows on the food channel and shows like the yankee workshop on pbs. I like watching skilled people, learning, gathering useful skills and information.

Americans adore celebrities because they want to be them. They want the money, power, looks, hot guys/girls hanging around them, attention etc. It is really rather sad. If people could just learn to apreciate thier own live instead of listening to all the messages of "your not good enough" comming from the media, I garantee that tabloid sales would fall into non-existance.

Sadly, it's not only in the US, although the US seems to have reached higher heights of celebrity obsession than the rest of the world.

Why is it that in America we the people(not including myself) are obsessed with the lives of those who have it better than us, such as famous people. Everywhere i look someone is talking about the life of some actor or singer. Ill read in a magazine that britney is pregnant, and people are buying it. All i can think is "why do you care." If you want to know about them well....I fell off my bike today and hurt my leg. If you want to know about them, then why not me.

I dont know why the people care so much about it, maybe someone can explain why because i dont know.


Because they are all rich, sometimes pretty(hmm johnny depp), we all wish we had lives like that. Celebs also do some crazy things..ie Britney spears and her goddamn ugly husband...get back with justin already

I don't get it either. I am an American and I still don't understand. My sisters (3 of them) all watch those crappy VH1 and MTV and E specials and I just don't care. It doesn't affect me if some celebrities pants fell down. I just don't see how it's important.

People need to be distracted from boring meaningless lives.
That's why we have celebrity worship and religion.

Why is it that in America we the people(not including myself) are obsessed with the lives of those who have it better than us, such as famous people. Everywhere i look someone is talking about the life of some actor or singer. Ill read in a magazine that britney is pregnant, and people are buying it. All i can think is "why do you care." If you want to know about them well....I fell off my bike today and hurt my leg. If you want to know about them, then why not me.

I dont know why the people care so much about it, maybe someone can explain why because i dont know.

It's called escapist fantasy. There are plenty of people who hate their lives, and want to read about the trials and tribulations of rich famous people who can't do anything without screwing up.

Makes the average or below average person feel better about themselves. Imagine, for instance, that you're some 35 year old woman living in a trailer park with three kids by three different men not your husband, wearing curlers in your hair, pink polyester shorts, flip-flops, and chain smoking Winstons. You now read about one of your own kind (Brittney Spears) who managed to escape the same life to become famous, only to have her redneck past come whistling in on her like some 2000-lb laser guided bomb and make her act like a complete idiot, complete with boob-job, pregnant belly, and idiot husband.

Why, it would make your whole day to read something like that.

Also, they read this kind of trash in Europe, as well. Ever hear of the "paparrazi"? They supply photos mostly to European gossip rags.

In a world where people still think that The Sun, Bild, and the National Enquirer are real newspapers, you've got to wonder.

I can't stand, not do I understand celebrity worship.

I can't stand, not do I understand celebrity worship.

It's not unnatural. We used worship idols, Gods, Popes, Kings, Queens, etc. In this modern world, we have different things to worship.

I think the reason is people like to project them self in someone's else life. People are so bored about there one life they need to live the exciting life of the so called jet-set. That why no one bother about the leg of a random stranger, even if you happen to crash next to them and cry in pain..

It's a human problem not only reserved to america. Look at the way British treat the royal familly. It seem they are still here only for stardom purpose.

That being say, what I found even more pathetic, is people talking about soap and other television serial like it would affect there own life. Many people seem to live through fictional character. On a popular local TV show presented last years, the yougest character got shot in the last episod. Well, the TV station who produce it received thousands of sympathy e-mail from the public.

Just picture this random person is in living room crying as he type a sympathy e-mail that wont ever be read because no producer will ever waste all this time to read something so ridiculous. This actually frighten me...

Unfortunately, it isn't an exclusively American phenomenon. Its almost as bad over here in Britain (Fun fact: 50% of UK adults read The Sun. Thats how bad it is.). While I honestly don't care about celebrities, there are many people who do. And it seems to get the clothing and cosmetics companies a lot of money... *insert conspiracy theories*