This was a very obvious post for me to do because my house is filled with People magazines, W, O by Oprah, and Hello/Okay! from England. What is the basis for people's undying obsession with celebrities? Jealousy? Boredom? Curiosity? I think it is a mixture of these things and the basic American values engrained in all who have lived here. These are people who appear to have achieved success, they are busy all the time (activity and work), they have freedom (in the economic sense), they are popular. What could be better right? And yet there is the case study that Sal brought up in class that suggests money doesn't make you happy, but in fact lowers self-esteem due to the consequential consumerism attached to a high paycheck. People know this. It is a message relayed in corny film upon corny film, and even in some good ones, so why do we still idolize those who have pretty clothes and walk the red carpet? I know that in some aspects it is an obvious question - they are beautiful (by our society's standards), they own lots of stuff (which Americans love), they are seen by everyone. I think the extremely disturbing part is that Americans LOVE when these celebrities screw up. Failure of others is the ultimate in entertainment (notice shows like Extra and TCM). Sad, but ultimately true.
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