In the world of media today, we as a society find ourselves in a position where the world is essentially at our fingertips. We have entered an era that places a strong emphasis on being in the know on all things happening around us, particularly in the realm of popular culture. News and information shifts at a rate that is difficult to keep up with. With the amount of information that we consume on a daily, even hourly rate, I think that it can feel as though the information becomes personal to us in a way that feels like we have personal access to the scenario.
I was having a casual conversation with my Associate Editor, Haileigh West, when we thought what an interesting topic this would be to delve into. The conversation quickly jumped from topic to topic, giving various examples of the recent pop culture references and topics in the latest media that we were chatting about. In discussing this, I brought up the point about how mind-blowing it felt to think about how invested we become in these stories. Of course I want to know if Taylor Swift was at another Kansas City Chiefs game, what is happening between Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner, who Olivia Rodrigo wrote a particular song about and so the list goes on. I think that it is natural and that people are curious by nature. The problem in my opinion however, is where to draw the line about how involved we become in the personal lives of these famous individuals.
This casual conversation left me pondering the topic further. What is it that makes celebrities and their personal lives so appealing to us as consumers of media? They are people just like anyone and go about their daily lives doing, for the most part, the same ‘ordinary’ things that any other person would. Yet, it feels to me as though these celebrities are placed on pedestals that make it difficult to perceive them as doing these ordinary activities. When we place celebrities on these platforms for our admiration, it becomes increasingly difficult to treat them as we would any other person we meet. It means that these celebrities cannot make mistakes, they have to look a certain way, share all their personal details about their dating lives and anyone who deviates from this assumption is criticized.
Examples of this can be seen on the daily. People want to know when Travis and Taylor will make it official or who is to blame for the Joe and Sophie divorce. Even more of a problem is that the media is under a continuous filtration of information so that our opinions are continuously seesawing from one extreme to the next, and for me it feels impossible to know where I stand on a topic at any given moment.
It also just feels uncomfortable to me because I would not want millions of people I do not know involved in the most vulnerable and defining moments of my life. Additionally, the constant pressure that comes with fame feels overwhelming just observing it. For example, cancel culture has become increasingly more popular. Granted, this phenomenon of calling out celebrities for problematic actions is oftentimes warranted and necessary, but in many cases with celebrities, it does not allow for the grace and empathy that we would give everyone else to learn from mistakes and be better. Everyone is going to make mistakes, but I do not think that every scenario warrants an outpour of opinions and hate comments that celebrities often receive without the opportunity to redeem themselves. I immediately think about Joshua Basset and Olivia Rodrigo. Rodrigro’s songs from her first album Sour were a wonderful compilation of her vulnerable feelings which, yes, she chose to publicize, but it generated a lot of criticism–initially for Basset and later for her. We are talking about teenagers and young adults trying to navigate their lives just as we currently are as college students. These celebrities may not lead the exact lives that we do, but that should not deter from the fact that they still experience emotions, stress, mistakes and more the same way that we do. Somehow, though, they are unable to process and learn from these experiences as anyone else would because their lives are observed under a microscope that should ideally reflect perfection.
I think it is okay to have an opinion or side in these matters; I would be a hypocrite if I didn’t. However, I feel as though the anonymity and lack of responsibility for our actions on social media make it easier to perpetuate hate and criticism at standards we would not practice in face-to-face interactions.
Social media and media in general is a wonderful tool that provides a platform for interconnectivity and allows us to enjoy all things pop culture at our fingertips, which is wonderful and integral for the society we live in. With that in mind, I just think that it is important to continuously assess how we are utilizing the power we hold quite literally in the palm of our hands. I fear that we are heading down a dangerous path in which our empathy and consideration do not extend to some of the individuals we support and love, just because their reality feels like it is in another realm.
I encourage individuals to always have opinions and to never stop questioning things, because I would never want to censor anybody or have negative actions left unchecked. I do, however, feel that it is necessary to be conscientious of the impact we have on other people’s lives and respect the personal lives of anybody, the way we would want ours to be respected.
By: Shae-Lynn Henderson, Editor in Chief
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