Celebrity Culture as a Part of Media Ecology

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  1.  How might the Star Theory and Celebrity Culture work together to the advantage of the Big 5 and those with the funding to hire the A-list actors?
  2. How might the celebrity culture that exists in the world, impact audiences trends in what types of movies they choose to see?
  3. How might it be argued that celebrity culture be an example of the 2 step flow theory in the passive audience theory and do you think this is true?

Celebrity culture is a high-volume perpetuation of celebrities' personal lives on a global scale. It is inherently tied to consumer interests where celebrities transform their fame to become product brands.

Celebrities themselves do not form a cohesive and identifiable group with which they identify themselves, but are rather found across a spectrum of activities and communities including acting, politics, fashion, sports and music. The "culture" is created when it is common knowledge within a society that people are interested in and are willing to alter their own lives to take part in celebrities' lives.

  • Today, everyday citizens play an important role in the perpetuation of celebrity culture by constantly checking the whereabouts of celebrities, their friends, the trends within celebrity culture, and the general lives of celebrities via media (especially social media)
  • Celebrity culture is now reflected in social norms and values because of the extreme citizen involvement
  • Today it is now used as entertainment, and celebrity culture is viewed as a form of "escapism" from reality and a means of preoccupation for everyday people
Celebrity culture is part of our world. This culture is perpetuated by Richard Dyer's 'Star Image' theory: 
  • He suggests that a star's meta-narrative impacts on the consumption by the audience. He argued that the star image is manufactured and artificial and that individual stars have their own unique selling point (brand values) in order to grab and hold our attention, e.g. Justin Bieber's hair

Celebrity's social and cultural prominence can be traced back to the success of mass media. The various forms of mass media allowed for the spread of new images and branding of celebrities. Media surrounding celebrities has heavily influenced not only celebrity culture but the general social environment in our lives. Celebrities are known to not only influence what we buy, but many other things such as body image, career aspirations and politics.

Richard Dyer has stated that celebrity culture is bound up with the condition of global capitalism in which "individuals are seen to determine society". Newer technologies (new media), such as cable TV and 24/7 coverage has made today's celebrities manufactured for mass consumption, as opposed to the celebrities of the 30s and 50s who were more self-made.

Reality TV has been a large part of fostering a new celebrity culture that is more interchangeable and recognizable. Cable TV and social media sites such as YouTube have made overnight sensations which have perpetuated today's perception of celebrity culture, e.g., Justin Bieber.

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