Celebrity Politics

     Celebrities and politicians in today’s society seem to be synonymous terms. Celebrities are becoming more and more  involved in political and philanthropic activities. In my opinion, they are only getting involved in these pro-active endeavors for PR motives and positive publicity. Some even run for office, like Arnold Schwarzenegger. Celebs like Angelina Jolie and Oprah become involved in political events and take strong stands about certain issues. Consequently, politicians are taking on the role of celebrities. Politicians are becoming “A” list celebs and even appear in celebrity magazines, go to red carpet events, and star in their own reality T.V. shows. Former presidents even come together to do charitable events which the article calls a “celebrity duet”. For example, former Presidents Bush and Clinton joined forces to help the Tsunami efforts which brought attention. By politicians becoming celebs, they receive more attention in hope of winning their position.

In politicians defense, they are thrusted into the spot light when they take an important office. Celebrities are not placed in political positions when they reach stardom. Take Sarah Palin for example, who now has her own reality television show, “Alaska”. She is famous because she is a politician, but I do believe she is definitely taking advantage of the publicity in hopes of taking office in the future. 

Due to this political stardom, “gossip journalism” has become the new trend. Tabloids and Americans in general thrive on the drama that goes on in not just celebrities lives, but the lives of our political leaders. Talk regarding their stances and their causes becomes old news, and gossip about their affairs and scandals becomes important. Politician’s public images sometimes get ruined because of scandals regarding issues such as drugs, alleged affairs, and fraud.

Overall, politicians and celebrities alike know how to work the system. They know that charisma, honesty, and a good appearance usually create ethos. The audience loves a credible celeb, but with “gossip journalism”, politician’s ethos can be ruined easily. Luckily for celebs, their ethos can only be built up thanks to their “great works” for charity or the environment. I believe that the celebrity phenomenon does present a problem for American politics which in turn hurt the American government. As mentioned in the readings, people will be more likely to vote for a famous politician before voting for a less famous one, which might put the wrong people in office to run our government. Some politicians do not always have the people’s interests at heart, and their celebrity status will overrule the politicians who are truly credible.