What’s Wrong with our Celebrity Obsessed Media
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The cult of celebrity is killing our culture.
Roger Ebert perfectly captures something I have been frustrated with for a long time:
The AP, long considered obligatory to the task of running a North American newspaper, has been hit with some cancellations lately, and no doubt has been informed what its customers want: Affairs, divorces, addiction, disease, success, failure, death watches, tirades, arrests, hissy fits, scandals, who has been “seen with” somebody, who has been “spotted with” somebody, and “top ten” lists of the above. (Celebs “seen with” desire to be seen, celebs “spotted with” do not desire to be seen.)
The CelebCult virus is eating our culture alive, and newspapers voluntarily expose themselves to it. It teaches shabby values to young people, festers unwholesome curiosity, violates privacy, and is indifferent to meaningful achievement. One of the TV celeb shows has announced it will cover the Obama family as “a Hollywood story.” I want to smash something against a wall.
(via kottke and The Denver Egotist)
4 Comments, Comment or Ping
Rob
Very well said indeed. I agree wholeheartedly. It saddens me to see this countries obsession with seeing people fall. There’s a hurting world in need of hope and we can’t stop talking about what a crazed movie star did at a sonic driv-thru. ugh. I better stop my rant here.
Dec 5th, 2008
ryanmoede
Thanks for the rant, Rob, it’s certainly can be appropriate for a story like this! Thankfully there are folks working on creating redemptive culture, too.
Dec 6th, 2008
Josh
what happened at a sonic drive through?
Dec 9th, 2008
ryanmoede
Not sure I want to know.
Dec 9th, 2008
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