From Taylor Swift to Harry Styles, celebrities have become idols to many people around the world. Their popularity has caused many to become die-hard fans and practically worship the ground these celebrities walk on, but this idolization isn’t always a good thing.
The lives of celebrities are often broadcasted around the world because of paparazzi and social media. Information that would otherwise be kept private, is splashed on the news front page as people scramble to find information about their favorite star. Sophomore Amaya Williams believes celebrities should be able to keep their private lives to themselves.
“They don’t have a moment to themselves, if they don’t share anything with the world they’re considered sneaky or liars. They’re human, so I feel like they should be able to live private lives. They shouldn’t have to tell us when somebody died in their family or if they’re pregnant,” Williams said.
The attachment people have to celebrities can lead to them believing that they have a right to their lives. This behavior is only solidified with paparazzi and news sites sharing information down to the last move a celebrity made. English teacher Amy Markan used to live in California for two years and often saw this behavior from tourists and new residents.
“For people who grow up in California, they’re used to photographers, but there’s people like me who either go visit or go for the first time to move and they are crazy. They will run after people and stalk people and it’s insane. I’ve seen people when I lived there in that short time attack celebrities. I remember somebody had [been] portrayed a cheater and I remember this lady laid into him. Let’s say he’s a cheater in every TV show, they’ll probably think that person is like that in a relationship,” Markan said.
Another aspect of society’s obsession with celebrities is celebrity crushes. While most people have a famous person they have a crush on, some may take it to the extreme. Freshman Kaytlin Price understands an innocent crush, but she finds anything more to be unusual.
“If you have a celebrity crush, I think it’s fine. I think it gives you someone to look up to and somebody to cling to, so I think it’s positive. I think if someone’s like ‘Oh, they’re mine’ and claim this person they don’t even know they’re overdoing it. There’s a difference between ‘I have a crush’ and saying that they’re mine,” Price said.
Because of their status, celebrities are often seen as untouchable. Even if they make mistakes, superfans are ready to defend their favorites at a moment’s notice. Sophomore Bailey Cunningham finds the unwillingness of certain followers to hold celebrities accountable to be problematic.
“There’s one side that thinks celebrities should get consequences and there’s another side that thinks they shouldn’t. I think they see them as perfect beings, and they see that they can do no wrong because they’ve idolized them for so long,” Cunnighman said. “Even if their subconscious is telling them ‘Oh, that’s wrong’ they’ll still defend them because they have for so long. If that person they’re idolizing is seen as imperfect, they’re going to feel like they’re imperfect.”
With all of these things added together, celebrities deal with invasions of privacy on the daily. Secrets are nonexistent in their lives as they deal with invasive fans and paparazzi everywhere they go. Choir director Karyn Myers believes the paparazzi can be a source of anger for celebrities as they don’t get peace.
“I think it’s wrong, and it’s really frustrating that people can’t have any privacy because paparazzi feel like it’s their business to follow celebrities around and to invade their privacy,” Myers said. “They stalk them outside their home or follow them everywhere, they go or get up in their face, and especially when celebrities have their children with them. That’s really frustrating and it can be very dangerous. They’re so invested in trying to get that exceptional picture that they can put others in danger.”
Many people have looked up to celebrities for a long time as they have become figureheads in society. While this idolization can give people somebody to look up too, the line can easily be crossed by obsessed fans.
