Author Spotlight
At the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards, Miley Cyrus captured the eyes of the world by running around in latex underwear, grinding on teddy bears and twerking on Robin Thicke. The next morning, her performance was the top story on CNN and she received close to one million likes on her Instagrams from that night, all for a performance that was off-pitch and obscene.
These days, it seems as if our society cares more about celebrities’ actions rather than the message they are sending through these actions. That is why the Harbinger believes celebrities should be conscious of how they portray themselves in the media, and as a society we should not give attention to this behavior.
We need to put down our phones and close our tabloids. We need to give people like Amanda Bynes their privacy, and focus on news that might actually matter. Instead of reading about how Kim Kardashian is losing her baby weight, students should spend more time educating themselves on what the government shutdown is, or what affordable health care means for us.
Whether these celebrities realize it or not, high school students are now exposed to their every move through outlets like Twitter and Instagram, and their behavior does affect us.
According to a study done by the Kaiser Family Foundation, teens spend around seven and a half hours a day consuming different media outlets that are bombarding us with the every move of the rich and famous. In addition, according to the Consumer Magazine Advertising Source
popular tabloids, like the National Enquirer, are selling on average five million copies a week.
Other large, reputable news sources such as NBC and the Huffington Post are also catching onto this Hollywood obsession. On any given day of the week, one of the top stories on CNN will be about some celebrity either cancelling their tour or behaving badly. The Huffington Post also has a whole celebrity section devoted to covering aspect of celebrity life.
The fact that we are now consuming entertainment news more than ever makes a star’s public image critical.
Last month, Jaden Smith tweeted, “If Everybody In The World Dropped Out Of School We Would Have A Much More Intelligent Society.” Last week, Justin Bieber was pictured on Instagram smoking marijuana for the second or third time. Rihanna Instagrams a new picture of herself half-naked almost every day.
Like all human beings, celebrities should be held responsible for their actions and the messages they send out. Starlets should not be out racking up multiple DUIs, and as a society we should not be plastering them on the covers of glossy magazines.
In the media, celebrities are portrayed with desirable characteristics such as talent, wealth and beauty. It is human nature for us to want those qualities for ourselves, as well.
Should we really be striving to be obscene like Miley Cyrus or as insolent as Justin Bieber? Do we need to care about the every moves of washed up celebrities like Charlie Sheen or Chris Brown?
It’s almost like training a dog, let’s reinforce positive celebrity behavior rather than negative. Let’s pay more attention to the humanitarian actions of Bono and Angelina Jolie, rather than the clubbing antics of Paris Hilton. If stars see a change in our attitudes, then they will shift their attitudes as well to stay in the public eye.
If we can stop caring about celebrities who aren’t making real contributions to society, then maybe they can stop caring about what over-the-top stunt they will have to pull next to gain our attention. We can become more informed and well-rounded citizens, and Miley Cyrus will put some clothes on. Everybody wins.
Leave a Reply