The Blame Game

There is a spectrum of differing and unique opinions when it comes to anything that interests people. You could fall into the category of being completely and utterly obsessed with something or you can lean towards wanting nothing to do with it. That leaves a huge pool of mixed and differing opinions on any type of debate. An area of popular culture that raises questions and represents a division of viewpoints is celebrity culture. Celebrities have infiltrated our everyday lives whether it be a song you are listening to, something on TV, or advertisements you may come across. The constant rise of social media further cements celebrities and influencers as a part of our modern culture, opening the floor to an abundance of opinions. You either love them or hate them, but it is undeniable that our society is saturated by them. No matter what you may think about how their platforms are utilized or what they may promote, can we really blame celebrities for the decisions we make as individuals?

Celebrities can serve as role models and genuinely have a positive effect on the public depending on how they use their platform. A lot of good can come from famous culture as many celebrities use their power to highlight and inform the public of important things we should be paying attention to. To note a few examples, many celebrities advocate for the importance of voting during election season, they speak on mental health and ways to take care of ourselves, and a lot promote living a healthy lifestyle. It is easy to become infatuated with the successful lifestyles they live and it is up to us to decide if we wish to look to them as role models.

To shed light on the other side of the debate, celebrity culture can also have negatives as these people do not live realistic lives. They live lush and luxurious lives with abundances of money which is undeniably unrealistic to the average person. This can cause ordinary people to act or think in ways that they shouldn't. A huge issue that continues to occur within celebrity culture is promoting unrealistic body types. Celebrities have the power, money, and resources to present themselves and look in any way they please. They can afford private chefs, nutritionists, personal trainers, and plastic surgeons to attain any body type they wish. The average person cannot afford let alone make time for any of these things. It is a huge issue in young girls who may struggle with their self esteem and body image issues. Another way celebrities get a bad rep is through advertisements or endorsements. There have been many instances where celebs have been caught falsely stating that products help to achieve something that they realistically do not.

The only way to balance this issue is to take accountability as an individual to make decisions for yourself and never let any negative influence interfere with your life. It is okay to admire and at times look up to these people as role models. It is even okay to be influenced by whatever lifestyle or product they are promoting. But it is not fair to blame them for negative choices we make as individuals. We must see things for how they realistically are and in this case the celebrities are most likely getting paid or benefit with whatever they are saying or promoting. At the end of the day, celebrities are paid to influence as they are always promoting their talent/specialty, a certain lifestyle, and many advertisements/endorsements. However it is not up to or the responsibility of famous people to teach society right from wrong. It is important to keep in check with your own reality and personal morals and never let anything negative interfere. We cannot blame celebrities for us buying into their unobtainable and unrealistic lifestyles.