2008 Woodie Awards
Celebrity obsessed
Society too focused on rich and famous
Brandon Williams
Issue date: 1/31/08 Section: Opinion
I don't know what's worse - celebrities acting irrationally and creating ridiculous scenes or how Americans just seem to be waiting for the next big celebrity crime or calamity, then analyzing and discussing the situations obsessively.
Recently while in the checkout line at Wal-Mart, I happened to glance over at the magazines and three of the entertainment magazines had Britney Spears on the front cover. At that moment I felt a portion of my patriotism vanish while getting hit by the realization that our country cares too much about our stars. It's a scary thought knowing that half our country probably couldn't tell you their state senators yet could recite from memory brief biographies for half a dozen actors.
I'm ashamed to say that I might belong to this group. I couldn't tell you what Johnny Depp's uncle's favorite color is or identify most actors by name even but I do spend time gaining trivial facts on all sorts of things while missing out on some of the major world-changing events surrounding me. How many people can honestly say they've heard about the conflicts and humanitarian crisis in Congo that has claimed over 5 million lives in a decade?
It's ridiculous how these crimes happen everyday in public, yet until a celebrity commits a crime we seem to show little concern on addressing the problems. Take for example Michael Vick and his dog fighting; animal abuse has always been around but only after Vick was caught was some serious attention given to the issue.
We spend weeks with our talk shows and news channels discussing the problems of our celebrities, criticizing them and suggesting what they should do. Well I have a suggestion for the general public: Get concerned with something bigger than this.
Recently while in the checkout line at Wal-Mart, I happened to glance over at the magazines and three of the entertainment magazines had Britney Spears on the front cover. At that moment I felt a portion of my patriotism vanish while getting hit by the realization that our country cares too much about our stars. It's a scary thought knowing that half our country probably couldn't tell you their state senators yet could recite from memory brief biographies for half a dozen actors.
I'm ashamed to say that I might belong to this group. I couldn't tell you what Johnny Depp's uncle's favorite color is or identify most actors by name even but I do spend time gaining trivial facts on all sorts of things while missing out on some of the major world-changing events surrounding me. How many people can honestly say they've heard about the conflicts and humanitarian crisis in Congo that has claimed over 5 million lives in a decade?
It's ridiculous how these crimes happen everyday in public, yet until a celebrity commits a crime we seem to show little concern on addressing the problems. Take for example Michael Vick and his dog fighting; animal abuse has always been around but only after Vick was caught was some serious attention given to the issue.
We spend weeks with our talk shows and news channels discussing the problems of our celebrities, criticizing them and suggesting what they should do. Well I have a suggestion for the general public: Get concerned with something bigger than this.
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