Tabloidization: Creating a New Reality for Celebrities

Throughout the semester we’ve discussed celebrity culture and how tabloids exploit popular culture in some instances. Certain celebrities go out of their way to avoid excessive attention. These are the celebrities that generally avoid controversy and the covers of tabloids as a result.

However there remains the celebrities who are constantly on the covers of tabloids for being involved in some scandal. These are the people who either seek the attention, simply don’t think before acting, or both. A current example of this situation can be shown by a photograph taken at a Jean-Paul Gaultier fashion show. This normally wouldn’t cause a stir, however the theme of the show was “pro-fighting” and the celebrity in the photo was Chris Brown. Brown is photographed with Jean-Paul Gaultier, who is in full make-up giving him a beaten appearance. Chris Brown is most recently known for assaulting his famous girlfriend, Rihanna. For someone who is in as precarious of a public relations situation, Chris Brown should be constantly aware of his actions and not allow slip ups like this to occur.

Another example of this is found in the many wardrobe malfunction pictures that have been taken of Lindsay Lohan, Tara Reid and Paris Hilton. When your life is constantly photographed by paparazzis, you should be careful to make sure your body is full covered.

Gilbert Arenas was recently slapped with a suspension from the NBA. He had made the poor decision to bring several guns into the Wizards’ locker room two weeks before his suspension. The suspension, however, was the NBA’s reaction to a gesture he made that was caught on camera. Arenas was photographed “shooting” at his teammates with his fingers. The gestures cost him the suspension.

Tabloidization in popular culture has created situations in which celebrities need to watch their actions constantly. It’s unfortunate that simple actions, that the average person wouldn’t consider a big deal, need to be guarded for fear of their images being published. It’s unfortunate but it’s still a fact of life for somebody who lives in the spotlight, and should be considered constantly.