Recently I’ve been spending some time thinking about celebrities. I saw part of an episode of Entertainment Tonight recently. I was immediately turned off by the content and the hosts. But I can’t stop thinking about that show. What I’m mostly concerned about is it’s existence. Its also been on the air for quite a while too. Wikipedia reports that its been around since 1982! I think this proves there must be some persistent market for celebrity gossip. (Honestly, I think that goes without saying but I had to back up my point) People are actually watching this show and paying for tabloids, etc etc.

But why? Who cares? I’m fascinated by this idea that having someone’s face repeatedly exposed to you in the context of a show or movie produces some weird level of connection. I think I have a hard time understanding that connection because I watch very few movies and even fewer TV shows. But it must be there. Why else would anyone care so much about a complete stranger?

I saw a celebrity on a subway car once. I think it was Penelope Cruz, but I don’t know celebrities’ faces so well. Anyway, everyone was watching her and whispering. Then one woman just started talking to her as if she knew this star. This immediately draws me back to the writings of Kenneth Burke. Most notably his essay titled Definition of Man. This is worth a read if you’re not familiar, but otherwise consider his statement about men being “goaded by the spirit of hierarchy”. Celebrities existence seems to expose our self ordering mechanism of hierarchy. I no doubt have this within me just as any human does. I think what strikes me as unsettling is that more people will recognize the name Jennifer Aniston before recognizing the name Geoffrey Chaucher or Enrico Fermi.