A majority of the celebrities American culture idolizes are famous for their talents, such as singing, dancing, or acting. Among talents such as these, superficial aspects like fashion, beauty, fitness, and money are also highlights in the lives of celebrities. All of these components, along with their status of fame and being in the spotlight, allows for some individuals to feel entitled to speak their mind with the presumption that they're right. Despite being in the spotlight and knowing there is a large audience of people who will often hear the statements they make, this does not stop celebrities from saying some of the most self-absorbed, inaccurate, and just plain stupid things to the media.
Celebrities have an advantage with already being in the media, thus being able to voice their opinions on certain issues. This is great for these individuals, as it will allow them to gain press and possibly further their career. However, a universal goal of all celebrities is to avoid "bad press." Although it is hard to say what bad press really is considering some of the most outrageous things have been said by stars that seem to have hardly affected their careers.
One of the most notorious celebrities to make selfish and rude statements without regret is Kanye West. Most would probably recognize him from his famous stunt at the VMA awards in 2009, where he interrupted Taylor Swift's speech after accepting the award for Best Female Video on stage, indicating she should not have won. What many people might not be aware of are the many other uncalled for statements he's made in the media. For instance, claiming AIDS as a man-made disease intended to get rid of "undesirable people." West has also stated how he is basically the greatest being on earth in numerous ways. Kanye West can be thought of as an arrogant and selfish man, however this has not stopped him from being successful. The "bad press" he regularly creates for himself gets people talking about him in the media for brief moments although has never held a negative long term affect on his career.
Many other celebrities have made inappropriate comments on serious subjects. One example is Arnold Shwarzenegger making his view on gay marriage clear by stating gay marriage is something that should be "between a man and a woman." Famous singer Justin Bieber made an insensitive remark towards Anne Frank, saying "Hopefully she would have been a believer" which is extremely irrelevant to his music in comparison to Frank being an iconic figure representing victims of the Holocaust. However, even these cases still didn't seem to affect Bieber and Shwarzenneger's careers either.
Comments like these from the celebrities we often put on pedestals can make one wonder what the importance of our culture is like. The fame these individuals have gained is hardly relevant to real world issues or concerns they often make such strong statements on. This is not to say all celebrities are as pompous as some, but certain stars have gained self-entitlement to say and do whatever they want along with their fame. From a personal standpoint, stupid incidents like the ones stated are all very entertaining, and that't what the media is primarily for; entertainment.
Some of the things celebrities say can be extremely offensive but that is why they get so much attention for it. It gets people talking. I think the media should focus more on people who are relevant to the issues being quoted on, as well as respectable figures. Unfortunately, American culture seems to enjoy the offensive and foolish incidents more. There is not a lot that can be changed of the ways celebrities respond to incidents and how the media covers it; it is mainly for entertainment and I think that people make fun of the stars more often than take real offense to it.
