Why is it that women are obsessed with Celebrity?

chalad07

I often wonder why women are so into Celebs's and Celeb culture. I really dont understand how normally intelliegent women, suddenly turn into complete idiots when a copy of 'Now' is placed in front of them. Who cares if Britney has changed her hair? Does it really matter if Angelina Jolie is up the spout again?

I've flicked through some of these mags and i just cant get my head around it. There are whole sections dedicated to what Celebs have been spotted out and about durning the week - things like 'Will Young spotted buying a pint of milk' or 'Robbie picks up his dry cleaning!!'

Is it some sort of sick voyeuristic tendancies? Is it envy? Disgust?

I know some girls are going to counter with 'Well guys buy FHM'. This an absolute unfair comparison, mags like FHM are sometimes pretty interesting (plus theres Boobies). Even females could sit down and enjoy some of the articles.

Women surley know that everything printed in these magazines is bull****. Okay, in a way it might be viewed as escapism, but would they be as interested if i started making up random things and sticking it on line. If you want escapism read a book, dont fawn over pictures of Jordans babies,

Any thoughts on this?

Kold

Women are idiots. Case closed.

Magpie!

Modern day curtain twitching.

We don't know every detail of our neighbours lives anymore but we know every detail of the celebs.

Throw in modern consumer culture (you might not have Paris Hiltons trust fund but you can put the same handbag as she has on your credit card)

and young womens image issues (Follow Britney's Pills and Yo-Yo Diet in this weeks issue, mock her cellulite in next weeks)

and you get 'Celeb Culture'

Adam

Kold wrote: »

Women are idiots. Case closed.

QFT.

It is soap opera and fodder for bonding over small talk.
Just like soccer tbh.

taidghbaby

Moonbaby wrote: »

It is soap opera and fodder for bonding over small talk.
Just like soccer tbh.

dont you ever again consider comparing wimmins idiotic obsessions, with the fantastic, wonderful worldwide institution that is soccer!!!!!!!! :mad:

Call Me Jimmy

Just like soccer? Go home. I don't watch football for conversation-fodder.

kowloon

Moonbaby wrote: »

It is soap opera and fodder for bonding over small talk.
Just like soccer tbh.

Got there before me, some of the player worship I've heard is just as, if not worse, than that of the gossip rags.

MIN2511

Am female, i don't understand the obsession with celebs(they are fecking human beings!) and i love soccer...ManUtd to be exact :P

Call Me Jimmy

If there is over-the-top player worship it is much more justified than an interest in celebrity. Most people who watch football play, or have played football before and realise how much skill is involved.

If they worship anyone for being amazing on a football pitch it's much more justified than worshipping celebrity. None of these people who buy Now etc. are interested in it because of the ability of actors/singers, they are interested because the people in it are famous. And I don't know any football supporters who are interested in pictures of Wayne Rooney walking his dog.

Just leave your comparisons at home with your sandy vagina.

shenanigans1982

chalad07 wrote: »

I know some girls are going to counter with 'Well guys buy FHM'. This an absolute unfair comparison, mags like FHM are sometimes pretty interesting (plus theres Boobies). Even females could sit down and enjoy some of the articles.

Exactly, Lets see Hello/Ok give you tips if you are attacked by a group of sharks or if bears force you up into a tree.

I thought the obsession was more to do with fashion, for some reason girls seem compelled to copy what other girls wear and it all starts with celebrities.

The only other reason I can think of is to see how ****ed up their lives are and make them feel better about their own....can't really think of any other reason for Kerry Katona to exist.

Terry

Call Me Jimmy wrote: »

If there is over-the-top player worship it is much more justified than an interest in celebrity. Most people who watch football play, or have played football before and realise how much skill is involved.

If they worship anyone for being amazing on a football pitch it's much more justified than worshipping celebrity. None of these people who buy Now etc. are interested in it because of the ability of actors/singers, they are interested because the people in it are famous. And I don't know any football supporters who are interested in pictures of Wayne Rooney walking his dog.

Just leave your comparisons at home with your sandy vagina.

Dear angry soccer fan.

That sport sucks donkey balls and those at the highest level are overpaid pussies.

I congratulate you for buying into this over exposed scam and for paying their exorbitant wages.

Please don't throw a bottle at me.

Stargal

Threads like this are snobbery of the worst kind. OP, you know exactly why women are interested in celebrities. It's because they're there. It's because they fill a void. It's because women's magazines are so forehead-smackingly dumb that they fill their content with crap like why Sienna Miller is a serial dater (zOmg!) or how Angelina Jolie stopped being a wild child and turned into a serial breeder and a lot of women don't stop and think 'hey you know what, this isn't actually all that interesting', instead they just don't think at all - they don't engage - and keep spending their money on perpetuating this crap.

A lot of women read celeb magazines because yeah, they are dumb. They haven't stopped to think, really think about what it is that they're doing and what they could be doing instead. Alternatives to traditional women's magazines have been springing up lately (Jezebel, which I ) which acknowledge that women don't want to know what minor celebrities are doing every second of the day (but don't mind hearing major celeb news every now and then) alongside well-written, funny articles about stuff that affects women in general. And guess what? They're getting massive readerships at the same time as women's magazines are haemorrhaging readers. Go figure.

In their defence, nobody buys Heat magazine to see a picture of Will Young in his dressing gown or whatever example it was that you gave. That's the peripheral stuff that women accept as being part of these mags. They buy them because of the cover stories and the promise of new information and gossip about famous people that they like (so mags with Brad and Ange always sell loads of copies while putting Jude Law on the cover of one mag led to its lowest sales all year).

I don't like celeb magazines. I don't like seeing photos of Jennifer Garner out with her daughter looking angrily at the camera as some sleazeball photographer takes her picture. But dear God, I will defend to the death the right of women (and men, for that matter) to discuss celebrities. It doesn't have to be idiotic, it doesn't have to be mindless. I'm not dumb enough to pretend that celeb culture isn't ever either of those things but I'm saying it doesn't have to be.

I know some girls are going to counter with 'Well guys buy FHM'. This an absolute unfair comparison, mags like FHM are sometimes pretty interesting (plus theres Boobies). Even females could sit down and enjoy some of the articles.

I didn't just lol when I read that, I cracked a rib from laughing so heartily. I coughed up a lung. I rolled around on the ground, begging for mercy from the hilarity. You joke, yes?

'Mags like FHM are sometimes pretty interesting'? Magazines like FHM, Nuts and Zoo are as knuckle-draggingly stupid as any women's celebrity magazine that you want to name. They're insulting to men. I would, and indeed, do, judge anyone that I see reading them, in the exact way that many posters here judge people who read celebrity magazines.

They provide exactly the same thing to men as the celeb mags do to women. [Well, almost. I've yet to see someone masturbating to a copy of Heat]. It's escapism. It's appealing to the lowest common denominators of both. It's saying that men only care about sex and macho stuff and women only care about what other women are doing. Both those ideas are so antiquated, so laughable that it's embarrassing. But the magazines still sell gazillions of copies each week.

So don't even try to pretend that men's magazines are remotely better than women's magazines. Because they're not.

V9

MIN2511 wrote: »

Am female, i don't understand the obsession with celebs(they are fecking human beings!) and i love soccer...ManUtd to be exact :P

Agree with the former. The latter satement makes me dislike you. All in good fun of course

Stargal

Hmmm. That post was a lot longer than I thought it was going to be.

Sherifu

Famous for being in a house with strangers...I hate those ones.

Give 'em hell Stargal :pac:

Like what is that all about!

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

mens magazines are infinitely better than their female counterparts, they have boobies. the more, the better.

although I will agree, anyone who buys nuts/fhm etc for the articles is as brain dead as hello readers.

MIN2511

V!alli wrote: »

Agree with the former. The latter satement makes me dislike you. All in good fun of course

hehehhe:p:p

Macha

Wow great post...I'd add that female celebrities are held up as physical ideals for women & so it's sort of a self-flaggelation by watching all those photos of women looking perfect.

Then they flip it around & start circling the cellulite & strech marks on these women to make us feel better. Drag them up & then throw them down. It's disgusting.

Call Me Jimmy

Call Me Jimmy wrote: »

Just leave your comparisons at home with your sandy vagina.

9 out of 10 users prefer to use the term molten silk to describe my snatch thanks.
I suggest you give your rot ridden knob a good descale with liquid sand and steelwool, before you decide to criticise any more ladies parts.

Terry

Moonbaby wrote: »

9 out of 10 users prefer to use the term molten silk to describe my snatch thanks.
I suggest you give your rot ridden knob a good descale with liquid sand and steelwool, before you decide to criticise any more ladies parts.

I suggest you both STFU.

Tar.Aldarion

moonbaby wrote:

9 out of 10 users prefer to use the term molten silk to describe my snatch.

Must get in most sigs possible.

chalad07

Stargal wrote: »

'Mags like FHM are sometimes pretty interesting'? Magazines like FHM, Nuts and Zoo are as knuckle-draggingly stupid as any women's celebrity magazine that you want to name. They're insulting to men. I would, and indeed, do, judge anyone that I see reading them, in the exact way that many posters here judge people who read celebrity magazines.

They provide exactly the same thing to men as the celeb mags do to women. [Well, almost. I've yet to see someone masturbating to a copy of Heat]. It's escapism. It's appealing to the lowest common denominators of both. It's saying that men only care about sex and macho stuff and women only care about what other women are doing. Both those ideas are so antiquated, so laughable that it's embarrassing. But the magazines still sell gazillions of copies each week.

So don't even try to pretend that men's magazines are remotely better than women's magazines. Because they're not.

I totally disagree with this. I'm not for one minute claiming that mens mags are high art, far from it, but they are a million miles away from the likes of heat or whatever. A typical issue of FHM consists of actual news, real things that are happening around the world. Heat is literally composed the random thoughts of some London Editor making things up off the top of his head. News, sports, humour, movies, books, women are all covered in something like FHM,

(i cant believe i'm defending it so much, i rarely read them - but i can understand the appeal way more than Heat),

I'm not familiar with Jezobel, that sounds like something that can be compared to Zoo or whatever.

You say no one buys Heat for the little Will Young dressing gown stories, that they are bought for their cover stories. Tell me exactly how this differs from Cover stories such as "becks talks about his bulge' (on Heat.com's front page)?

The argument that it's just a conversation point is null. Women spend hours talking about what are clear falsehoods (women know this too), when i'm sure women have a lot more interesting things to talk about than Beck's bulge (i hope!!),

And easy on with the Snobbery comments, i'm genuinely interested!

Magpie!

Terry wrote: »

I suggest you both STFU.

Is he always this cranky or is it just the last couple of days?

kowloon

One thing I have noticed is that there are as many, if not more, "fashion" ads in some of the mens magazines. A watch or perfume every second page ffs!

FruitLover

Stargal wrote: »

Magazines like FHM, Nuts and Zoo are as knuckle-draggingly stupid as any women's celebrity magazine that you want to name

You've obviously never actually read through FHM if you're comparing it with Nuts and Zoo. The latter two are the 'Daily Star' of men's magazines. FHM is more like a printout of After Hours.

Stargal wrote: »

So don't even try to pretend that men's magazines are remotely better than women's magazines. Because they're not.

Now this is bizarre. When's the last time you read an article on the various steps of cocaine production (or anything else even remotely interesting) in Heat? When's the last time you read bitchy comments about 'Brad Pitt's stretch marks' or whatever (complete with zoomed-in photo of a barely noticeable blemish) in FHM?

kowloon wrote: »

One thing I have noticed is that there are as many, if not more, "fashion" ads in some of the mens magazines. A watch or perfume every second page ffs!

This is because the men behind FHM, being significantly smarter than the women behind Heat, recognize a lucrative advertising market.

Terry

Magpie! wrote: »

Is he always this cranky or is it just the last couple of days?

Always.
I would have banned them, but I'm on a bit of a sabbatical.

kowloon

FruitLover wrote: »

You've obviously never actually read through FHM if you're comparing it with Nuts and Zoo. The latter two are the 'Daily Star' of men's magazines. FHM is more like a printout of After Hours.



Now this is bizarre. When's the last time you read an article on the various steps of cocaine production (or anything else even remotely cerebral) in Heat? When's the last time you read bitchy comments about 'Brad Pitt's stretch marks' or whatever (complete with zoomed-in photo of a barely noticeable blemish) in FHM?

You'll never find anything cerebral printed on glossy paper sitting on a shelf in Spar.

Latchy

QUOTE=kowloon;56839181]One thing I have noticed is that there are as many, if not more, "fashion" ads in some of the mens magazines. A watch or perfume every second page ffs!

i recently was sent one of those mens mags free (cant remember which one ) with the idea of getting me to subscribe .There was roughly about 147 pages in the mag and at least 95 % were for advertisements .The few articles inside ie ' how to have the perfect 6 pack ' were unintresting to say the least .

Wibbs

Moonbaby wrote: »

9 out of 10 users prefer to use the term molten silk to describe my snatch thanks.

I'm curious to find out what the one outa ten user describes it as....

If a martian landed tomorrow and looked in an average newsagents he would contend that women like pink, large text, fashion diets, stories like "I was pregnant at nine with ma fifth babay", were somewhat confused about whether to love a famous woman because she was pretty and rich or to hate the same woman because she had a lumpy bum. While men would like the same bum of the famous woman airbrushed of course, six packs, cars and watches they'll never hope to own and big stereos.

It must be said that while mens mags are near enough similar drivel, mags aimed at men show much more diversity. Look at the hobby and leisure mags, they would have a low enough female readership.

Magpie!

American womens magazines are the worst for advertising.

I once counted 43 pages of ads BEFORE the contents page in American Vogue.

Most magazines are glorified luxury goods catalogues.

kowloon

Magpie! wrote: »

American womens magazines are the worst for advertising.

I once counted 43 pages of ads BEFORE the contents page in American Vogue.

Most magazines are glorified luxury goods catalogues.

43 pages, ouch! Of course the people reading the rags love ads, lets them know what to buy so they can live happily ever after, at least until a bigger capacity ipod comes out.

SimpleSam06

Call Me Jimmy wrote: »

If there is over-the-top player worship it is much more justified than an interest in celebrity. Most people who watch football play, or have played football before and realise how much skill is involved.

Terry did a good job with this, so I'll refrain from any 22 sweaty men with shaved legs jogging about kicking the leather in small little shorts being so attractive to certain men comments.

chalad07 wrote: »

I totally disagree with this. I'm not for one minute claiming that mens mags are high art, far from it, but they are a million miles away from the likes of heat or whatever. A typical issue of FHM consists of actual news, real things that are happening around the world. Heat is literally composed the random thoughts of some London Editor making things up off the top of his head. News, sports, humour, movies, books, women are all covered in something like FHM,

Its a bit of mystery to me why anyone would buy mags anymore anyway, what with most of any information you would want only a google away.

/womens GAA lover

juvenal

kowloon wrote: »

You'll never find anything cerebral printed on glossy paper sitting on a shelf in Spar.

Magpie! wrote: »

Most magazines are glorified luxury goods catalogues.

+ ∞

Latchy

SimpleSam06 wrote: »

Its a bit of mystery to me why anyone would buy mags anymore anyway, what with most of any information you would want only a google away.

/womens GAA lover

Magazines are easier to hold in bed than a lap top but it has to be somthing worth reading ,like vanity fair or a british/irish equvilent for my tastes

Call Me Jimmy

SimpleSam06 wrote: »

Terry did a good job with this, so I'll refrain from any 22 sweaty men with shaved legs jogging about kicking the leather in small little shorts being so attractive to certain men comments.

/womens GAA lover

I don't think that he did. He tried coming at it from the angry pleb soccer fan angle but didn't really make any relevant points about the comparison between enjoying football and reading celebrity stories like "Charlotte Church Gains Weight During Pregnancy".

LolaLuv

Moonbaby wrote: »

9 out of 10 users prefer to use the term molten silk to describe my snatch thanks.

That was priceless! It would make an awesome girl-band name, imo.

SimpleSam06

Call Me Jimmy wrote: »

I don't think that he did. He tried coming at it from the angry pleb soccer fan angle but didn't really make any relevant points about the comparison between enjoying football and reading celebrity stories like "Charlotte Church Gains Weight During Pregnancy".

Both are and really should be enjoyed by primarily women?

Terry

Call Me Jimmy wrote: »

I don't think that he did. He tried coming at it from the angry pleb soccer fan angle but didn't really make any relevant points about the comparison between enjoying football and reading celebrity stories like "Charlotte Church Gains Weight During Pregnancy".

Wayne Rooney does a granny shocker.
Wayne Rooney is paid £10 millon a year (I don't know the exact figure).

The fact is, you buy the jersey and contribute to this crap.

It's all 'hey, look at me. I'm wearing the latest grey man u* shirt. It cosy me €80 and I'm proud to say that this money goes towards paying the wage of some dick who wil dive at the first chance and try to get a day off.

It's not even a sport.
It's just a bunch of prima donnas preening themselves for the next after shave ad they are offered.

*or whatever team.

Serously, big bunch of pussies.
Prove me wrong.

Call Me Jimmy

I was hoping you were joking about that 22 sweaty men running around a field argument but obviously not, so I'll call it quits.

SimpleSam06

Terry wrote: »

Serously, big bunch of pussies.
Prove me wrong.

Well Vinnie Jones does do his best to come across as being double hard in fairness, although he could have done a better job of the leering in swordfish.

Call Me Jimmy wrote: »

I was hoping you were joking about that 22 sweaty men running around a field argument but obviously not, so I'll call it quits.

Ah don't feel bad, I have no problem abusing millions of people while simultaneously cheering on women who actually enjoy it.

Magpie!

oops. Wrong thread.

Call Me Jimmy

Terry wrote: »

Wayne Rooney does a granny shocker.
Wayne Rooney is paid £10 millon a year (I don't know the exact figure).

The fact is, you buy the jersey and contribute to this crap.

It's all 'hey, look at me. I'm wearing the latest grey man u* shirt. It cosy me €80 and I'm proud to say that this money goes towards paying the wage of some dick who wil dive at the first chance and try to get a day off.

It's not even a sport.
It's just a bunch of prima donnas preening themselves for the next after shave ad they are offered.

*or whatever team.

Serously, big bunch of pussies.
Prove me wrong.

Ok, here goes your argument... I haven't spent a penny on anything that would contribute to them. Your argument assumes that I am an idiot which is fair enough after the sandy vagina comment but I haven't bought a jersey I don't think since I was 8, and that was for my birthday, I remember because I got number 8, "Ince" on the back. I don't have sky or any other pay per view channel.

So I don't BUY into anything. In fact even if I did contribute financially towards it it doesn't mean that I would have to have been duped and that you are the only enlightened person who sees what a scam it is.

I agree somewhat about the pussies comment but I think it isn't necessarily that the players these days are pussies (many are) but that over time and with the increasing amounts of money involved, challenges that are technically a foul have to be punished, so what constitutes a foul is now a lot less. here's a post from a good while back I made: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=55750988&postcount=61

Having said that, even though the tackling side of the game has been diminished I still get a lot of satisfaction out of watching good passes and movement, great shots and goals because I used to play and I realise how difficult it is. That's why I like it. And that's why most people like particular sports.

Even if football became completely non-contact like basketball it would still be a sport. I pray that that won't happen but I see that there is a trend towards it at the moment. I'de say I'de still watch it because of the attacking aspects of it.

taidghbaby

we've had stargal in throwing her opinions but where are all the soccer mods?????
oh yeah out havin the fun because its a friday an they're the cool!! :cool:

anyway on topic i think the reason women obsess on celebrities and men on sport etc, is because it takes them away from the reality of there own life-something a bit different and strange!!
everyone needs some extra-cirricular to interest them, no matter how stupid it seems top the next person!!!

GirlInterrupted

Moonbaby wrote: »

9 out of 10 users prefer to use the term molten silk to describe my snatch thanks.
I suggest you give your rot ridden knob a good descale with liquid sand and steelwool, before you decide to criticise any more ladies parts.

Moonbaby, thats just beautiful .

Peared

Men have football so they don't have to think about their lives.

Women have celebrity magazines cos they think about their lives too much.

In peareds esteemed opinion.

Davidius

Football is crap and women's magazines are stupid. :pac:

Kold

Peared wrote: »

Men have football so they don't have to think about their lives.

Women have celebrity magazines cos they think about their lives too much.

In peareds esteemed opinion.

Fail. Fail. Fail.


Men have dicks so they have a reason to think about women. Women don't think.

hussey

Personally I love reading about fuckwits screwing up their lives. Puts a smile on my face when I read about how someone who has lots of money can make the same small mistakes that I do ... Like screwing a $1000 escort with a bag full of coke and then saying sorry to my WAG by buying her a $100k car and diamond ring

Exactly like my life

Amazotheamazing

What's weird is you rarely see a men's magazine put a celebrity male down, there's far more hero worship.

In women's magazines, half the content is about trying to convince people really pretty women are in fact, really ugly.

Odd, I really think men don't like seeing their heros broken down whereas women generally enjoy the negativity, don't know why though.

Latchy

Peared wrote: »

Men have football so they don't have to think about their lives.

Men have football as a distraction to life ,an escapisim of sorts but even footballers are thinking about scoring on and off the field .

Women have celebrity magazines cos they think about their lives too much.

QUOTE]

Women have magazines as a distraction to lifes mundane realitys ,also an escapisim while they wait for the footballer to show up