Why are we bombarded with 'Celeb news'?

lufties

Honestly its nice sometimes to be lighthearted and imagine that you had the life of a 'celeb' with all the fame, glitz and glamour attached to it, but really it is just crazy that the media shoves this stuff down out throats.

Personally I couldn't care less about who ronan keating and michael fassbender are going out with, or how many kids chris hemsworth is having. Most of us don't know these people so why would anyone want to know about them. At the end of the day they are humans like the rest of us.
So I wonder why do the media feed us this daily as 'news', perhaps people are just brainwashed? I really don't understand it.

Akrasia

This!!!

One thing that drives me Nuts! is when I'm watching a film on tv and they interrupt the film to bring 'celebrity news'

WTF! I don't give a sh1t about who's having a baby or who's dumped who, or what someone was wearing. Put the film back on!

whiskeyman

lufties wrote: »

So I wonder why do the media feed us this daily as 'news', perhaps people are just brainwashed? I really don't understand it.

Not all media are concerned with c'lebs.
Change your paper / news site...

galah

one is a soccer player (possibly?), the other one sounds German, and the third I've never even heard of in any context. Ignorance is bliss...:D

o1s1n

I'm not bombarded with celebrity news at all. Pick your news sources a bit better OP.

kneemos

Chris Hemsworth is new.

lufties

galah wrote: »

one is a soccer player (possibly?), the other one sounds German, and the third I've never even heard of in any context. Ignorance is bliss...:D

I went on the independent website this morn and saw all this sh1te. Time to never visit it again. Its really really pathetic.

lufties

o1s1n wrote: »

I'm not bombarded with celebrity news at all. Pick your news sources a bit better OP.

Fair enough, but that's not the point, the majority of media outlets have sections devoted to this nonsense.

Staplor

Blame Ron Burgundy:

“Why do we have to tell the people what they need to hear? Why don’t we tell them what they want to hear?”

o1s1n

o1s1n wrote: »

I'm not bombarded with celebrity news at all. Pick your news sources a bit better OP.

Same.

I haven't a clue about any celebrities, have absolutely zero interest in knowing about them either. I sit at break in work and one or two of the girls will mention a dress the kardashians or cheryl cole was wearing, they've usually seen it on the daily mail website.

I don't see it, I don't buy celeb magazines (or any magazines for that matter) I don't buy tabloids, I don't watch expose or watch any news programmes that include "celeb" news. I am blissfully unaware of what is going on in David Beckham's personal life. The only one I have an interest in at the moment in Michael Schumacher as I was a mega F1 fan during his reign, but I don't quite count that as the same thing.

So yeh OP, you don't need to be bombarded with it, you're choosing media sources that bombard you with it. Change them.

deadeye187

lufties wrote: »

Honestly its nice sometimes to be lighthearted and imagine that you had the life of a 'celeb' with all the fame, glitz and glamour attached to it, but really it is just crazy that the media shoves this stuff down out throats.

Personally I couldn't care less about who ronan keating and michael fassbender are going out with, or how many kids chris hemsworth is having. Most of us don't know these people so why would anyone want to know about them. At the end of the day they are humans like the rest of us.
So I wonder why do the media feed us this daily as 'news', perhaps people are just brainwashed? I really don't understand it.

Its to keep the dumb, dumb! Its so cringe this garbage that is on sometimes!. I say it reaches out to lowest common denominator! Well once the person is of age!

PS. Its to distract people to whats really going on in the world!

hedgehog2

Independent have a hardon for that lad from mullingar in the boyband,any reality tv star including a list of bottom of the barrel clebrities who they wine and dine all to msssage that ego of the muppet that is barry egan.
On another note look at rte player the programs always have some misery twist attached to the core,the radio talk shows are full of cranky presenters and negativity and then they spin you trash news of celebrities living it up to make you feel like crap.There are people stetting these agendas,dont buy into it.
Been doing my best to avoid all news unrelated to my career for a long time now.

o1s1n

deadeye187 wrote: »

Its to keep the dumb, dumb! Its so cringe this garbage that is on sometimes!. I say it reaches out to lowest common denominator! Well once the person is of age!

PS. Its to distract people to whats really going on in the world!

It's less about conspiracy theory/keep people dumb etc and more about making money.

This crap makes money. Why? Because a lot of people out there have a streak voyeurism in them. Couple this with the escapism which comes from reading about 'glitzy' lifestyles and you have a winning formula for lots of money.

I don't follow any stupid celebs but its always in my face

I know more about them than my own family

lufties

Deleted User wrote: »

Same.

I haven't a clue about any celebrities, have absolutely zero interest in knowing about them either. I sit at break in work and one or two of the girls will mention a dress the kardashians or cheryl cole was wearing, they've usually seen it on the daily mail website.

I don't see it, I don't buy celeb magazines (or any magazines for that matter) I don't buy tabloids, I don't watch expose or watch any news programmes that include "celeb" news. I am blissfully unaware of what is going on in David Beckham's personal life. The only one I have an interest in at the moment in Michael Schumacher as I was a mega F1 fan during his reign, but I don't quite count that as the same thing.

So yeh OP, you don't need to be bombarded with it, you're choosing media sources that bombard you with it. Change them.

Mucho respecto.

But I know I have a free choice to read it or not. If I want to read an article by Gene Kerrigan in the Independent, you have to scroll past all the 'celeb stuff'. Anyway with all due respect you are not addressing the point of the thread.
Maybe I should have changed the title to "why do the media publish this stuff' then.

lufties

o1s1n wrote: »

It's less about conspiracy theory/keep people dumb etc and more about making money.

This crap makes money. Why? Because a lot of people out there have a streak voyeurism in them. Couple this with the escapism which comes from reading about 'glitzy' lifestyles and you have a winning formula for lots of money.

This probably answers my question sufficiently, It also doesn't hurt those who advocate dumbing down of society too I'd say.

Brian?

Akrasia wrote: »

This!!!

One thing that drives me Nuts! is when I'm watching a film on tv and they interrupt the film to bring 'celebrity news'

I don't believe this had ever happened. They show scheduled nightly news in the middle of some films , but they don't "interrupt" films with celeb news.

In response to the main question, people are given what they want. If everyone stopped buying Hello etc. tomorrow the world may be a better place.

kneemos

The magazine racks are packed with the stuff.Saw seven or eight different different mags with Jordan in the cover one day.
There's obviously a huge demand for for it,even in serious publications like The Times.

Vinz Mesrine

Deleted User wrote: »

I don't follow any stupid celebs but its always in my face

I know more about them than my own family

How is that possible?

lufties

kneemos wrote: »

The magazine racks are packed with the stuff.Saw seven or eight different different mags with Jordan in the cover one day.
There's obviously a huge demand for for it,even in serious publications like The Times.

That's what I thought, I'm moving to the UK soon and it's kinda scary that the people there are so into this nonsense, I'm actually having second thoughts.:(

Gyalist

Celeb news sells and the media know this but it's bread and circuses to keep the majority of people distracted by things that are ultimately unimportant. If most people became aware that the system is rigged against them from the beginning, there would be revolution.

SEPT 23 1989

Gyalist wrote: »

Celeb news sells and the media know this but it's bread and circuses to keep the majority of people distracted by things that are ultimately unimportant. If most people became aware that the system is rigged against them from the beginning, there would be revolution.

+1

was just about to post the same point

when people are too busy cheering everything above they don't notice whats going on around them

lufties

Gyalist wrote: »

Celeb news sells and the media know this but it's bread and circuses to keep the majority of people distracted by things that are ultimately unimportant. If most people became aware that the system is rigged against them from the beginning, there would be revolution.

Good Post!

NegativeCreep

galah wrote: »

one is a soccer player (possibly?), the other one sounds German, and the third I've never even heard of in any context. Ignorance is bliss...:D

You don't know who Ronan Keating is? Sure you don't.

I hate when people pretend not to know famous people because they think it makes them look cool.

I don't really care about celebrities too much but I do read the odd thing on entertainment.ie about certain famous people.
They're just rich, more interesting and better looking versions of us so that's what makes people want to read about them. They entertain us with their various talents and that makes us want to know all about them.

I also hate the fact that people seem to think that others are dumb for having an interest in celebrities. Just because someone reads the odd thing about them doesn't mean it's ALL they do!

Gambas

Gyalist wrote: »

Celeb news sells and the media know this but it's bread and circuses to keep the majority of people distracted by things that are ultimately unimportant. If most people became aware that the system is rigged against them from the beginning, there would be revolution.

I find that I'm able to avoid celeb gossip reasonably easily, by not watching crap tv or reading tabloids or mags.

But it is next near impossible avoiding appallingly bad conspiracy theories, because their proponents see them as a grand unifying theory (aka The Truth) that they can spring on you from just about any topic you can imagine.

eviltimeban

I agree with the OP; as for the Independent, their "Independent Woman" section is ALL 'celeb gossip' - is that what the Independent think all women are interested in, and interested in only? Very condescending.

I HATE celeb mags and gossip. Its mindless. The celebs love it though, especially the Coleen Rooney / Peter Andre types, who seem to live their lives on the pages of magazines. "Kate's New Look" and "Michael's Heartache" and all that. Rubbish. I wouldn't mind, but these people have done nothing, NOTHING to deserve the attention. If it was an article about Paul McCartney, or someone talented, then fair enough. But its not.

I think the REALLY famous people, like the Brad Pitts and so on, try to shun it as much as they can. You only have to see Hugh Grant and his reaction to paparazzi to see how irritating it really is when you *don't* want to be on the pages of these magazines. If you do, then its there for the taking. Step out of some night club - snap. Walk down the street holding a latte - snap. "Latest heartache" - snap. Well done, former Big Brother contestant. You've achieved your goal.

The publications are to blame really. If they didn't publish it, no one would read it. Like the centre pages of the Metro - a paper I've grown to hate - is all that "guilty pleasure" BS. Why bother? Why not expand the film / music / book review section or something? Sport is well represented, so why not the arts? Why the column inches devoted to the celeb rubbish?

anncoates

I'm not bombarded with it?

Depending on large breasts count, I simply don't read or watch it if I choose not to.

_Redzer_

kneemos wrote: »

Chris Hemsworth is new.

I go for a bit of Chris Hemsworth right about now.

biko

lufties wrote: »

So I wonder why do the media feed us this daily as 'news', perhaps people are just brainwashed? I really don't understand it.

They do it for one reason, people buy it.

People like celebs because it's like having friends you can talk about with other friends
"Did you read that Kim Kardashian might be pregnant?"
"Did you read that Solomon Kalou might join Liverpool?"
Women buy glossy papers/magazines about certain celebs. Men buy sports papers/magazines about other celebs.

Men and women both watch and read about Big Brother.
Pure celeb idolatry.

DeanAustin

o1s1n wrote: »

It's less about conspiracy theory/keep people dumb etc and more about making money.

This crap makes money. Why? Because a lot of people out there have a streak voyeurism in them. Couple this with the escapism which comes from reading about 'glitzy' lifestyles and you have a winning formula for lots of money.

Exactly this. People, usually women, love it. And if it makes them happy then fair enough. I try not to pay too much attention. My missus thinks my obsession with football is equally stupid. Horses for courses.

I do laugh at the people who think this puts them in the loop though. I remember one friend talking about Hugh Grant talking to Liz Hurley when he was seeing someone else and the friend pitched it as "And the new girlfriend doesn't even know he's talking to Liz".

Also makes me laugh that someone can't admit they know who Ronan is and another talks about the "that lad from mullingar in the boyband". Easier just to say Niall Horan. I have zero interest in the fella (although I'm delighted to see him do well) but everyone knows his name especially if they know what he does and where he comes from.

SlipperyPeople

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKboLTwzFTs

Jack Gleeson on "I hate Celebrity Culture"

Surprisingly good.

Half an hour long though

donegal__road

I had never heard of Taylor Swift until last year where I read that he/she had made over $50 million. I know that this person is a singer, I still couldn't tell you what gender they are, nor could I be bothered looking it up.

Akrasia

Brian? wrote: »

I don't believe this had ever happened. They show scheduled nightly news in the middle of some films , but they don't "interrupt" films with celeb news.

It absolutely has happened. I can't remember if it was on ITV or Channel 4, but you're watching a film and at around 10pm they interrupt the movie with 'entertainment news' for a couple of minutes

'And now for your live entertainment news update' with irritating jarring music that is actually stuck in my head right now while some sparkly dressed young presenter rattles off the kind boring gossip nonsense and ruins the mood of the film you're trying to watch

I haven't had it happen in a while, maybe they've stopped but it definitely happened.

NegativeCreep

donegal__road wrote: »

I had never heard of Taylor Swift until last year where I read that he/she had made over $50 million. I know that this person is a singer, I still couldn't tell you what gender they are, nor could I be bothered looking it up.

I wish I was as cool as you.

gobnaitolunacy

It's interesting when the media latch onto a 'celeb' when their career is on the rise and everything's rosy. Perfect house, perfect OH, nice clothes.
Then when they make a fcuk up it's an out and out feeding frenzy.

conorhal

Deleted User wrote: »

Same.

I haven't a clue about any celebrities, have absolutely zero interest in knowing about them either. I sit at break in work and one or two of the girls will mention a dress the kardashians or cheryl cole was wearing, they've usually seen it on the daily mail website.

I don't see it, I don't buy celeb magazines (or any magazines for that matter) I don't buy tabloids, I don't watch expose or watch any news programmes that include "celeb" news. I am blissfully unaware of what is going on in David Beckham's personal life. The only one I have an interest in at the moment in Michael Schumacher as I was a mega F1 fan during his reign, but I don't quite count that as the same thing.

So yeh OP, you don't need to be bombarded with it, you're choosing media sources that bombard you with it. Change them.

It's sooooooo pervasive though, I've never heard a single note of a Miley Cyrus song and despite never having watched a second of whatever program the kardashians are involved in, I'm kind of mildly annoyed that despite these facts I somehow still know their names.

lufties

deadeye187 wrote: »

Its to keep the dumb, dumb! Its so cringe this garbage that is on sometimes!. I say it reaches out to lowest common denominator! Well once the person is of age!

PS. Its to distract people to whats really going on in the world!

thats it in one, I might add though that poorer people struggling may need a distraction from daily life so it's good in that sense too

lufties

It's all to do with wording too, The Independent headline today said " Meet Michael Fassbender's model girlfriend', this suggests that readers are part of the celeb culture giving them a sense of belonging and being all part of it. Clever stuff....Not:eek:

Guy:Incognito

Akrasia wrote: »

This!!!

One thing that drives me Nuts! is when I'm watching a film on tv and they interrupt the film to bring 'celebrity news'

WTF! I don't give a sh1t about who's having a baby or who's dumped who, or what someone was wearing. Put the film back on!

What channels do you be watching. I've never seen a film intercepted for celeb news. It would have to be some major well know persons death.

AidanadiA

I am a fan of certain things, and I enjoy the odd tidbit you hear/read about said things but I tend to have to go out and look for it. Join a group that shares my interests etc. On a day to day basis I don't hear or read much about celebrities, though in saying that I don't have tv channels and unless I am watching the dvd of the show or film I want to watch I tend to have my head stuck in a fiction novel or comic. I get my news from the variety of papers we have in work, the customers and from the radio, mostly its the state of the country/world, some tragic accident or greater disaster effecting people.

Lando Griffin

lufties wrote: »

It's all to do with wording too, The Independent headline today said " Meet Michael Fassbender's model girlfriend', this suggests that readers are part of the celeb culture giving them a sense of belonging and being all part of it. Clever stuff....Not:eek:

OMG the one day I didnt get the Indo.
Where can I meet her?

lufties

Lando Griffin wrote: »

OMG the one day I didnt get the Indo.
Where can I meet her?

No idea , talk to Barry Egan maybe...

Agricola

hungoverbunny wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKboLTwzFTs

Jack Gleeson on "I hate Celebrity Culture"

Surprisingly good.

Half an hour long though

Christ. I thought I hated Joffre already, but then he opens his mouth in this vid and now I really want him to get beheaded next season!

hedgehog2

DeanAustin wrote: »

Exactly this. People, usually women, love it. And if it makes them happy then fair enough. I try not to pay too much attention. My missus thinks my obsession with football is equally stupid. Horses for courses.

I do laugh at the people who think this puts them in the loop though. I remember one friend talking about Hugh Grant talking to Liz Hurley when he was seeing someone else and the friend pitched it as "And the new girlfriend doesn't even know he's talking to Liz".

Also makes me laugh that someone can't admit they know who Ronan is and another talks about the "that lad from mullingar in the boyband". Easier just to say Niall Horan. I have zero interest in the fella (although I'm delighted to see him do well) but everyone knows his name especially if they know what he does and where he comes from.

Actually I could not remember his name but knew he helmed from mullingar,you see I take no interest in any of these peopke,happy he has found success but if ut were a table quiz on these things no I would not know his name iff the top of my head,could'nt tell who else is in the group;never heard one of their songs that I am aware off.
Radio try not to listen to
Facebook dont have it
Twitter never used it
Tv occasionally but no Irish channels
Media read only industry journals or finance
Dont follow sport
There wss a time when I was based overseas that I did not check up on any media ir tv for 3 plus years andcya know what it actually enhanced my mindset living like this.
Were not all teenagers who follow made up boybands.

keeponhurling

OP, dont read the Independent. Simple.

It's amazing the number of threads you see around here where people are reading the Independent and complaining about it.

Cienciano

It's as simple as this really:

Deleted User wrote: »

Same.

I haven't a clue about any celebrities, have absolutely zero interest in knowing about them either. I sit at break in work and one or two of the girls will mention a dress the kardashians or cheryl cole was wearing, they've usually seen it on the daily mail website.

I don't see it, I don't buy celeb magazines (or any magazines for that matter) I don't buy tabloids, I don't watch expose or watch any news programmes that include "celeb" news. I am blissfully unaware of what is going on in David Beckham's personal life. The only one I have an interest in at the moment in Michael Schumacher as I was a mega F1 fan during his reign, but I don't quite count that as the same thing.

So yeh OP, you don't need to be bombarded with it, you're choosing media sources that bombard you with it. Change them.

lufties wrote: »

Mucho respecto.

But I know I have a free choice to read it or not. If I want to read an article by Gene Kerrigan in the Independent, you have to scroll past all the 'celeb stuff'. Anyway with all due respect you are not addressing the point of the thread.
Maybe I should have changed the title to "why do the media publish this stuff' then.

Google gean kerrigan indo or something. Bookmark his page. Or stop reading the indo.
It's simple why the media publish it. People are more interested in how big Kim Kardashians arse is, than a war in Syria. You might say "but I'm not", well, you're not the masses. Kim Kardashians dress will get more clicks than the latest masacar in syria, and it's cheaper and easier to report on.

Newspapers are in the business of selling newspapers and advertising space. Kims arse generates them more money

BrensBenz

I'm (ahem) an avid reader of celeb news. I look forward to reading about the (made-up) illnesses, (made-up) dramas, (made-up) near misses and (autocue) opinions of this elite layer of society. My bedroom wall has a picture of Max Clifford (the celeb manufacturer, with an allegedly unseemly hobby) beside my framed photo of Twink. And, as soon as I learned that a Kardashian wasn't a new hybrid car from Asia, I tuned my telly to record every unmissable epizode.

Just think, if I was a celeb, my PR could announce to the meeja that I swam in the Atlantic while a great white shark was sharing the same ocean. Millions of airheads I mean readers would fall for it and spend money for updates.

If I was a royal, I wouldn't even have to sing like a metallic drone, wear stupid hair dos, learn philosophical opinions off-by-heart or perform pole dancing routines without a pole. Millions of citizens of republics would hold their breath, waiting for news of the next royal burp.

Oh, if only........

hedgehog2

I know people who hate celeb gossip but are addicted to British soaps,not sure which is worse really

castletownman

The sooner the Life magazine of the Sunday Independent is brought out of circulation, the better.

Trying to keep long forgetten, former z list celebrities in the public eye just because they showed up at some "la-di-da" function hosted by bankers or other artsy types that Barry Egan happened to be invited to.

Jonny Blaze

eviltimeban wrote: »

I agree with the OP; as for the Independent, their "Independent Woman" section is ALL 'celeb gossip' - is that what the Independent think all women are interested in, and interested in only? Very condescending.

Supply and demand im afraid. They have very simple ways of measuring which articles get more traffic on their site so they produce more of those articles.

If people weren't buying into it it wouldn't exist!

lufties

Cienciano wrote: »

It's as simple as this really:



Google gean kerrigan indo or something. Bookmark his page. Or stop reading the indo.
It's simple why the media publish it. People are more interested in how big Kim Kardashians arse is, than a war in Syria. You might say "but I'm not", well, you're not the masses. Kim Kardashians dress will get more clicks than the latest masacar in syria, and it's cheaper and easier to report on.

Newspapers are in the business of selling newspapers and advertising space. Kims arse generates them more money

As much as I'd love to bury my head in her arse, her life is not interesting to me. Regarding wars etc, us as humans probably do need some light entertainment every now and then, but it is gone ridiculous, it seems being dumb, shallow and pretty-ish is the way to fame and financial success.

To me celebrities are the likes of Robert de niro, Kate Blanchett...those that are talented.