Last month, Mac Miller died and many are speculating it’s because a drug overdose. Reactions were usually that of praise for the artist and his music that radiated positivity. Yet, at the same time, there were a number of people that linked Mac Miller’s death to Ariana Grande, his former significant other. Headlines that suggested she played a role in his death were once prevalent on the internet, but are now replaced by critics of those sources that argue that dragging Ariana Grande into the mix is wrong. I agree with those critics, but this doesn’t simply apply to this one instance. People, as a whole, need to stop publicizing celebrities and their lives.
Ariana Grande did nothing wrong — she left a poor relationship for her own well-being. Dragging her into the debacle once again only publicized a singer who had already lived through a terrorist attack where several of her fans were killed. This doesn’t even touch various other acts of public ridicule and shaming that are often based on sexist standards that misogynists expect Grande to conform to. In this most recent instance, she was targeted as the culprit for Miller’s death. She did nothing wrong, yet she was linked to the tragedy because of her fame and relationship with Miller. If that doesn’t explain celebrity culture, I’m not sure what does.
The microscope aimed at celebrities and their actions is absurd. It gives little room for privacy because their personal lives are essentially public knowledge. In turn, celebrities are forced to appease and are ridiculed if they don’t. They live in what is basically a human fishbowl while they are forced to answer to both the public and paparazzi for praise, and end up facing criticism if they don’t answer to either.
This needs to stop. By publicizing people because of their fame, we are ruining their lives as well as those around them. Another strong example is Lebron James Jr. Because he is the son of a world-renowned athlete, critics have been lashing out at the now fourteen-year-old. The kid is not even in high school, but some adults have been criticizing a child for not being as talented as his father. Had he been the son of anyone else, he would’ve garnered immense praise. Instead, he has to measure up to arguably the greatest athlete the sport has ever seen — illustrating the harm linked to celebrity culture once again.
We blame one for a former lover’s death while another is criticized because of his father’s fame. We connect these simply because these are supposedly influential people, and we almost objectify them into commodities in order to satiate our fetish-like desire for insight into these individuals’ lives. In turn, because so many seek to know about these people, the media is paid to look into and report on their daily lives. Granted, while they might enjoy the attention the media and public bring, that doesn’t apply to everyone — particularly if the public criticizes someone based on speculation. This fishbowl-like existence we force celebrities to live has to stop. We need to stop publicizing celebrities and let them live their own lives. Otherwise, we’ll continue to be a detriment to their mental health and overall well-being.