Canadian Steele

Well, apparently Matt Good has become part of the BlogsCanada Politcal family. Fine, I guess, but there has always been something that has bugged me about celebrities weighing in on public issue. I think my ire lies in the fact that no matter how invalid, biased, asinine, uninformed, tangential, or inane their opinion, the celebrity will always have considerably more power than the common person to spread their opinion. This type of unusual political power is not magically conferred by success in the entertainment industry, despite what some celebrities seem to think. Their opinion matters, of course, but no more than any other. This is not the reality, though. The weight the celebrity’s word carries is automatically attained regardless of merit. I’m sorry, but inequity gets under my skin.

In any case, I gave Matt’s blog a try. His post for today happened to be a query pertaining to the focus of the American media. A valid example, contrasting MJ coverage with the downing street memo, was raised in order to demonstrate the apparent disparity of attention given to relevant issues against the chaff of media. I would agree that the media does over-present the entertainment world, but the blame should not be placed on the media. Here is what I wrote as a comment on his site:

It is actually not that difficult to see why MJ’s trial generates more concern than world issues. It is a case of proximity and familiarity. A war in Iraq is in no way “real” to the American people, the sights and sounds of a distant people do not register in any genuine way. The white house is just as distant; holding the American government accountable on any issue falls on the far side of impossible. Where the people could not identify with the image of a wailing Iraqi mother or a belligerent leader, they are able to subsume the entity that is celebrity. Fame is characterized by its share of the spotlight. Faces and names are driven into the cultural identity, and these names, by default of notoriety, resonate with that culture. Michael Jackson is seen everyday, not ten feet from the sofa in even the meanest of living rooms. Controversial documents and war torn streets flicker and are gone, small pieces dimmed by the volume of the red, white, and blue parade passing in honour of itself. For the people of America to care, it would have to hit closer to home. So, the media, rather than being the scary censor, is actually the cultures biggest slave. Money drives the world and directs the camera’s lens. The media points and shoots where the people say. An unfocused and ignorant media is simply a reflection of the people it serves.

The blame, I would assert, lies with the public the media serves. Jon Stewart said on one of his shows that if Hitler had a show that would get good ratings, his show would be aired. I tend to agree. The scope of information conveyed by the tube tends to follow the trail of money, which is the littering of public. The American people have a real need for celebrity; they are obsessed with fame. And I believe this need represents a lack, so an attempt is made to fill in this gap. Celebrity represents the American dream. You know: the dream that is the quest towards total autonomy that is achieved through hard work and pledging belief in the American way. What happens is the disillusionment of this ideal. Obviously, not every one can be rich or totally free. To salvage the American dream, to play out that fantasy, the people demand an outlet, a process in which they can identify with those that have made it.

So the scene has done a complete revolution, one arc around the set. Where Matt Good, a celebrity, denounced the media for its coverage, we focus on the concept that the people must lose hold of the fame they are addicted to. Like an alcoholic, they love that which blurs their vision of reality, distancing them from what is truly important. To enjoy the drink of fame, one must enjoy it only socially, not to imbibe everyday the world of celebrity.

So, what am I asserting here…
-That the American culture is fundamentally wrong and completely without hope? Hardly. I think the American culture has within it a great value, one that is important for today’s conflicts abroad. However, this cultural blind spot has deeper roots, rears its head in many forms, and is the cause of the anti-Americanism so abundant in the world today.
-Am I saying fame is evil and entertainment is dross? No. I wish to only remind that entertainment be remembered for what it is, a luxury, and should receive the attention befitting it. To change lays precisely within our power, not the big, scary, media monster. It is sometimes difficult to align yourself with that which is distant, that which is unfamiliar. Our smaller needs at home tend to outweigh the greater needs of those past our boundaries, so an effort, one that we bloggers are certainly a part of, must be made to widen that lens, and watch in the right direction.