by Nick Lewis

Created on: March 20, 2007   Last Updated: May 09, 2007

The word 'celebrity' has almost become a job title. We have people plastered over the tabloids now, day in, day out and seemingly their only claim to fame is being famous. What I'm talking about is not actors, or musicians or TV presenters. I am talking about reality TV contestants, actors partners, and bar owners.

The idea of the celebrity has always existed. People because of a talent, and more often than not their looks, were idolized by the masses, thrusting them into a completely different tier of the class system. The obsession with such individuals, i believe, has snowballed since the early 90's, resulting in the celebrity obsessed culture we now live in. it is difficult to imagine how the severity of the situation can worsen. In my curiosity, i have flicked through national tabloid newspapers and celebrity driven women's glossy's. What i have found is the biggest soap opera of all unfolding through the pages, the soap opera is limitless and continuous. I see big brother contestants with new hair cuts dwarfing the plight of soldiers in Iraq in terms of column inches. Murders aren't important when Brad Pitt decides to sleep with a different women and are lost in the pools of inane tat that these papers host.

We arn't anymore reading about starving African children and thanking our lucky stars that we in our lives enjoy what luxury's we do. We see celebrity's drunk falling out of clubs at 3 in the morning and we envy their lives. These are the best looking people in the world, the richest and most privileged and they all go to the same party's and move in the same circles. This is the newest and most accessible of all the class systems that exist in hierarchy, all you need do is forget you have any Honor or pride.

These celebrities enjoy corporate sponsorship. Sport Stars are paid millions to wear the biggest Sport brand(s) on the planet with turnovers exceeding billions of dollars a year. This is possible because the consumer buys the matching sweat suit modeled by the greasy star, while the peasants in the sweatshops in the 3rd world country earn 10pence a day. The thing that amazes me is that these stars or models for the latest perfume or underwear HAVE to be paid this amount of money to endorse a product otherwise they will go the market competitors. How does that endorse a product? why would i want to buy something that david beckham has to be paid millions to even consider being seen in? This is the way of the modern world.

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