Social influence – The Campus

We live in an era where celebrity voices have become important throughout current social and political conversations. It is time to ask a critical question: Should society expect celebrities to be vessels of social and political change?
What separates the common person from a celebrity? Aside from their amazing singing voices and acting skills, celebrities are generally no different or more intelligent than the average person. Some would argue that celebrities serve an important role in amplifying social causes and fighting for issues. Across social media, I have noticed comments under celebrity posts asking them to talk about whatever current issue is most relevant at the moment.
One of the reasons I found it odd that some people expected celebrities to represent them is because many of these issues are not ones that many celebrities can relate to.
For example, at the beginning of the pandemic many celebrities, such as Cardi B, while well-intentioned, used social media to join the conversation and expressed tone-deaf opinions like condemning people who struggled to stay home despite not having the privilege of staying home at spacious mansions. On the other hand, other celebrities like Nicki Minaj spread misinformation about the vaccine, which caused many people to distrust it.
While the pandemic was global and many celebrities became victims of the virus, the experience of it was vastly different from that of the average person.
Another reason why celebrity voices should not be placed at the forefront of political and social issues is their lack of expertise and their tendency to create political polarization for the sake of performative activism.
We have all seen the profile picture changes that celebrities sport on social media for whatever social cause is popular. Despite this, whether it be a Black Lives Matter fist or a climate change awareness symbol, many of these celebrities have had many racist tweets discovered and spend billions on private jets. I use this example to highlight how inconsequential celebrity opinions are as most of them don’t believe in what they amplify and fail to practice what they preach.
All of this is not to say that celebrities should be completely shut out of conversations. But their opinions should not have as much power as they do regardless of whether the opinion supports your beliefs.
At the end of the day, it is an individual choice to decide how much a person allows their favorite singer to influence and represent issues important to them. However, it is important to remember that the issues that are important to the average person could not be relatable to a person who exists in a bubble of luxury.
Additionally, a result of relying on celebrities to amplify issues has been that the social causes are often overshadowed by the celebrity involvement in them and are discarded when they decide to move on to a different social cause.
An example is the politics of 2020 when Kanye West announced that he would be running for president and engaged in political conversations. The announcement took the media by storm and it was one of the most popular topics at the time. Despite the importance politics holds in people’s lives, it became entertainment, which took away the spotlight from important issues.
Celebrities can have a positive impact on social and political issues such as when Oprah Winfrey gave a speech about combating oppression at the 2018 Golden Globe Awards. The speech contributed to the progress of gender equality through one of the most-viewed awards ceremonies on television because it acknowledged those who struggled before her and because it was a well-prepared speech.
However, it is important to consistently think critically about celebrity participation and step out of the “fan” role to think about what the celebrity is saying or doing. The champions of social change should be the people who are impacted by those issues.
Celebrity influence on social causes will always have positives and negatives. On one side of the argument, their influence brings visibility to issues. Yet, celebrities also frequently create the impression that social change can be brought about through mere virtue-signaling, such as reposting a black screen and retweeting a statement.
Going forward, society must remember that the most significant progress made in the United States has been because of the efforts of everyday people who organized and demanded change. No significant changes have ever been made from reposting.