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Aurora Foster

March 11, 2019

Mrs. Litle

English 121-002

Celetoids: The Mass Production of Celebrity

Graeme Turner wrote an Article, “The Mass Production of Celebrity ‘Celetoids’, reality

TV and the ‘demotic turn’”. He goes over how celebrities on television which he refers to them

as “celetoids”, he goes into how people on television aren’t who they really appear to be. They

make this image of themselves to satisfy the public. I would definitely agree with Turner with

how he explains how these people are made and how easy it is. When it comes to this because

you can tell some people who are celetoids have two personalities the one they have behind close

doors and the image they’re putting out for the public. They are have impact in the music

industry, and the people who watch they’re cultural creators.

To become a celebrity nowadays it is a lot easier than it was back in the day, we have so

many things that can help that and social media is a major factor to that. We have things like

YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter and even Facebook. All these things can help people

become famous. People even get paid for being famous on social media’s, there is such thing as

a instagram model which get paid almost as much as a normal model. How easy it is is really sad

you don’t even have to barley do anything, get a lot of followers and to stay consistent with

trends. A good example of this is people on America Idol, Americas Got Talent or even the X-

Factor. If the “coach” thinks you have a good face or if you have potential they will keep you

and put you on there team. Turner even explains in this article that actors on the Big Brother

created a celebrity within days, “If preforming on Big Brother can generate celebrity within a
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matter if days, it can disappear just as easy.”(115) As sad as it is it really is all about looks and

attitude. Of course people do ridiculous things to become famous, and just like Turner said as

easy as it is to become famous it is as easy to lose it. That is why people become one hit

wonders, it’s because what they do is funny or good and goes viral but after that excitement goes

down than everyone forgets and moves on to the next thing that’s “trending”.

Celebrities tend to have two personalities the one they show to the world than the other

which they keep to themselves. This tends to happen a lot through reality television. Kylie Jenner

even says in a episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashian’s that she doesn’t believe she was

born to be famous. People do tend to have different personalities because of the fact that they

need the pubic to see what they want to see, what the new ‘trends’ are. When it comes to being

famous there are a lot of things that do come with that, you may be the best but there is always

Beyoncé. They have to have different personalities to the pubic so they fit in. A article called

Phycology Today and it goes into detail over how hard it can be to be a celebrity and consistently

having to change to. Fit in and set images for other people, “Celebrity and success have become

synonymous in a culture that judges by how rich, seductive, and riveting the image; where the

name recognition of teenage waif models rivals that of Nobel Peace Prize recipients.” This is

where the phrase in the article can be used, things can take a ‘demonic turn’, I think this means

that celeoids change so much that they aren’t being themselves anymore just what the media

wants them to be. Which becomes unhealthy on there end.

Cultural Creators is what we can call these celebrities, they have such a impact on how

young people want to dress or even look. Celebrities see people who have potential to make

money and they do it. A good example of that can be Justin Bieber, back in the day I was major

‘belieber’ I was head over heals for JB. It was very easy for him how he became famous he was

just a guy who sang on YouTube than one day somehow Usher stumbles apron him than boom
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he is famous or a ‘celetoid’. To me now that I’m older I can think about how crazy that is there

are so many people who sing on YouTube but they say a young boy who could create a fan

group and can make money. Weather we like it or no celebrities have a major impact on our life

they look or dress a certain way so we want to look or dress a certain way. Another good

example is again the Kardashians, they are a huge fashion icons. They post on Snapchat or

Instagram of there cloths which than start to create many trends. Using social media’s is a great

way of getting your face out there. For celitoids to even stay relevant they need to stay on top of

trends once they get out there or they will fall and be forgotten. They have to make a “name for

themselves”. Turner believes that “… mistress of pubic figures and the various other social types

who command media attention one day and forgotten the next.” Which this isn’t wrong if you

don’t stay on top of trends or if you don’t have a group of people you influence you will

disappear and be forgotten for something new and better.

In the article Turner has many good points, bringing up how people need to stay on the

upcoming trends or they will get forgotten which is very true, with that and many other points I

would agree with Turner and what he says on how celeitoids are made and how easy it is to

become famous, how people who are famous have to have two personalities and how they are

cultural creators. It is easy to become famous but its hard to stay famous.
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References

Elgart, Olivia. “Kylie Jenner Admits: 'I Just Know I'm Not Supposed To Be Famous'.”

Hollywood Life, Hollywood Life, 4 July 2016, hollywoodlife.com/2016/07/03/kylie-jenner-im-

not-supposed-to-be-famous-kuwtk-season-12/.

“The Other Side of Fame.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers,

www.psychologytoday.com/us/articles/199505/the-other-side-fame.

Turner, Graeme. “The Mass Production of Celebrity: ‘Celetoids’, Reality TV and the ‘Demotic

Turn’” International Journal of Cultural Studies. 153-165. May 7, 2004