BY JACQUELINE QUINONES
Social pressures compel many people to adapt their mindset to what our culture defines as “acceptable.” Our society and, more importantly, today’s celebrities hammer their ideas of what they consider to be “cool”, such as what to wear, what to eat, how to act, and, overall how to be, into every average person’s head. Our generation needs to stop caring so much about celebrities’ beliefs, especially for the newer generations, who are the foundation of our future.
Modern media places high value on the daily lives of celebrities, making it difficult to go even a day without hearing about what they deem as trendy. This, unfortunately, affects our generation in ways that causes them to make judgments and apply those judgments to their own lives. I, myself, sometimes flip through magazines and watch TV shows solely devoted to following what celebrities have been wearing or have been spotted eating or drinking. This then causes me to think, “Well, if they think it’s good then it must be good.” But some people don’t even realize how much they really care about the daily lives of celebrities. Such people would be the teenagers who dress in ways that they assume make them look “appealing,” put on makeup to make themselves look “better,” and they worry about things as unimportant as to what brand of water bottle they’re purchasing. But who labels certain products and looks, such as BluePrint Juices and crop-top shirts, as “cool” and “worth buying?” Celebrities, of course!
Music also plays a huge role in this. Lyrics that involve drugs get stuck in people’s minds, such as “I can’t seem to find Molly.” This romanticizes drug use and transforms it into casual topics. People then proceed to become curious in trying the drugs, which are illegal and unhealthy. Whether we realize it or not, we are constantly obeying the guidelines that celebrities imply that we should follow.
However, this has a huge negative impact on our generation and future generations. With celebrities basically serving as our role models, we, as a society, barely put any of our own thoughts on how we should be and what we should do. Due to this, some people obsess over the “acceptable” ideals that the media shows us, to such an extent that they become susceptible to eating disorders, depression, and the feeling of “not fitting in.” This leads to many feeling it necessary to go out and waste money on things like cosmetic surgery and weight-loss pills. The increasing availability and influence of Western media is causing anorexia and bulimia to increase according to ANRED (Anorexia & Eating Disorders Information and Resources). Also, the National Task Force on the Prevention and Treatment of Obesity, N.A. says Americans spend around five hundred million dollars per year on prescription and over-the-counter weight loss drugs. People think they’re expected to appear a certain way. This may cause them to feel like they’re trapped inside an appearance that drowns out their own personality and takes on someone else’s personality instead.
The self-conscious who people follow what celebrities are doing are furthering that mindset by teaching their kids to do the same things. Therefore, to get back on the right track, society must divorce themselves from the media’s close-minded ideals and, instead, decide for themselves what is cool.
