What is celebrity? How do celebrities influence society? Why do we hang on their every word, tweet or status update?
Celebrity Cultures offers a fresh insight into the field of celebrity studies by updating existing debates and exploring recent developments. From the PR campaigns of Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar to the election of Arnold Schwarzenegger as Governor of California, this book critically evaluates a number of diverse celebrity case-studies and considers what they reveal about contemporary global society. Taking into account issues such as gender, sexuality, ethnicity, economics, politics and the media, the book draws upon a range of cultural theorists including Theodore Adorno and Jean Baudrillard.
Over the course of ten richly illustrated chapters, the book:
- Draws upon sociology, cultural theory, media analysis and celebrity commentary to explore and re-evaluate the study of celebrity.
- Examines the international appeal of celebrity including examples from India, China, South Korea and Indonesia.
- Includes chapter introductions identifying key points and annotated further reading suggestions.
Celebrity Cultures is an invaluable resource for students of celebrity, media and cultural studies.
Table of Content
The Ancient Art of Self Publicity
Theorizing Celebrity
The Business of Celebrity
Celebrity and Politics
Fans and Celebrity
Reporting Celebrity
Global Celebrity
Reality Television and Celebrity
Celebrity Influence
Extreme Celebrity
About the author
Lee Barron has a BSc in Sociology from Northumbria University and (1995) and an MA in Cultural & Textual Studies from the University of Sunderland (1997). He received his Ph D from the University of Sunderland in 2004. He was appointed as a lecturer at the University of Northumbria in the UK in 2004 where he taught in the Departments of Social Sciences and Media. He is now based in the School of Design at Northumbria where he teaches in the areas of fashion branding, marketing, and luxury brand management. His research interests cover subjects such as fashion, popular music, celebrity, tattooing, and culture-inspired design, and he is currently developing research in the areas of AI and smart technology. He has published in a number of international journals such as The Journal of Popular Culture, Postcolonial Studies, Fashion Theory, Celebrity Studies, Popular Music History, European Journal of Cultural Studies, the Journal of Modern Craft, Gothic Studies, and Fashion, and Style and Popular Culture. He has also contributed chapters to a number of edited book collections that include Popular Music and Film (2003), Terror Tracks (2009), The Tube Has Spoken: Reality TV and History (2010), and Heavy Metal: Controversies and Countercultures (2013). He is also the author of four sole-authored books: Social Theory in Popular Culture (2013), Celebrity Cultures (2015), Tattoo Culture: Theory and Contemporary Contexts (2017) and Tattoos and Popular Culture (2020).
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