Making it and Losing it Big

Have you ever heard of the saying “keep your friends close, and your enemies closer”? What this saying means is you shouldn’t give too much leverage to someone who does not have your best interest in mind, and will take it abuse it and throw it back at you. So when you build a career, that 50% of the time is based on your body, isn’t it like you’re handing millions and millions of people leverage over you?I don’t think it was unreasonable to criticize Britney Spears at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards. However, there is equal or more blame to be placed on people that work for her and MTV behind the scenes, who let her go out the way she did. Most celebrities have stylists who must make their clients look good. The same goal applies to the hair and make-up people. It seems as if there were many people missing from this equation or were never informed. These people could have had a major role in making Britney’s performance a success. One of the main attractions to celebrities, especially to pop singers is there image. If Britney did not look so out of place and under qualified perhaps it would have softened the blow.

But to focus back on Britney, since the young age of 17, she made it known every chance she got to show her flat, toned midriff. She became the product associated with those infamous belly tops in the 90s. She allowed it to become her, just as much as Spears is her last name. Before and after her pregnancies, she never stopped resisting showing her body. She has sold this look for so long and that look attracts people to look, and in a way she’s encouraging people to talk about her body. This was a big opportunity that if done properly could have been a huge milestone in her career. There’s no better time to clean up your look, or reinvent yourself then during a comeback. Unfortunately, this is not what happened that night. We saw a side of Britney that many choose to ignore or indulge excessively in. It was clear that the woman was uncomfortable, lost, scared and misguided. It was an eye-opening moment that made many people realize the damage that has and is being done.

It’s easy to say she’s responsible for her actions and she destroyed her career on her own. However, it’s not entirely her fault. The paparazzi, media, her family and friends and all of us a society stood by and watched. We made her what she is, in less than a decade she has sold over 83 million records worldwide. [1] We went out there and bought the records, we called the radio stations, and we bought the tickets. But we’re also the ones that can change our opinions about her just as fast. If we as a society can see so many negative things in a person who clearly is not okay, without looking at ourselves, perhaps we are the ones with the bigger issues.

However, the paparazzi and the media indirectly drove her to that place in her life. They take advantage of this woman’s life. In the documentary, “Speared by the Paps”, the head of an agency openly mentioned that 50% of his time is spent on Britney. [2] He makes his living off of her, and can get up to $10, 000 for one picture! It’s very sad that so many people will cross so many moral and ethical lines, never mind legal laws that violate a person’s right to privacy. But what’s even sadder, is they are not fully responsible because Britney Spears is very much a contributor to the mayhem.

As mentioned on “Speared by the Paps”, Britney has made it a habit to essentially feed, or provide leverage to the paparazzi. She goes out every night and makes it known to everyone. She goes out to popular places, stringing the paps along and providing humorous and erratic behavior. A perfect example of Britney’s behavior in public is in the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vkDoNIqWUU


I think a celebrity can lead a pretty private life if they try; there are many examples of celebrities that do, and they are not just your overnight sensation- they are credible celebrities. Do you ever see Beyonce, Carrie Underwood, Halle Berry, Brad Pitt or Leonardo Dicaprio picking their nose, crashing cars, or getting into car chases? How about Anne Hathaway? Kate Winslet? Oprah Winfrey, perhaps? Probably not, right? Funny enough, these are the celebrities that attain success and still leave a positive and admirable mark in this very forgetful industry. They self-consciously make the decision to use their resources and protect themselves. So to say celebrities’ actions and their daily lives are newsworthy is true, but you do have a choice. Celebrities have a big hand in making something newsworthy, and when you’re flaunting around with your entourage in Hollywood hot spots, then expect some attention. I wholeheartedly agree with the celebrities that are fighting to protect their privacy, if they truly mean it. In the article “As Paparazzi Push Harder, Stars try to push back”, Cameron Diaz shares a story about how the paps pushed over an innocent friend to get a picture. This is ridiculous. [3] Stories like that really show how malicious these people can be and, with no consequences, they will only continue to push harder. No matter what, you should not have people camping out at your drive way, crowding your car, stalking your kids, and having access to personal information like addresses, appointments etc. The paparazzi and the media have absolutely no right whatsoever to that, Britney included.

Creating and enforcing the ‘Britney Law’ which “gives celebrities a safety bubble”, is a positive step forward. [4] But it will be very hard to enforce without violating the paparazzi’s freedom of press.It’s hard to believe that after the emotional year that Britney had, that she would ever work her way back up. But leave it to Britney Spears to climb from the bottom to the top.

At the 2008 MTV VMA’s, Britney not only looked stunning, but won not one, not two, but THREE MTV awards. She made everyone think, about how much a difference a year can make. The days leading to and following her performance were nothing but positive from the media, and praise for Miss Britney Spears was everywhere. The host, British comedian Russell Brand had one of the best lines of the night; “Consider this the resurrection of Britney Spears, if there was a female Christ, its Britney”. [5]All in all, there are many factors that need to be taken into consideration when talking about the media and celebrities, and how you digest what’s being thrown out to you. But it’s important to understand what’s meant for the audience to take in, and what’s meant for you not to understand. Nothing is as it seems. We have to remember that celebrities are people just like us and understand the tough position they are put in. It’s time to open our minds and attempt to understand how hard it is to walk in their shoes. The less we demand the less supply the paparazzi will have.

http://www.mtv.com/videos/misc/272735/britney-spears-returns.jhtml#id=1593809


[1] “Biography” – Britney.com
[2] “Speared: by the Paps” - Documentary 2008 (TV)
[3] “As Paparazzi Push Harder, Stars try to push back”, By David M. Halbfinger and Allison Hope Weiner, September 2008
[4] “‘Britney’s Law’ to give celebrities a safety bubble” – Times Online
[5] “Spears dominates MTV awards show” – BBC Entertainment, (bbc.co.uk)

Pictures:
“Oops, I did it again” 2000 Album Cover. Online Image. People.com Feb 20th 2009
“Brintey Shopping” Candid Photo. Online Image. Britney-spears.net Feb 20th 2009