base talk Is caring so much about celebrity endorsements an American phenomenon?

[Peak Now]

What the title says really. I don't recall seeing even half as many people calling for Adele to endorse Keir Starmer/the Greens, or Drake to endorse Justin Trudeau, or Aya Nakamura to endorse Jean-Luc Mélenchon, or Hev Abi to endorse whoever's up against Bongbong Marcos, or BTS to endorse Lee Jae-myung, or... the list goes on.

 

Non-USAmericans of ATRL, what are your thoughts on this? Is the (IMO) excessive focus on celebrity endorsements, as if they're supposed to do the dirty work of politicking for politicians, an American phenomenon?

 

Does America have a problem?

 

 

 

Spoiler

This isn't solely about the Blank Space singer but I know my avi doesn't really do me any favors 

[tost1]

Ofc it is, nobody gives a f here or elsewhere, but USA is... Special 

[Mordecai]

Anyone who needs an endorsement from a celebrity to encourage them to vote is moronic

 

But some Americans are a special kind of stupid, it's crazy

[Katamari]

Yes

 

i blame mtv 

[Bubble Tea]

It does seem to be a particularly US phenomenon but it happens elsewhere of course. US is the ultimate bastion of celebrity worship so it only makes sense they look to them, not only for lifestyle, fashion, health and business, but also for their literal politics and country leadership. Like it really, really, really doesn't matter what Taylor (for example) thinks about Kamala or Trump. If you require your favourite celebrity to tell you who to vote for, you've got your work cut out for you.

[Onyxmage]

Please use your brain for 2.5 seconds. Celebrities have lots of influence especially on the younger generation. It only makes sense to want their endorsements. 

[Onyxmage]

10 minutes ago, Mordecai said:

Anyone who needs an endorsement from a celebrity to encourage them to vote is moronic

 

But some Americans are a special kind of stupid, it's crazy

Laughs in MERiCA.

 

[Sugar-Rush]

Celebrities in America have a lot of influence. This is why folks want Taylor to endorse Kamala for example, yet for some reason she'd rather fraternize with Trump supporters. It's a shame that she's choosing not to use her influence for good to help the Democratic nominee and would rather let Trump use her AI likeness to win the election, which will cause harm to most of her fanbase for the next 4 years once Project 2025 happens.

Edited September 10 by Sugar-Rush

[swifthino]

36 minutes ago, Onyxmage said:

Please use your brain for 2.5 seconds. Celebrities have lots of influence especially on the younger generation. It only makes sense to want their endorsements. 

if you need a celebrity to tell you how to vote, you shouldn't be voting 

[supertiffany]

NO.

 

have you seen the Philippines?

 

that country not only follows celebrity endorsements, they even elected celebrities themselves as senators and worse as president. The country is such a joke that the current president is the son of the former dictator and world's biggest thief of government funds. 

[supertiffany]

1 hour ago, AndThenTheCocaine said:

What the title says really. I don't recall seeing even half as many people calling for Adele to endorse Keir Starmer/the Greens, or Drake to endorse Justin Trudeau, or Aya Nakamura to endorse Jean-Luc Mélenchon, or Hev Abi to endorse whoever's up against Bongbong Marcos, or BTS to endorse Lee Jae-myung, or... the list goes on.

 

Non-USAmericans of ATRL, what are your thoughts on this? Is the (IMO) excessive focus on celebrity endorsements, as if they're supposed to do the dirty work of politicking for politicians, an American phenomenon?

 

Does America have a problem?

 

 

 

  Reveal hidden contents

This isn't solely about the Blank Space singer but I know my avi doesn't really do me any favors 

totally false

 

Sarah G the biggest and most bankable female singer in the Philippines has been bashed by woke twitter left and right for not endorsing Leni Robredo

 

 

[akoaytao1234]

Not really. I think people just know more American Stars that they tend to care much more. 

Edited September 10 by akoaytao1234

[Triton]

Um… celebs can become politicians, it's sad that the line is so blurred now and strict boundaries aren't put into place for such a (previously) highly regarded position. And there isn't anything else to regulate it. The checks and balances system in the US is destroyed. 
 

Regan, Arnold, Trump… it's all about who controls the media. Literally the news outlets proclaim thus decide the winners. The AP is the most prestigious but it's still a news agency at the end of the day.  

 

America Has A Problem indeed…. 
 

 

[Pendulum]

Yes, endorsement is illegal in my country

[Onyxmage]

1 hour ago, swifthino said:

if you need a celebrity to tell you how to vote, you shouldn't be voting 

Nobody NEEDS a celebrity to tell them how to vote but many people listen to celebrities more than an 80 year old politician on CSPAN.  Thats the point. Most of it is simply to drive enthusiasm and engagement. Its not rocket science. 

[allforyou]

It is odd, here in my country no one cares who celebrities are voting for

[MardinBeksloy]

yes the US is a joke, their political will is non existing unless Taylor picks up her phone and write a tweet. 

[KillingYourCareer]

It's also very common for average people to donate money to political parties there, here they just steal public funds!  

[4th Time Around]

Imagine giving a **** about celebrity endorsements or celebrity statements. The United States is the dumbest country on earth with the dumbest population 

[Jay07]

Celebrity worship and the cult of personality is just on another level in the US. Trump is literally a game show host/z-list celebrity from the 80s. It's ridiculous and I agree I've never heard of anything similar happening in Canada/Europe but at the same time, I genuinely don't think anyone as stupid and clueless as Trump would get as far anywhere else. American voters are just... different.

 

That said, the stakes are so high and the consequences of this election will reverberate so far and for so long, it needs to be all hands on deck.

[Joey307]

Yes, the average American voter past the age of like 20 does not give a **** what celebrity supports Trump or Kamala or whoever else or if they'll move out of the country when they don't get their way. Celebrities do not live in the real world like the rest of us. 

[The7thStranger]

Not necessarily. I seem to recall Avril Lavigne getting a lot of backlash for taking photos with a far-right politican in Canada.

[wigglytuffer]

I feel like the cult of celebrity at its heart is an american phenomena anyway, so naturally i think that answers the question.

 

That being said i think it's hard to compare to the rest of the world bc we vote for different structures, America's voting from what i gather is based on voting for people over politics. In the UK for example we don't vote for whoever the head of the party is, we vote for the local representatives so although Keir Starmer is the Prime Minister, no one actually voted for him outside of his constituency so there's a detachment there anyway

 

I still find it incredibly strange but everything in the US is grander and more ridiculous than anywhere else so i'm not surprised  

[americanlife]

Yes. People (especially those on here) put way too much emphasis on celebrities and their opinions. No one cares what they think, and if you decide who you vote for because of a celebrity endorsement, you're the problem.

[Khal]

Idk it's only the US, but it's extremely idiotic. Pop culture and politics should not be that much intertwined. The BRAT thing for example was braindead.