Celebrities and the Construction of Communications

Abstract

In this chapter, I will present some of my evidence on the difficulties that emerge when interest groups try to gain access to the media and the political process through high-profile events and celebrities. I will look at Make Poverty History’s use of celebrities to gain media coverage and the impact of Live8 on the movement through the eyes of a range of key campaign actors. First, I examine the problems of message control inherent in working with celebrities and the mass media. Second, I look at a specific instance of public disagreement between Geldof and Make Poverty History at the most critical point in the campaign: during the G8 summit. I contend that the ensuing argument symbolized the uneasy tension that accompanied the interaction of the campaign with major celebrities as each tried to use the other to their own ends. Third, I consider how audiences viewed celebrities, highlighting the need for fit between the choice of celebrity, the issue and the audience. While I will show from the elite interviews that the campaign’s use of celebrities was aimed at gaining the attention of the wider public rather than the core activists, the fact that Make Poverty History became such a strong brand among activists and those who already had an interest in global poverty meant that the use of celebrities most likely had an important effect on them. The evidence I provide comes from interviews, document analysis, media analysis and focus groups.