Name of Student: Ammad Siddiqi

Name of Subject: IDSS

Name of Teacher: Faiza Mushtaq
ERP Number: 11134

IDSS- Response Paper 2 ( The Challenge of Cultural Elites: Celebrities

and Social Movements by David S. Meyer and Joshua Gammon, The
Media In The Unmaking Of The New Left by Todd Gitlin):

An interesting insight that might arise out of Meyer and Gamsons analysis is the
proposition of hazy demarcations between social contributions or political
motivations of celebrities in the context of social movements. This has to be
comprehended vis-a-vis the reputationalization of certain actors via monotonous
success. Power dynamics come into play in this role executed by celebrities, with
celebrities and the audience interlocked in a cycle of influence. The nature and
extent of power celebrities can wield in any social setting is perpetually vague
owing to its blurred relation with the power the audience wield to consistently
remould this power.

Social Movement Theory contends with Meyers and Gramsons analysis by

observing that the provision of repute and prestige to previously oblivious individual
that constitutes them into celebrities empowers them to decide the extent and
nature of participation for a social dilemma e.g. the mere presence of Meryl Streep
within a pesticide advertisement might possess affinity enough to previously
dislocated individuals to locate themselves within a new public service issue. Thus
celebrities decide provision of attention to a social issue or new forms of enigmas
are engendered by these new social actors. They bridge themselves with other
social activists such as politicians or potential donors to collectively accrue funds in
the cause of a particular movement. This provision of power to a particular cause
becomes paradoxical in terms of apt attention not being imparted to the actual
social movement itself. Thus the social movement might be pulverized by the same
actors who proliferated it in the premier stage of the movement. Quite interestingly,
rapport for a movement by celebrities is directly proportional to its established
rapport by various media disseminated amongst the public. It was already
established that the extent of influence celebrities impart to a movements cannot
be dislocated from the tastes of the audience. Thus the celebrity might only impinge
a movement previously reputed among his supporters. The celebrity persistently
manouveurs to maintain his or her legitimacy sans which, he may not participate in
any social movement via calls for attention to an issue, charity or recognition with a
stigmatized group.
It may be thus realized that the nature of power shared between the celebrity and
his followers and audience is ever fluctuating owing to the dislocation of the
celebrity from a grounded base ( such as a political institution. The celebrity
engages in a dual pathway of influence with all concerned elements tied to him- the
audience betwixt which, he seeks to construct his rapport.