question: Why do humans have the desire to be famous?
comment: i think it's because we created and live in a system which values fame and money. So naturally, some people would internalize those values and want attention and fame
passages: "To people who have grown tired of self-government, the belief in kings and queens and fairy tales seems easier and more comfortable than the practice of politics," wrote Lewis Lapham in his book, "The Wish For Kings". This notion is the basis for the naturally occurring relationship between "regular" men and women, and those on a pedestal.
  
  The famous religious books of the world's faiths are replete with examples of individuals who are well known by the general public. Some of the pharaohs of ancient Egypt set in motion devices to ensure their own fame for centuries to come.
   There has recently been an intersection of celebrity and political culture. This is a result of the large platform given to celebrities; as Jane Johnson, a reporter for the popular British celebrity publication Closer observed, the gossip surrounding celebrities is a nationally unifying factor among all social groups. This unification and large platform provided by celebrities has been a point of interest for political leaders and groups to gain farther reach within various campaigns. Young adults have had historically lower voter turnout than any other voting age group. Knowing this, politicians and public figures draw from the cultural resources curated by celebrities by mimicking the popular, accessible public persona given off by today's celebrities. As noted by author Frank Furedi, “Politicians self consciously attempt to either acquire a celebrity image or to associate themselves with individuals who possess this status”. This can be seen with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who has become somewhat of a celebrity because of the perception of being personable and supporting progressive, liberal policies. Another example of this was Katy Perry campaigning and performing for Hillary Clinton during the 2016 Presidential election.
   Section::::Complaints.:Explanations.
  
  One possible explanation of this trend is that an artificial importance has been created in order to promote a product or a service, rather than to record a purely biographical event. As more new products are launched in a world market that is constantly expanding, the need for more celebrities has become an industry in itself.
   Successful careers in sports and entertainment are commonly associated with celebrity status, while political leaders often become celebrities. People may also become celebrities due to media attention on their lifestyle, wealth, or controversial actions, or for their connection to a famous person.
  
  Section::::History.
   Section::::Health implications.
  
  John Cleese said being famous offers some advantages such as financial wealth and easier access to things that are more difficult for non-famous people to access, such as the ability to more easily meet other famous or powerful people, but that being famous also often comes with the disadvantage of creating the conditions in which the celebrity finds themselves acting, at least temporarily (although sometimes over extended periods of time), in a superficial, inauthentic fashion.
   The cult of personality (particularly in the west) can be traced back to the Romantics in the 18th century, whose livelihood as artists and poets depended on the currency of their reputation. The establishment of cultural hot-spots became an important factor in the process of generating fame: for example, London and Paris in the 18th and 19th centuries. Newspapers started including gossip columns and certain clubs and events became places to be seen in order to receive publicity.
   "[Since] only one may be first. [a person may] choose to win indirectly, through identification with someone else"- the superstar, whose triumph as the most popular actor or hit recording artist is in part due to the actions of "... those who worship the hero". The public believes that "the manicurist elected Beauty Queen, by the sales girl entrusted with the heroine's role in a super production, by the shopkeeper's daughter winning the Tour de France, [and] by the gas station attendant who basks in the limelight as a champion toreador" represents the chance or possibility, from the public's perspective, that they may become wealthy and successful. For example, Levine points out that "Lars Ulrich, the drummer for Metallica, was a service station attendant before becoming a rich rock star; Harrison Ford was a cabinet maker" before becoming a wealthy film star.
   There are, of course, no guarantees of success for an individual to become a celebrity. Though celebrities come from many different working fields, most celebrities are typically associated with the fields of sports and entertainment, or a person may be a public figure who is commonly recognizable in mass media with commercial and critical acclaim.
  
  Though glamour and wealth may certainly play a role for only famous celebrities, most people in the sports and entertainments spheres, be it music, film, television, radio, modelling, comedy, literature etc. live in obscurity and only a small percentage achieve fame and fortune.
   B. Zafer Erdogan says, "Because of their fame, celebrities serve not only to create and maintain attention, but also to achieve high recall rates for marcoms messages (marketing communication) in today's highly cluttered environments." This serves as proof that advertising agencies use celebrities to cut through the clutter that is mass media. Having celebrities in their advertising campaigns helps them promote their products in the sense that notable figures are what gets the attention of the public, rather than the product itself.
  
  Section::::The beauty ideal and plastic surgery.
   In politics, certain politicians are recognizable to many people, usually the head of state and the Prime Minister. Yet only heads of state who play a major role in international politics have a good chance of becoming famous outside their country's borders, since they are constantly featured in mass media. The President of the United States, for instance, is famous by name and face to millions of people around the world. Since World War II the U.S. Presidential elections are followed closely all across the globe, making the elected candidate instantly world-famous as a result. In contrast, both the Pope and The Dalai Lama are far more famous under their official title than under their actual names. Usually when politicians leave active politics their recognizability tends to diminish among general audiences, as other politicians replace them in their official political functions. Certain politicians, however, are still famous today, even decades or centuries after they were in power. They owe their fame to historical deeds which are kept in memory in history classes, for instance people like Julius Caesar, Genghis Khan, Napoleon Bonaparte, Abraham Lincoln and Mao Zedong. Scandal can also unwillingly make certain politicians famous, even among those who are not particularly interested in politics.
   Some scholars argue that superstardom has a useful role in society. Caillois cites Rawls, who states that the "premiums earned by scarce natural talents . . . [serve] to cover the costs of training and to encourage the efforts of learning, as well as to direct ability to where it best furthers the common interest." Cowen (2000) cites Rosen (1981) to argue that "the superstars effect is welfare-improving (consumers get better performances) even if it leads to raising income inequality," and adds that the "superstar phenomenon should not be overstressed. Indeed, fame is a positive-sum game, not a negative nor a zero-sum one." Cowen states that "countervailing forces operate, such as a convergence of quality that limits the ability of the very best stars to dominate the market for long, or more radically the elastic supply of fame." This means that "when demand for fame increases, the numbers of prizes, rewards and whatever fame generating distinctions is rising too."
   Some creators such as poets, artists, musicians, and inventors are little-known and little-appreciated during their lives but are feted as brilliant innovators after their deaths. In some cases, after historians uncover a creator's role in the development of some type of cultural or technical process, the contributions of these little-known individuals become more widely known. A desire to achieve this type of posthumous fame may have motivated Alan Abel, Adam Rich and Pauly Shore to stage their own deaths.
   This possibility is exploited by celebrities and politicians, as "marketing individual personalities as products" is an effective way to gain millions of fans not just online but in real life as well. For celebrities of all types, online personas are their brands. Public relations for Justin Bieber and Barack Obama alike can easily control the "brand" and maximize exposure and profitability.
  
  On the other hand, personal branding may afford potential employers the opportunity to more accurately judge a candidate's abilities and cultural suitability, since blogs, profiles, websites, etc., are pieces of work that can be evaluated.
  
  Section::::Disclosure.
   The British journalist Malcolm Muggeridge may have been the first to use the actual phrase in the introduction to his book "Muggeridge Through The Microphone" (1967) in which he wrote:In the past if someone was famous or notorious, it was for something—as a writer or an actor or a criminal; for some talent or distinction or abomination. Today one is famous for being famous. People who come up to one in the street or in public places to claim recognition nearly always say: "I've seen you on the telly!"
   Sometimes a false death mention can cause a person to rethink their legacy. Alfred Nobel founded the Nobel Prizes after an erroneous obituary labelled him a "merchant of death" due to his invention and selling of dynamite.
   Athletes in Ancient Greece were welcomed home as heroes, had songs and poems written in their honor, and received free food and gifts from those seeking celebrity endorsement. Ancient Rome similarly lauded actors and notorious gladiators, and Julius Caesar appeared on a coin in his own lifetime (a departure from the usual depiction of battles and divine lineage).
   Strenger states that "...as humans we naturally measure ourselves to those around us, but now that we live in a “global village” we are comparing ourselves with the most “significant” [celebrity] people in the world, and finding ourselves wanting." He notes that "...in the past being a lawyer or doctor was a very reputable profession, but in this day and age, even high achievers constantly fear that they are insignificant when they compare themselves to [celebrity] success stories in the media. Strenger claims that this "...creates highly unstable self-esteem and an unstable society."
   Neal Gabler more recently refined the definition of celebrity to distinguish those who have gained recognition for having done virtually nothing of significance—a phenomenon he dubbed the "Zsa Zsa Factor" in honor of Zsa Zsa Gabor, who parlayed her marriage to actor George Sanders into a brief movie career and the movie career into a much more enduring celebrity. He goes on to define the celebrity as "human entertainment", by which he means a person who provides entertainment by the very process of living.
  
  Section::::Similar terms.
  
  Section::::Similar terms.:Famesque.
   Celebrity culture, once restricted to royalty and biblical/mythical figures, has pervaded many sectors of society including business, publishing, and even academia (the scilebrities). With every scientific advance names have become attached to discoveries. Especially for large contributions to humanity, the contributor is usually regarded honourably. Mass media has increased the exposure and power of celebrity. A trend has developed that celebrity carries with it increasingly more social capital than in earlier times. Each nation or cultural community (linguistic, ethnic, religious) has its own independent celebrity system, but this is becoming less the case due to globalization (see J-pop or K-pop).
   It is also of note that the actual value which an individual brings to a group is not of consequence in determining his or her popularity; the only thing that is important is his or her value as perceived by the other members of the group. While perceived value and actual value may often overlap, this is not a requisite and it has been shown that there are instances in which an individual's actual value is relatively low, but they are perceived as highly valuable nevertheless.
  
  Section::::Interpersonal causes.:Attractiveness.
   The concept of internet celebrity brings to mind Andy Warhol's famous quote about 15 minutes of fame. A more recent adaptation of Warhol's quote, possibly prompted by the rise of online social networking, blogging, and similar online phenomena, is the claim that "In the future, everyone will be famous to fifteen people" or, in some renditions, "On the Web, everyone will be famous to fifteen people." This quote, though attributed to David Weinberger, was said to have originated with the Scottish artist Momus.
  
  Section::::Types.:The YouTube phenomenon and "vlogging".
   Identification is the process by which individuals are thought to develop a deep connection with celebrities. This increases the likelihood that the viewer will perform the behaviors advocated by the celebrity as well as adopt similar attitudes and beliefs. Individuals go through the process of identification where they start to believe in the values, convictions and behaviors portrayed by the celebrity endorser and eventually adopt them as their own. Because it is easier to identify with people who have a connection or relationship, individuals are more likely to identify with celebrities that are closer to them in age. Scholars consider identification a significant component in the persuasion process through which celebrities influence audience behavior. 
   In the USA, celebrity culture is created and disseminated by television talk shows such as "Entertainment Tonight", where actors and music stars promote their latest films and albums, and by many celebrity magazines such as "People", "Us", and "Star". Another phenomenon is the arrival and rise of "micro-celebrities" through the WWW (internet celebrities).
  
  Section::::Social media.
   According to Madow, "fame is a "relational" phenomenon, something that is conferred by others. A person can, within the limits of his natural talents, make himself strong or swift or learned. But he cannot, in this same sense, make himself famous, any more than he can make himself loved." Madow goes on to point out that "fame is often conferred or withheld, just as love is, for reasons and on grounds other than "merit." This means that regardless of how "... strenuously the star may ... try to "monitor" and "shape" it, the media and the public always play a substantial part in the image-making process."
   In social media advertising, Internet celebrities can be paid to advertise products. When celebrities have garnered sufficient attention and following, advertising companies approach them to help advertise products, in an effort by the advertisers to reach a wider audience with their messages.
  