Fame's Folly
September 18, 2009 |
According to many in the media, last weekend is being dubbed the “weekend of outbursts.” An athlete, a lawmaker, and a musician—three distinct persons in the public eye—lost their cool. Each one of them felt injustice inflicted on themselves or another. And they made their feelings known … to everyone.
Being in the public eye might have some perks, but the heat of scrutiny is not something I desire. When I have a meltdown—as we all do from time to time—it’s in the privacy of my own home. Nobody cares, except maybe my husband. But I do enjoy the freedom to have human moments and not feel the backlash of an entire nation wagging their tongues the next morning.
Why do these outbursts surprise us? When did we start assuming that celebrities are on a higher moral plane than the rest of us and won’t make petty mistakes?
I’m certainly not excusing the actions of any of these three persons; they each—in these moments—acted inappropriately and childishly. However, I believe many in our culture have a distorted view of fame, one that equates celebrity with integrity. We think, Surely if they’re famous, they’ve done something to earn our admiration. But if someone can act or sing or is an incredible athlete, does that really mean they walk with integrity?
In many ways, our society is led by celebrities: they guide our fashion choices, our topics of discussion, and—scarily enough—even our values. They have a dominant voice in the media, in the lives of our children, and in our own decisions.
It is important to remember, however, that celebrities are not leaders. Granted, they have usually done something great in their field, and sometimes they deserve respect by the lives they lead. True leaders, though, should not be marked by fame but by integrity in their lives, faith, families, churches, work, giving, and guidance.
The book of Proverbs is rich with wisdom about integrity, the tongue, and fame:
A worthless person, a wicked man,
goes about with crooked speech.
Whoever walks in integrity walks securely,
but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out.
Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity
than a rich man who is crooked in his ways
(Proverbs 6:12, 10:9, 28:6, ESV).
Integrity in Christian leadership means walking upright, allowing Christ to straighten those parts of us that are crooked and askew. It involves sacrifice and risk. It involves humility to admit when we make mistakes, which we—like the three people mentioned—will inevitably make.
We admire great leaders like Mother Teresa and Billy Graham because they didn’t start out seeking fame. They started out seeking first the kingdom (Matthew 6:33). Most godly leaders will never—and probably should never—achieve fame, but they will seek and find something far greater: a life rooted in Christ and his church, a life worth following.
So, I’d love to hear from you:
What was your reaction to last weekend’s trio of outbursts? Do these meltdowns say anything about civility in our culture? Why do you think our society is so fixated on celebrities and their mistakes? What does true integrity in leadership mean to you?
Bonnie McMaken is a contributing editor for Gifted for Leadership and editorial coordinator for Kyria.
Posted by Bonnie McMaken on September 18, 2009
Comments
Great article, Bonnie. I appreciated your insights here. I'm reminded how Daniel Bornstein defined a celebrity as someone who is well known for her well-known-ness. In other words, as you point out, she isn't a person of integrity; she's just well-known. Thanks and keep writing!
Posted by: Matt Woodley on September 18, 2009
hi...............thanks to you.we desite to me i already accept you. i waite for one person lifepartner.
Posted by: zafor hossain talukder on September 20, 2009
You wrote:
"Being in the public eye might have some perks, but the heat of scrutiny is not something I desire. When I have a meltdown—as we all do from time to time—it’s in the privacy of my own home. Nobody cares, except maybe my husband. But I do enjoy the freedom to have human moments and not feel the backlash of an entire nation wagging their tongues the next morning."
But that's just it, isn't it? Celebrities can (and I'm sure plenty do) still have meltdowns and outbursts behind closed doors. These three didn't. One of them felt compelled to stand up from his chair, walk to the front of a stage, and take a microphone out of a young girl's hands to make his outburst known. Another one interrupted a speech by the president, not merely out of emotion, but to make his protest known.
These are very intentional decisions, better-thought-out than most at-home "outbursts," and worthy of all the ridicule they've received and then some. I have no pity for the celebrities, and in turn, I (as a non-celebrity) am just as capable of making myself look like a jerk as they are, in public. Outspokenness is part of what helps famous people become famous, and it hurts them as often as it helps.
(Lord knows a bunch of people THANKED Joe Wilson for his little scene. Not nearly as many are siding with Mr. West, on the other hand.)
Posted by: Patrick Gann on September 21, 2009
Patrick Gann makes a good point. Everyone has the opportunity to shame him or herself in public (it could be church, school, work, etc.). Having said that, I'm sure many people do, and the author's original point still stands - the whole nation isn't going to hear about it. That time we snapped at our boss is never going to be plastered across the internet the next morning (well maybe, you never know), only gossiped about across the lunchroom. Maybe the shaming is just a matter of degree. But yes, I think the distinction needs to be made between closed-door and public outbursts.
Posted by: NS on September 21, 2009
I also wanted to add that I play on sports teams, and no matter what Williams said to that ref, I can guarantee I have heard worse at my own games. But it`s true, it`s not being criticized by a third of the population and nobody remembers the next day.
Posted by: NS on September 21, 2009
Patrick,
I, like you, don't pity these celebrities. Their actions are in no way excusable. But let's allow them to be humans like the rest of us. Pity is not what they need. But we should recognize them as fallible humans, and maybe no person--as we are all created in the image of God--deserves "ridicule."
That being said, my main point is that we need to stop putting them on a pedestal and then being shocked when they disappoint us. Integrity and godliness are what mark leaders worthy of following, not musicianship, athletic ability, or even lawmaking.
Thanks for your thoughts, though. I appreciate the dialogue.
Posted by: Bonnie M on September 22, 2009
I don't put celebrities on a pedestal, nor politicians, and for that matter religious leaders either; but when I saw and heard Serena William's over the top, F-bomb-laced tirade, my reaction was our society has become grossly more crude and crass and no one seems to care about their speech anymore in public places. There's no shame - just a need to let everyone else around us know exactly how we feel. I've certainly done that in my own home and I recognize we are all fallible. As a believer in Jesus Christ I must say that we need to keep Christ on the throne and look to Him always as The Example, because religious leaders fail also.
Posted by: Sue on September 25, 2009