ABSTRACT
Celebrities are nothing new to Western civilization. From Alexander the Great, who emulated the Greek gods, to Julius Caesar, to the artists and scientists who captured hearts and minds throughout the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, to the “great men” and military heroes of the 16th and 17th centuries who inspired George Washington, a famous class of people has always played an influential role in civil society. But for most of United States history, the involvement of celebrities in our political system has been restricted to stumping and fundraising for politicians, GOTV efforts, and policy advocacy. This opaque but evident distinction—between political leaders and the movie stars, athletes, and television personalities that support them—is an important one to address, for our founding fathers asserted that the survival of our democracy would depend on the election of “fit characters” to our government to represent us. In the Trump era, we have not only breached this sacred divide by electing celebrities to public office, but we have also defied the wise directive of our forefathers to choose capable, ethical, and trustworthy people to lead our country. This chapter provides a history of the relationship between fame and politics, reviews existing literature in the area, and introduces a new definition of celebrity and roadmap for the rest of the book.
