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Culture_Voyeur
Culture_VoyeurWednesday, August 26, 2009 at 8:56:00 AM EDT
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The lineup for next season’s Dancing With the Stars was recently announced and my heart skipped a beat with the inclusion of a certain “star.”
No, not Tom Delay; it was none other than Clarissa Explains it All and Sabrina the Teenage Witch actress, Melissa Joan Hart. Then my heart fell as I recalled the recent falling out I had with Melissa.
Since I was very young, I followed Melissa’s career. Series finale of Sabrina? I was there. ABC Family’s Holiday in Handcuffs, costarring Mario Lopez? I was there. Following her on MySpace? Oh of course!
Then at the end of last year, someone directed my attention to a homophobic comment she made on MySpace. Then I heard rumblings of her falling out with former Sabrina co-star, Beth Broderick, over a difference in politics. And of course her most recent debacle in which she was overheard hoping Farrah Fawcett wouldn’t die the same week as her “People Magazine” cover, out of fear of being bumped.
Granted, a lot of this is straight out of the Hollywood rumor mill, but it really got me thinking: Can I continue to support this actress who seems to fundamentally disagree with me on a host of political issues?
I had a similar dilemma many years back when I learned that the Drew Carey is a Republican.
Celebrities and politics, whether we like it or not, have always mixed. It’s how we ended up with Reagan in the White House and Schwarzenegger in the California Governor’s seat. But at the end of the day, no matter how often they mouth off, the reason we’re truly interested in celebrities are their films, music, or fashion – not their politics.
If their politics were their selling point, the film industry would be based out of Washington, DC, not Hollywood. Consequently, should a celebrity’s political viewpoints impact my opinion of them? I would like to say it shouldn’t, but it does.
Case in point: Jordin Sparks. I have, in the past, perhaps made fun of or berated Sparks’ abstinence-only vow. I also might have implied that Sparks’ promotion of such a vow was both sexist and homophobic. And it is primarily because of her pledge that I actively choose not to listen or buy her music.
But what if she came out with a song that I really loved? Is my 99 cents on iTunes going to support her music or her cause? Could I overlook her personal beliefs and give into my personal taste?
I guess it really comes down to how big of a fan you are and your ability to reconcile the conflicting viewpoints – like dating a conservative when you’re progressive. For instance, I know Britney Spears identifies as a Republican but I continue to buy her music – and that’s probably because I was a fan of Britney before I knew her political views (unlike Jordin Sparks). I’m sure many conservatives out there will still see Susan Sarandon movies even though she is a very outspoken liberal.
Maybe I’ll wait and see how well Melissa does on Dancing With the Stars before I make any final judgments on the future of our relationship.
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It's a very interesting question. I'm not sure which way I'd go on this. It may depend on the celebrity, but...well, I don't know. Thanks for writing about this topic.
# Posted By AFY_Samantha
| 8/27/09 10:13 PM
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