Ten (or more) media industry news items you might have missed recently.
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Celebrity/Stardom
What Are You Missing? Apr 28 – May 11
The Power of Women’s Voices in The Great Gatsby
The female voices on The Great Gatsby's soundtrack channel the hard-won feminist power of past generations.
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The Deanna Durbin Cult
The figure of the recently passed Deanna Durbin (1921-2013) is fascinating today because of how it embodies a sensibility within stardom: the cult of the child star.
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“We Saw Your Misogyny”: The Oscars & Seth MacFarlane
The controversy surrounding Seth MacFarlane's hosting of the 2013 Oscars offers an opportunity to have productive discussions about the role of the media in shaping ideology.
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The Face (and Laugh) that Launched a Thousand Bits
A farewell to Phyllis Diller from a reverent scholar-fan.
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Outing Anderson: Our Cultural Coming Out Imperative
Anderson Cooper addressed his sexuality in a letter that demonstrates a new, old reason to come out: to break down invisibility and become a model for queer youth.
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Which Direction?: The Homoerotic Masculinities of the Modern Boy Band
Whether you saw their performance on Saturday Night Live, heard the insanely catchy “What Makes You Beautiful” playing over a mall sound system, or just happen to know a 12-year-old girl, it’s possible you’ve already encountered One Direction, the first truly viable boy band of the current musical era.
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Imported by Justin Bieber: Carly Rae Jepsen and Transnational Stardom
Carly Rae Jepsen's Justin Bieber-supported breakthrough offers a case study for how difficult it is for stardom to remain transnational when moving into the U.S. market.
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The Brotherhood of NBC
When NBC aired its "Brotherhood of Man" promotion before the Super Bowl on Sunday, it provided a useful take on the network's biggest strength...and its potential weakness.
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Whatever Happened to the Devil’s Music?
Surely in the final minutes of the last day of the Glastonbury rock festival, people are supposed to look sick, bedraggled and filthy, following a weekend of unfettered debauchery, but those kids are just too clean!. Come to think of it, why is Beyonce headlining anyway?
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Sarah Palin, Anti-Fandom, and the Nature of Political Celebrity
With the release of the new documentary on Sarah Palin, the former governor takes umbrage at the "hate" directed toward her by Hollywood celebrities. She either doesn't understand celebrity culture or understands it all too well.
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Conan and the Warm Embrace of Narrowcasting
Basic cable might turn out to be the best thing to ever happen to Conan O'Brien.
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Rehabilitating the Investment in Sports Stardom
Nike tries to give LeBron James a chance to address his off-season controversy in a new 90-second ad while re-establishing the commodity of sports stardom.
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Open or Closed? Mad Men, Celebrity Gossip, and the Public/Private Divide
This week's Mad Men is all about gossip.
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Sheesh, What’s It Take to Make a Teenage Heartthrob These Days?
Robert Pattinson, like Brando and Dean before him, doesn't play by the star promotion rules and yet is a heartthrob because he appeals to heartthrob-hungry girls in unexpected ways.
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