Star Power: Celebrity Advocacy and the Evolution of the Public Sphere

The standard view of celebrity advocacy focuses on the ability of celebrities to help causes make news and capture the public's attention. Drawing on an analysis of the advocacy efforts and news-making success of hundreds of celebrities, we argue, however, that the standard view of celebrity advocacy significantly overstates the news-making abilities of celebrities in the political arena. Our assessment of the celebrity advocacy tactics used by fifty-three environmental groups suggests that celebrities instead play a growing role as part of an emerging strategy for political advocacy. Spawned by the difficulty most groups have making news, and made possible by the evolution of technology and the public sphere, this new celebrity advocacy strategy represents one aspect of a broader shift in American politics being ushered in by the digital age.