Reality Blogging: No Celebs Allowed?

By John M Grohol PsyD
April 7, 2008

Is reality blogging the next big thing? I say, “No, it’s not,” and you can read about it over at ABC News.com.

Why not?

The only reason “reality blogging” hit the mainstream media (and isn’t “reality blogging” a bit of a ridiculous phrase, given that virtually all blogging is about our lives, otherwise known as “reality”?) is because one of these sites posted about a celebrity!

Quite the paradox there…. If you thought doing the same thing as TMZ or Perez Hilton was interesting — except with everyday people — then why would you ever post the celebrity pictures or photos? Duh, for attention.

The answer is simple — celebrities sell, while everyday people don’t. Ordinary folks may be funny, embarrassing, whatever. But because we don’t know them, it’s not nearly as funny or embarrassing than when it happens to someone famous. Someone whom many believe should know better and have, awkwardly, become many people’s role models.

I don’t think celebrities should be our role models, and I don’t particularly care for celebrity gossip. But my wife does, and so do the millions of readers of the weeklies, so there’s definitely something of interest there. The difference, however, is that the “interest” is in the celebrity’s life, not an embarrassing party photo taken 5 years ago that just showed up on some stranger’s Myspace page.

Dr. John Grohol is the CEO and founder of Psych Central. He has been writing about online behavior, mental health and psychology issues, and the intersection of technology and psychology since 1992.