Richard Dyer's Star Theory

Richard Dyer thinks that a star and the real person are two different things.

He said that there are three areas to the star theory a star:

1) The star as a construction

Richard Dyer states that the star is a construction and not a real person. This star is constructed through music videos, magazines, advertising etc. For example Miley Cyrus has become famous for her riding on a wrecking ball naked however she wouldn’t do any of this in her own home meaning that the person Miley Cyrus and the star are two different people.

2) The star as a commodity

Stars are produced to create a profit off of related merchandise e.g. t-shirts, posters and the like. Record labels will create similar stars because they know certain patterns and trends will work to generate them money. This is why we get so many boy bands who are very similar

3) The star as an ideology

Stars will represent certain social groups and views and will therefore create certain ideologies. As a result fans of the star will often copy their style and share the same views as them.

He also theorised:
There is a paradox of the ‘star’. The paradox is as follows: The star must be both ordinary and extraordinary The star must be both present and absent. The star must be present in our lives whether it is through their merchandise, social media or involved in chat between friends but also absent in the fact that they are not actually there or are ‘out of reach’