Essay time...

Should celebrities be paid so much?

It is known all over the world that many celebrities receive millions of dollars, and that these popular figures are often people grabbing the headlines whatever they do, whether it be their achievements in their field, or perhaps some shameful act that has happened in their private lives. Whenever such reports appear in the papers, it is often quickly followed by articles exploring the essentiality of the high salaries that such people are getting. Should celebrities be paid so much?

A celebrity is a widely-recognized or notable person who commands a high degree of public and media attention. Therefore, the acts of such people are often closely followed by reporters or photographers, who are known by the more popular name, paparazzi. Therefore, a fact not known by the public is the stress that most celebrities would face when they are followed almost everyday by these ubiquitous correspondents. Also, the success of a celebrity may leave as suddenly as it comes. He is like a new toy to a child and when people tire of him, he falls by the wayside. Therefore, celebrities must always keep at the top of their standards, constantly trying to achieve an even higher standard of acting or singing in order to keep their place in the entertainment world. It can be said that their highly demanding job rationalizes their high pay.

Also, it must be made known that some celebrities do actually justify their pay by using it to help the world. An example could be that of Jet Li. Following a harrowing escape from the Boxing Day Tsunami in 2004, the Chinese kung fu movie actor used 500 thousand Yuan to set up a charity organization called the One Foundation, a non-government organization which has raised more than 20 million dollars so far. Li has also helped out in the recent Sichuan earthquake as a voluntary worker, showing that there are celebrities who channel their wealth to a better cause.

However, there are also many celebrities who have tarnished the image of celebrities, who are supposed to be a role model for the public. Such people would include Lindsay Lohan, whose life as a young and upcoming socialite has got her into trouble with the law, mostly due to driving under the influence. There is also the case of Amy Winehouse, whose life has now been wasted due to drugs, and Britney Spears, who has recently been involved in a series of high-profile lawsuits with her husband over the custody of her child, and allegations about her sanity. All these celebrities have started to lead such wasteful lives, probably due to the large amounts of cash that they have at their disposal, which has resulted in their splurging on drugs and other harmful chemicals.

Another consequence of the high pay that celebrities receive would be that of a haughty attitude, bred due to the fact that some celebrities believe that they are number one, and should be respected everywhere that they go just because of the money that they own. An example can be found in Paris Hilton, who was recently spotted to be leaving a restaurant in a huff after kicking up a fuss at being denied a table. This shows that earning so much money can indeed give rise to an attitude that can cause celebrities to be rather disliked, even hated.
All in all, I feel that the disadvantages of allowing celebrities to earn so much money outweigh the advantages, and we should not let celebrities earn so much money, as I feel that they are more likely to spend it on drugs, drinks and other addictive substances, rather than help others with the cash they have.