Headline: The Guardian:
"British Royal Family: Harry and Meghan invited to Charles' coronation, report suggests."
Who cares?
Apparently, we do.
There is something about humans that make us curious about celebrities. I saw the headline about the British royal family and it triggered an observation.
I was going to write, "curious about leaders" and if that were true it would make obvious evolutionary sense, both for in-group success and for competition between tribes and nations. Leadership is serious and important. But it goes beyond that, to sports figures, movie and music stars, the ultra-rich, to gangsters, and to whatever special attribute the Kardashian family has. If I understand it correctly, they are famous for being famous which makes them famous.
What we really like is gossip. There are characters that emerge into public view and to be culturally competent one needs to know what others are talking about.
I follow political and media celebrities, not royal ones, but I am acting out the same human impulse. I don't pretend that my fascination with Trump, in all his cheesy malevolence, is entirely serious and important while the Kardashians are not. Trump is a character and subject of gossip, just like reality TV stars.
I had gotten along fine for years knowing and caring little about Elon Musk, but now he has burst into view, almost rivaling Donald Trump on center stage. One of the blindingly obvious insights I got reading this morning’s royal family story is that we most enjoy watching celebrities when they are messing up Elon Musk is messing up, but he doesn't seem to care and he is doing it with broad bold strokes. He fires people then hires them back. He says he welcomes dissent on Twitter, then bans people who cross him, then lets the banned people back in. He is acting like an impulsive child knocking over Lego buildings. It is fascinating.
I watched Breaking Bad, where the protagonist made meth. I watched The Americans, where the protagonists were murderous Russian spies. I watched The Godfather, where the protagonists were mafioso. I recognized that what the protagonists were doing was morally wrong. Yet in watching I found myself caring about them and hoping they survived the incidents and suspenseful close calls of the story line. I got into the characters.
It shouldn't surprise me that people have gotten into Trump and hopes he gets away with everything he has done.
Peter, I love your writing.