and actor Robert De Niro are international celebrities for their respective
work. A 'celebrity' is a person who is famously recognized in a society. There are degrees of celebrity status which vary based on an individual's region
or field of notoriety. While someone might be a celebrity to some people, to
others he may be completely unknown. A global celebrity on the other hand is someone who is known by most people or
is a mainstream celebrity. Such a celebrity is also known as either a 'household
name' or superstar. For example, Virgin Director Richard Branson was notable as
a CEO, but he did not become a global celebrity until he attempted to
circumnavigate the globe in a hot air balloon and generate publicity for
himself. Another high profile categorisation of celebrity status is the A-list,
based on the marketability of celebrities. Generally speaking, a celebrity is someone who seeks media attention and most
frequently has an extroverted personality. The desire to be notable is implied
by some to be a part of Western culture and more specifically the American Dream
as a measure of success. A celebrity that shys away from the public eye or keeps
a very separate private life is called a 'reluctant celebrity'. At the other end
of the spectrum, a celebrity that seeks out publicity for him- or herself is
often called a 'media tart', whereas one that uses his or her private life as a
vehicle for enhanced celebrity status, sometimes desperately, is referred to as
a 'media whore'. Examples of this are fake or planned relationships, reality
television appearances, celebrity nudity and in extreme cases, scandal or
celebrity sex tapes. There are a wide range of ways people can become celebrities, from their
profession, appearances in the mass media, beauty or even by complete accident
or infamy. 'Instant celebrity' is the term that is used when someone becomes a
celebrity in very short period of time. In some places, someone that somehow achieves a small amount of transient fame
through hype or mass media, is stereotyped as a 'B-grade celebrity'. Often the
stereotype extends to someone that falls short of mainstream or persistent fame
but seeks to extend or exploit it. In the 20th Century, the insatiable public fascination for celebrities and
appetite for celebrity gossip has seen the rise of the gossip columnist,
tabloid, paparazzi and celebrity blogging.
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