Richard Dyer - Star Theory

Star theory – Richard Dyer

Stars are Constructed:

Richard Dyer is a British media theorist. His theory is that a star is an image and not a real person. They’re construction by institutions for financial reasons and are targeted at a specific audience. They’re constructed with a range of materials, like advertising, magazines etc. this creates a special place in the audiences lives for the stars.

Audiences and institutions:

Stars are made to make money alone. Making the star more popular increases their work, therefore this benefits the institution because they will increase the sales in all the media platforms they’re in. The institution can modify the star for the target audience they want. For example, PINK was marketed as a pop singer and her producers wanted her to go in that direction.

Constructions:

A star isn’t a real person, but an image. A star normally has a signature quality that people think of when the person’s name comes to mind. For example, Kim Kardashian is well known for her curvy figure.

Cultural Beliefs:

Stars are built so the target audience can relate to them or admire a quality about them. This then goes to idolising them which makes them more popular, therefore makes the institution more money. But some stars aren’t the best role models, like Michael Jackson who had a lot of plastic surgery. This has a negative effect on his audience and fans as some copied his actions to be more like him.

The two paradoxes of stars:

1.       A star is both ordinary and extraordinary – a star is represented as just like us. A normal person yet with some aspects that make them extra ordinary to make them an interesting person.

2.       A star is both present and absent – this means that stars are in a way present in our life in what we talk about, on the other hand they’re sent as it’s something we see as out of reach.

He thinks the audience strives to complete a star’s image by consuming strives to complete a star’s image by consuming their products, shows, merchandise etc. As well as engaging with the star’s meta-narrative, especially seeing the, live. But the meta-narrative changes making it harder for the audience to complete the image, making them frustrated as the attempt to do so fails.