« Netflix For Books |
Main
| Faces Of The Day »
22 Nov 2008 08:20 pm
It Could Be Them
Toby Young believes celebrity culture sustains the illusion of meritocracy:
If the existence of the celebrity class does play a role in securing people's consent to our winner-takes-all society, then the fact that the entry requirements are so low helps this process along. If people believe there is a genuine chance they might be catapulted to the top, they're more likely to endorse a system in which success is so highly rewarded. To paraphrase the advertising slogan for the National Lottery, it could be them. As with the lottery, people may know that the actual chances of winning are low but the selection mechanism itself is fair—a level playing field. After that, their "specialness" will take care of the rest.
Share This
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d83451c45669e20105360bb92e970c
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference 'It Could Be Them'
