Essay Sample: Do Celebrities Make Good Role Models?

“A celebrity is someone who is famous, especially in areas of entertainment such as films, music, writing, or sports” (Collins Dictionary, Apr. 4, 2022). After some research, a mathematician named Samuel Arbesman found that 0.000086 of the world population, or about 1 in 10,000, is famous (Chron., Apr. 5, 2022). There are celebrities who are good role models, such as Keanu Reeves, who is always friendly with colleagues and fans. Sadly, there are celebrities who are bad role models such as Jay-Z who stabbed someone (The Things, Apr. 7, 2022). Some reasons celebrities are good role models are because they promote positive campaigns or raise awareness for social issues. A couple reasons why some celebrities are bad role models are that they promote a negative body image or get involved in scandals. I believe that some celebrities make good role models, but others do not, because some celebrities support and donate to charities, some get involved with substance abuse, and others try to fix their mistakes by apologizing.

I believe that there are many good celebrities who are genuinely kind and try to give back by donating and supporting charities. After an actor named Patrick Stewart had fostered a pit bull, the experience inspired him to “speak out against dog fighting”. He then partnered with the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) on its “Get Tough” anti-dog fighting campaign (Showbiz CheatSheet, Apr. 9, 2022). Dwayne Johnson, also known as The Rock has made many donations throughout his career. Dwayne donated $25, 000 to the Red Cross and sent out a message to the people of Houston during the Hurricane Harvey relief efforts (ForTheWin, Apr. 9, 2022). Morgan Freeman is another good example because he is a very giving person. He donated a million dollars through his Rock River Foundation, to support education and the arts. His goal is to give every child a good education (Money Inc, Apr. 9, 2022). These people are good role models who use their fame for good. Unfortunately, there are bad role models who get involved with bad things such as substance abuse.

I believe that there are many celebrities who do not make good role models because they make bad decisions like getting involved with substance abuse. Jarad Higgins, more commonly known as Juice WRLD, died from an accidental overdose on Percocet pills. In an attempt to hide them from the police he took all the pills while they were conducting a search on his plane (Drugs.com, Apr. 9, 2022). In 2021, Jada Pinkett Smith shared her struggles with drug abuse on her Red Table Talk show where she explained she would mix alcohol, ecstasy, and weed to make a cocktail. She claimed to have done these things in high school and confessed to passing out on the set of Nutty Professor (National TASC, Apr. 9, 2022). Miley Cyrus also believes that weed is fine and she states “as long as it isn’t illegal, there are far more dangerous things” (Rolling Stone, Apr. 9, 2022). She is teaching people that weed is not as bad as it seems even though it can be very harmful. If these celebrities do these things then others will want to be just like them and they will think it is okay since a celebrity did it. Fortunately, even though everyone makes mistakes some celebrities do try to fix them.

I believe that some celebrities are neutral because they try to make things right by fixing their mistakes and apologizing. At the beginning of quarantine, actress Evangeline Lilly ignored the public health guidelines and dropped her kids off at a gymnastics camp. She later sent out a heartfelt apology for her insensitivity and lack of respect (livingly, Apr. 9, 2022). Another example is Canadian singer Bryan Adams who was enraged when he was not able to perform in London. He blamed it on China and said some pretty nasty things but later apologized after people accused him of spreading “xenophobic misinformation”. In addition, Singer Doja Cat was criticized for releasing a track called "Dindu Nuffin," which is a racist slur normally used when mocking black victims of police brutality. Doja claimed it was "written in response to people who often used that term to hurt me," but realized "it was a bad decision to use the term in my music" (Entertainment Weekly, Apr. 9, 2022). In my opinion, these celebrities can be good role models but they just made mistakes. No one is perfect and not all celebrities make good role models

I believe that there are some celebrities who make good role models, but others do not. Some of them are good people and they support and donate to charities. In my opinion they are good role models. Some celebrities make bad decisions and get involved with dangerous things like substances. These celebrities are bad role models for everyone. Some celebrities are neutral because everyone makes mistakes but they at least try to make up for it. They try to make things right by fixing their mistakes and apologizing. They can be good role models sometimes but not always. Celebrities have a huge impact on society and they influence many decisions that people make. It is important to choose carefully who you want to emulate because some celebrities are terrible role models while others could be great.