Star Theory

Richard Dyer is a media theorist and professor of Film Studies at King's College London. In his 1979 book ‘Stars’ he outlines his Star Theory where he states that the star is an artificial construct and not actually a real person. The star is manufactured through music videos, magazines and other advertising, portraying a particular image to the audience. For example, Miley Cyrus has become famous for twerking and riding naked on a wrecking ball, even though she wouldn’t do this any of this in private, so Miley Cyrus the star and the person are two different people. Her new image has been constructed to provoke controversy and media attention.

Stars need to be both ordinary and extraordinary, which is known as the paradox of the star. It means that the star must be ordinary to relate to the audience, but also have an extraordinary talent to be able to be idolised by the public. An example of this is Adele. She is an ordinary woman from London who speaks and acts like most people, but has a talented voice which people idolise, allowing her to be the star that she is. Stars will represent certain social groups to then create certain ideologies, as fans will copy styles and share the same views as them. For example, Beyoncé shares views through her music on how women shouldn’t be ruled by men.

The star is also present and absent, in the way they must be present in our lives through merchandise or social media for example, but also absent in that they are unattainable and special. For example, Harry Styles is a huge part of many young girls lives, even though he is not directly present, though present through posters and music. Star power is utilised to create profit off of related merchandise, as record labels will create similar stars as they know certain patterns and trends that will work to gain more money. This is why boy bands such as One Direction and The Wanted are very similar in style.