Go ahead, type Britney Spears in a Google search. Don’t be embarrassed, it’s a sociological exercise.
The first two Internet search results are official Web sites–her own and her label’s–and the next four are typical fan sites featuring bad Britney collages, even-worse cut-outs, pseudo news about Britney topping the charts in Finland and the most annoying pop-up ads ever.
But after this junk is when the truth really hits. Britney is a star–Earth’s World Idol, even–and people create “dress-like-Britney” Web sites devoted to her fashion prowess, and other sites take seriously the debate about her breasts being real or fake.
True, the former Mouseketeer is an easy target, but she’s also one of the most influential and most talked-about people on the planet.
It goes without saying that Britney is everywhere. And of course, we’re paying attention–reveling in every botched interview or sympathizing with each misstep–but it’s daunting, scary even, to realize how powerful this 22-year-old from Kentwood, La., really is.
Show stop
Britney Spears performs Friday at the Allstate Arena.
Fashion
The Britney Spears Cafi is an impressive, interactive site subtitled “Dress Like Britney.” It shows magazine clippings and TV stills of the look of Britney. Next to the pix are links, prices and examples of similar clothing. For less than $100, you, too, can look like a pop tart.
Growing pains
Britney was barely 18 when her first single owned the radio. She was prepping for stardom, and she was going to grow up quick. Britney’s virginity, or lack thereof, made for countless magazine covers, as did her drinking and smoking. “She still appeals to young girls, and she now appeals to young women,” said Matthew Donahue, professor of pop culture. “It’s the best crossover.”
Gossip train
Britney has rediscovered religion. No, she’s overweight and hooked on diet pills. Wait, she just misses her ex-husband of 55 hours. Actually, she’s fighting depression. Her “Entertainment Tonight” quotient is higher than Michael Jackson, and like M.J., a.k.a. Jacko, she’s got her own nickname in the British tabloids: Brit-Brit. “She has reached major icon status on a worldwide level,” said Matthew Donahue, a professor of pop culture at Bowling Green State University. “Like her or not, she’s a major force in popular culture right now, and major industry revolves around her.”
Collective therapy via Brit
The American paparazzi caught Britney leaving a bookstore with “Listening to Prozac” a few months after the British photogs caught her with the diet pills. In addition to boosting sales, photos like these humanize the pop star and allow Average Janes to feel OK about their battles with depression, obesity and other issues. “People like to imagine that their stars are untouchable and amazing and larger than life, and they have an equal desire to imagine that they’re mere mortals,” said Tricia Rose, an American Studies professor at the University of California-Santa Cruz.
Her influence
When the pop star spilled her purse at London’s Heathrow Airport, the paparazzi captured a bottle of Zantrex-3, a popular diet pill, among the contents. Manufacturer Basic Research said the incident did create a bump in sales for the No. 1 non-ephedrine diet pill.
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Edited by Cara DiPasquale (cdipasquale@tribune.com) and Kris Karnopp (kkarnopp@tribune.com)
