Jade's back and this time she's famous: Narratives of celebrity in the Celebrity Big Brother 'race' row

Holmes, Su (2009) Jade's back and this time she's famous: Narratives of celebrity in the Celebrity Big Brother 'race' row. Entertainment and Sports Law Journal, 7 (1).

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Abstract

Prior to the Celebrity Big Brother ‘ race’ row in 2007, British Reality TV star, Jade Goody, was recurrently held up as emblematic of the ‘democratisation’ of celebrity. Yet this controversy gives us cause to question a narrative of populist democracy where the circulation of celebrity status is concerned. This article explores the construction of Jade’s image before, during and after the row, examining how it offers a unique insight into the relationship between Reality TV, celebrity and discourses of selfhood in contemporary culture - especially as these are mapped across the categories of gender and class. Indeed, Jade’s representational journey points to some of the cultural tensions which surround the fascination with Reality TV stars. They are often required to demonstrate the retention of an essential ‘working-class glitz beneath the glamour’ (Biressi and Nunn 2005, p. 146), while (like many ‘essential’ identities), this core can also be cast in negative terms – as the ‘real’ identity which must be (re)assumed if social order is to prevail.

Item Type:	Article
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities > School of Film and Television Studies (former - to 2012) Faculty of Arts and Humanities > School of Art, Media and American Studies (former - to 2024)
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Film, Television and Media
Depositing User:	EPrints Services
Date Deposited:	01 Oct 2010 13:58
Last Modified:	28 Mar 2025 03:13
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/10095
DOI:	10.16997/eslj.54

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