Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
My Profile
Top News
Reuters top ten news stories delivered to your inbox each day.
Subscribe
You are here:
Home
>
News
>
Technology
>
Article
Home
Business & Finance
News
U.S.
Politics
International
Technology
Internet
Entertainment
Sports
Lifestyle
Oddly Enough
Health
Science
Special Coverage
Video
Pictures
Your View
The Great Debate
Blogs
Weather
Reader Feedback
Do More With Reuters
RSS
Widgets
Mobile
Podcasts
Newsletters
Your View
Make Reuters My Homepage
Partner Services
CareerBuilder
Affiliate Network
Professional Products
Support (Customer Zone)
Reuters Media
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
Can there be another Michael Jackson icon in Internet era?
Wed Jul 8, 2009 10:38am EDT
Email | Print |
Share
| Reprints | Single Page
[-]
Text
[+]
By Michelle Nichols
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The extravagant mourning for Michael Jackson has some critics wondering whether the pop singer's global superstardom could ever be duplicated in an Internet era offering endless entertainment choices.
Jackson's sudden June 25 death caused an outpouring of praise for the singer, whose 1982 "Thriller" album is the best-selling of all time with estimated sales of 50 million copies. In death, Jackson's personal scandals no longer seemed so important to his fans and those caught up in the moment.
"In the world of YouTube, no one could occupy the worldwide effect of Michael Jackson's 'Thriller,'" said Jonathan Taplin, a University of Southern California professor.
"I was scouting a movie for Walt Disney in 1983 in Congo, Gabon and Ivory Coast. All you heard on the radio was Michael Jackson," said Taplin, a former television and film producer.
The Internet has joined the world together in new ways and can elevate unknowns to stardom in an instant, as illustrated by Susan Boyle, the dowdy British singer who shot from obscurity to international fame when her performance on a British talent show was posted on YouTube.
But such fame is fleeting and one Internet sensation is quickly replaced by another. "There will be thousands of Susan Boyles, but no Michael Jacksons or The Beatles," Taplin said.
Before the emergence of cable TV and then the Internet, tens of millions of people regularly tuned into the same hit shows at the same time. Now, the Internet has flooded the world with choice and diluted audiences.
Dubbed the "King of Pop," Jackson, 50, sang with his brothers in the "Jackson 5" before achieving solo stardom with hits like "Billie Jean" and "Beat It," which he promoted with boundary breaking videos on cable music video network MTV.
JACKSON WOULD FIND IT HARDER
But MTV no longer plays hours of prime time music videos and the Internet allows anyone to post songs and videos online. The New York Times's David Segal wrote that this probably spelled the end of fame on the level achieved by Jackson.
"That's why even Michael Jackson would have a hard time becoming Michael Jackson these days," he wrote. "There is something sad about our infinite menu of options. It could very well mean the end of true superstardom."
Jackson won 13 Grammy Awards and during his lifetime sold an estimated 750 million albums.
But although he was poised to attempt a comeback, his best years appeared far behind him when he died. In recent years, he won more headlines for his bizarre behavior and in fighting off sexual abuse charges than for his music.
Susan Ohmer, who teaches modern communication at the University of Notre Dame, likened Jackson's fame to that of Britain's Princess Diana, saying that while people may not have known the real Jackson or Diana, the personas they portrayed on camera captured the world's attention.
"Michael Jackson came of age when music was becoming more international," Ohmer said "Like Princess Diana, his style and movements seemed to come alive on camera." Continued...
View article on single page
Share:
Del.icio.us
Digg
Mixx
Yahoo!
Facebook
LinkedIn
Next Article:
Sony CEO dismisses price cut chatter on PlayStation
also on reuters
Blog: Burqa losing favour as Afghan women opt for chador
FBI says mortgage fraud rampant and growing
Commentary: The dollar’s Tinkerbell moment
More Technology News
Google takes aim at Microsoft with new PC platform
North Korea suspected in Web attack
Sony CEO dismisses price cut chatter on PlayStation
Google, YouTube win dismissal of some damages claims
Chinese go online to vent ire at Xinjiang unrest
More Technology News...
Editor's Choice
Slideshow
A selection of our best photos from the past 24 hours. Slideshow
Most Popular on Reuters
Articles
Video
U.S. mortgage fraud 'rampant' and growing-FBI
Critics laud love-laced Harry Potter film
Michael Jackson hailed as greatest entertainer, best dad | Video
Google takes aim at Microsoft with new PC platform
Putin praises Bush hospitality during Obama visit
New monkey discovered in Brazilian Amazon
China's Hu abandons G8 as ethnic unrest continues | Video
U.S. apartment vacancies near historic high: report
Gmail Finally Out of Beta!
Pickens backs off wind farm project: report
Most Popular Articles RSS Feed
Video
Memorial fit for a king
China unrest resumes
Stocks slide on economy jitters
Sights, sounds from Jackson memorial
Fresh unrest in Chinese Uighur city
China tightens security in Xinjiang
China riots leave 140 dead
Jermaine sings for his brother
NY Jackson fans gather for memorial
Economy to take center stage at G8
Most Popular Videos RSS Feed
We want to hear from you
Join the Reuters Consumer Insight Panel and help us get to know you better
Please take a moment to complete our survey
Reuters.com:
Help and Contact Us |
Advertise With Us |
Mobile |
Newsletters |
RSS |
Labs |
Archive |
Site Index |
Video Index
Thomson Reuters Corporate:
Copyright |
Disclaimer |
Privacy |
Professional Products |
Professional Products Support |
About Thomson Reuters |
Careers
International Editions:
Africa |
Arabic |
Argentina |
Brazil |
Canada |
China |
France |
Germany |
India |
Italy |
Japan |
Latin America |
Mexico |
Russia |
Spain |
United Kingdom |
United States
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.