Project Context & Contributions My contribution to exsisting literature and other texts on the subject of celebrity obsession is to include all exsisting information into one precise text. This text will have my own personal bias and understanding of what the celebrity obsession is today. This capstone falls under the entertainment context and my goals are to show my readers that the celebrity obsession has grown rapidly over the centuries and into the final realm of what obsession can do to a fan or a stalker.

Project Abstract To dream about being famous is one thing but fantasizing about being famous or wanting to be with the famous is another. How does a fan develop an unhealthy obsession? How does a fan reach that point? I found that there are three levels of obsession. The fan, the groupie and the stalker. These three levels brought me to the conclusion that there are thousands of websites and magazines producing daily photos of the hottest celebrities in Hollywood, not only are fans pasting these clippings to their walls, but researching the celebrities to find more personal information. Information that leads to invaded privacy and stalking.

Project Format My capstone will be in a 10-page journalism project along with an 1,000 word article which I will try and publish by the end of my spring semester.

Image from jimlowney.com

Research Questions 1. What about the highest degree of obsession? Suicide, murder, stalking? 2. What role might fandom play in modern society? 3. Are there any historical precedents? 4. How does a person reach that point of obsession to where they go that far? 5. How does a fan develop an unhealthy obsession? 6. What about the psychology of the celebrity themselves? 7. How do celebrities affect the everyday life? Advertisements? Fashion? Makeup? Gossip? 8. Who do celebrities play in each entertainment industry? (i.e Music, film and television)

Key Findings Within my research of my capstone, I found particular information about the celebrity obsession that I don't think many would know. "Celebrities are worshiped for what they represent, rather than his or her individual personality, even when the attraction had overtly sexual orgins." (Giles, 133) Many stalkers fall into a love obsession with just who the celebrity acts like and not who they really are. These stalkers are taken to court and then most are found not guilty by pleading insanity. Also, not only are stalkers the ones with psychological issues but celebrities do as well. The number of social issues that celebrities must deal with is high and they have to cope with pressures of being famous. The loss of privacy is in conjunction with the press and creates a world of havoc for all celebrities' personal lives. This is where my readers see through the bright lights of fame. I have examples of lawsuits and descriptions of annoymous packages sent to celebrities and the items enclosed. Lastly, Governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger approved AB 381, an amendment of the California Civil Code. This law creates action against papparazzi and any assault caused by them. All this information answers each of my research questions and more because I had so much information to help me that I nailed all of them. The overall significance of what I found as a result of my in-depth experience is that it's important to know what's inside the issue of celebrity obsession rather than just the icing on the top.

Evidence The field of study that helped my capstone were my journalism courses such as Magazine writing, Media Ethics, and Social Impact of Mass Media. The major learning outcomes that contributed to my capstone were the Media, narrative, and ethnographic skills which gave me the ability to gather responsibly, interpret critically, narrate, and disseminate the voices and stories of people, communities, or events by integrating ethnographic or journalistic field research methods, cultural or media analysis, and narrative writing. The Philosophical analysis gave me the ability to understand why and how beliefs, values, assumptions, and communication practices interact to shape ways of being and knowing. I collected my information by Scholarly, peer-reviewed articles and books, scholarly reviews,scholarly websites, online scholarly journals, etc. I used Photographs, magazine articles, newspaper articles, books, chatrooms, emails,etc. I used CSUMB databases like PsychCentral and Ebsco. I used interviews in my project with some friends and my mother who ran her own Marilyn Monroe Worldwide fan club. The two books that gave me the most information and improved my research were David Giles "Illusions of Immortality: a Psychology of Fame and Celebrity" and David Marshall "Celebrity and Power".

Selected Bibliography Secondary: Sheridan, Lorraine, John Maltby, and Raphael Gillett. “Pathological public figure preoccupation: Its relationship with dissociation and absorption.” Personality and Individual Differences Vol 41(3) (2006): p525-535. EBSCOhost. CSUMB Lib., Seaside. 28 Sept. 2006 <http://search.epnet.com>. This journal introduces the Public Figure Preoccupation Inventory (PFPI), bridging the theoretical and empirical gap between 'everyday' celebrity worship and unhealthy preoccupation with a celebrity or other public figure. This is relevant to my topic because it’s a group of authors that came together to investigate the obsession with the preoccupation of celebrities and how it affects people and their minds, and to give their readers a better understanding of how this syndrome isn’t healthy. They found how it makes the brain react in a way where people tend to obsess to the point where it changes ones lifestyle. Hargrave-Silk, Atifa. “A Star-Struck Obsession.” Media Asia 30 May 2003. p44. EBSCOhost. CSUMB Lib., Seaside. 28 Sept. 2006 <http://search.epnet.com>. This article involves a celebrity fascination around the word with celebrities being able to sell products better than anything else and in opinion of other interviewees. It will be helpful because I can give an all-around effect on the reader to not only emphasize the obsession in the United States but the admiration around the world. (Faces that launch brands) Pollack, Joe. “Gossip about celebrities isn't journalism.” St. Louis Journalism Review Vol. 36 Issue 283 (2006): p14-15. EBSCOhost. CSUMB Lib., Seaside. 28 Sept. 2006 <http://search.epnet.com>. This journal’s focus’ on data and statistics concerning the focus on celebrities in the news rather than the real news going on in the world that’s more important, but nonetheless, is drawing in a larger audience over time. In the journal it says, “Celebrities are famous, one thinks, because they are written about in gossip columns and talked about on the Internet. They are people with little skill or talent. They are often, though not exclusively, women. They don't work, because being on television...” Like above, it will help get the point across that the celebrity life has taken over the news, especially when there are more important issues to focus on. Schlesinger, Louis B. “Celebrity Stalking, Homicide, and Suicide: A Psychological Autopsy.” Sage Publications Vol. 50(1) (2006): p39-46. EBSCOhost. CSUMB Lib., Seaside. 28 Sept. 2006 http://search.epnet.com<http://ijo.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/50/1/39>. This journal article is about celebrity stalkers and how it can turn deadly. This is a case of an obsessed fan that attempted to kill a rock star and then committed suicide. All information is from the murder’s 803 page diary. The diary had foreshadowed his death and was mostly about his obsession with a female film star. There was also entries in the diary about how much the man wanted a time machine to go back into time and become close to the celebrities family and be apart of the stars upbringing. This can give my reader a better view of how an “obsession” with celebrities can turn into an unhealthy habit and lead to death and chemical imbalances due to psychological issues. “Celebrity Worship Syndrome: Is America’s Obsession with Stardom Becoming Unhealthy?” Propaganda Matrix. No date specified. ABC News. 28 Sept. 2006. < http://www.prisonplanet.com/240903celebrityworship.html> The page on this website is an analysis and comparison of survey data from 600 people, and including interviews. "We as a society are becoming overly preoccupied with celebrities and the fantasy images it evokes.” says James Houran, “After surveying more than 600 people, Houran's team of researchers from universities in the United States and Britain recently identified a psychiatric condition they have dubbed "celebrity worship syndrome." It's an unhealthy interest in the lives of the rich and fabulous. According to the researchers, about a third of us have it to some degree.” This explains that America’s society has been sucked into the brainwashing of celebrity living and lifestyles. The site gives the reader a measure of people’s interest with celebrities on a “worship scale.” This will be helpful because it talks about how other worship celebrities, and receives a large amount of opinion on what the pubic thinks about the issue. Soloman, Norman. “Hidden Costs of America's Celebrity Obsession.” Alternet. 26 April 2000. < http://www.alternet.org/columnists/story/7707/> This article is about people of America are transitioning from occasionally catching up with celebrity gossip, to waking up everyday with a craving for the urge to watch “tabloid TV”. This will help out with my topic because it gives a different insight and opinion on the way American’s live their day-to-day life using celebrities as a “fix”. Primary: PsychCentral. 4 May 2005. 28 Sept. 2006. < http://psychcentral.com/ask-the-therapist/2005/05/04/celebrity-obsession-taking-over-life/> This is a writer’s opinion towards a person that is having an obsession problem with celebrities. The problem is that his obsession is turning his everyday life down to the point where he can’t focus on anything and the writer did her best to consult the person, advising him to see a therapist. She said, “I don’t know what reasons you base this obsession on, or what is it that attracts you to this person. For these reasons I cannot give you any sound advice that would help you. That’s what a therapist is for. A therapist needs to ask you many questions to understand what is behind your feelings, the ones you are calling an obsession. I hope you realize that the person you are obsessed with is someone you really don’t know. You’re obsessed with an image that you have made up in your own mind. Everyone is different privately and personally. They have their pubic persona. The image that you are seeing is a completely public image that is carefully groomed and manicured by their personal publicist. In every case, it’s immature and unrealistic to fall in love with someone you do not know. These people are very different privately as is everyone. Everyone has a public and personal side to their being. I would suggest some counseling to help you through this. Good luck.” This would be a small role towards my topic just to give the insight that celebrities are just like “normal” people and are different out of the spot light rather than what you always see on television. Page Six. No date specified. 4 Oct. 2006. < http://www.nypost.com/gossip/gossip.htm> This is an actual column for the New York Post but using the online version. This is the gossip column dedicated to celebrity living and lifestyle. From fashion to headlining news about interns suing famous editors of magazines, it’s on Page Six. This is really resourceful for my topic because it’s updated everyday and gives the latest scoop on celebrities and is one of the most reliable publications for this matter exclusively. For example, the latest break up news, the latest celebrity photos taken from events or candid shots around town, and even a map to show where people have found celebrities. Miler, Julia. “Star Struck.” Advertising Age Spring 1995: p31-31. EBSCOhost. CSUMB Lib., Seaside. 28 Sept. 2006 <http://search.epnet.com>. This article gives a historical perspective on televisions advertising’s use of celebrities in the United States. “In the 1950s, it was Nancy Reagan who flashed her pearly whites for Crest toothpaste, while her husband Ronald Reagan and numerous other Hollywood stars hawked cigarettes. In the 1960s, actor Edward G. Robinson endorsed Maxwell House coffee.” This is relevant to my topic because it shows that not only do the average American’s enjoy watching celebrities but advertisers too because they know who their audience wants to see promoting products.