It’s difficult to forget the first presidential debate of 2020. In a shocking display of childishness, both candidates made a mockery of the American political system. NPR compared the ad hominem attack-filled event to a boxing match gone wrong, stating that it “turned into President Trump jumping on the ropes, refusing to come down, the referee trying to coax him off, and Joe Biden standing in the middle of the ring with his gloves on and a confused look on his face.” It, indeed, was like a boxing match: a televised event that made us all want to turn our TV’s off and grab some popcorn. It was embarrassing for our country, but most of all, it was entertainment.
Personality is an important element of one’s candidacy. One of the most charismatic presidents, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, turned his charm into four terms in office. Later, with the popularization of television came TV personalities. Charisma became more and more important– John F. Kennedy and Bill Clinton’s status as two of the most beloved presidents is likely not for their politics, but for their suave movie-star manner. Politicians can bring about cults of personality through their public personas and their power. But what about people who run as demagogues to bring their pre-existing cult-like-followings into office?
There’s an epidemic of celebrities from all areas of media announcing or considering political candidacy. Donald Trump and Ronald Reagan are the most notable examples, Hollywood personalities turned dangerous politicians. More recently, in April, a poll was administered asking Americans if they would support a presidential run from Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, and 46% said yes, despite him having zero political experience. Matthew MacConaughey was considering candidacy, as were Caitlyn Jenner and Shaquille O’Neal. Whether or not these inexperienced stars legitimately considered a run for public office, their considerable public favor is notable, and frightening. People seem to innately trust stars, especially ones from reality TV. Even though intellectually we know the shows are scripted, subconsciously we trust that the characters are authentic. We feel that we know them.
Media is constantly shoveled into our faces. With the advent of at-home streaming, more entertainment than ever is being released. We need entertainment, and the entertainment industry needs to be profitable. During the Trump administration, the news, politics, and entertainment were all conflated. We read CNN like it was a psychological thriller, searched for tweets like they were divine signs, watched debates like boxing matches. People hung onto Trump’s every word, whether they were waiting for new gospel or to laugh at whatever deranged statement he would post. He was a court jester, entertaining the American masses, worming his way into the collective psyche as a permanent figure. He is universally either loved or hated. There is no in-between. And despite the majority of voters that hate him, Donald Trump is a tremendous success story – a celebrity demagogue in politics.
In an SNL sketch from October of 2020, Pete Davidson states: “I want to vote for Biden because he’s better, smarter, better, and better. But I’m worried… because if Trump leaves office, then what the hell are we going to talk about?” This phenomenon culminated with the Jan. 6th insurrection, where Americans watched live streams of Trump supporters scaling stairs and scrambling up walls like some invading zombie army in the third act of a horror film. It was as much of a narrative climax as we were going to get. Afterwards everything slowed down again. There were no outrageous headlines, just infrastructure bills and tax debates. Politics are back to where they were. But celebrities keep trying for candidacy. America is addicted to entertainment in politics. We won’t let go of our stars in office anytime soon.
