The power of celebrities in global politics

Abstract

The political commitment of celebrities is growing in scope and significance, especially when considering their increasing involvement in global politics. Bono is a prominent example of such a celebrity, who arguably has played a role in tripling the US budget for Africa. Even celebrities beyond the Anglo-Saxon context, such as the German singer and actress Heike Makatsch, have become globally esteemed celebrity activists. Scholars, however, face limits when it comes to assessing these individuals’ particular power in global politics. This article aims to develop a more complex understanding of how celebrities exercise power in global politics by first looking at theories of power and then considering how power plays out in two case studies of Bono and Makatsch as celebrity activists in global politics.

Keywords:

• global politics
• Bono
• Heike Makatsch
• power with
• power over
• Max Weber
• Hannah Arendt

Notes

^1. The original quotation is in German: ‘Aus einem abstrakten Anliegen, dass es allen Menschen gleich gut gehen sollte, wird ein persönliches. Und diesen Wunsch, dass es den Menschen besser gehen muss, den kann ich nun sehr viel besser erklären und verteidigen’ (Oxfam 2013).

^2. For an assessment on how photographs influence international relations, see Heck and Schlag (2013).

^3. For Bono, see: http://www.tradeforum.org/In-Pictures-Advocacy-for-Trade4/ [accessed 30 August 2014]. For Makatsch, see www.presseportal.de/pm/51594/820483/heike-makatsch-unterstuetzt-oxfams-kampagne-make-trade-fair-foto-ausstellung-weltstars-fuer [accessed 15 March 2013].

^4. Video of the concert available online: www.youtube.com/watch?v = −IERMGZuLM4 [accessed 20 June 2013].

^5. Spots available online: www.youtube.com/watch?v = 8iFvhDK-5OE, www.commondreams.org/view/2011/11/03-7 and www.oxfam.de/heike-makatsch [accessed 10 June 2013].

^6. English spot available online: www.theguardian.com/business/video/2010/feb/09/bill-nighy-robin-hood-tax [accessed 20 June 2013].

^7. For a discussion on the interrelation between material and ideational sources of power, see Fuchs and Glaab (2011).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Lena Partzsch

Lena Partzsch is a Privatdozentin (assistant professor) in Political Science at the University of Freiburg. Prior to this, Lena coordinated research projects at the University of Greifswald (2009–2013) and the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research in Leipzig (2007–2009). Her main fields of interest are development and environmental policies.