#hashtagsgonewrong

In the last few days, Justin Bieber has been under the spotlight. Following some pictures released in America that show Bieber puffing the cheeba, there have been outcries by some of his younger followers. A prankster from bulletin-board organisation 4chan took to twitter to play out an extravagant and yet idiotic trick that was to bring about serious repercussions.

There is still widespread confusion as to the authenticity of these pictures, however the series of events that followed were extraordinary and questions need to be asked about the role showbiz plays in the lives of those in the modern age. Very soon after the pictures were released, the hashtags #CutForBieber and #CuttingForBieber were trending on Twitter.

Most normal, sane people realised that this was a joke and proceeded to upload pictures of themselves covered in tomato ketchup or fake blood. To no great surprise, considering the psychotic nature of the ‘Beliebers’, a small minority of people (namely 14-18 year old girls) began to upload real photos of self-harm, begging Bieber not to fall into the dark sinister world of drug abuse.

This may be hilarious to most of the British public, who really wouldn’t give less of a fuck if Bieber fell off the biggest fucking cliff the world has ever seen, but in reality, this is worrying. The fact that an elaborate scandal created on a website led to the actual bodily harm of teens is a wake-up call that people must acknowledge.

The celebrity culture has never been so potent. In the past fans adored and worshipped their idols just as they do now, but we are the ones to blame for the modern day problem. Thanks to our obsession with social networking and our treatment of celebrities as deities, it really is no huge surprise that the ‘Beliebers’ would go to such lengths to show their dedication to the cause.

However, this is not the first time 4chan have created a Bieber hoax that has rippled Twitter and other large social media outlets. Just a few months ago, a 4chan user fabricated a picture of Bieber to look as though he was bald, and then followed the claims that Bieber had been diagnosed with Cancer.

The hashtag #baldforbieber surfaced and yet again the more radical of his followers began uploading pictures of their shaved heads with cringe-worthy inspirational quotes and messages. As I have said previously, this absurd, sycophantic obsession with an 18-year-old boy sparked a chain of reactions that rocked the world of Twitter.

When Twitter was begotten, made famous in the UK by Stephen Fry, the world seemed to implode. The fact a normal person could follow one of their idols, following their every move, looking at pictures they actually upload was obviously too much. These ‘Beliebers’ have proven that this idyllic image that celebrities and the regular population could communicate is completely absurd.

Footballers have landed themselves in trouble, and every few days the Football Association seems to ban someone for complaining about referees, using abusive language, and the rest. In some cases celebrities are abused so vehemently that they have to shut down their accounts, as was the case with Darron Gibson, a very average Everton player that flopped at Manchester United. If I remember correctly he deactivated his Twitter account within 5 hours of opening it.

The bottom line is that however much our society tries to connect with the celebrity world, it is never going to happen through the Internet. It’s sad that a persons day can be made by being ‘retweeted’ by a celebrity that couldn’t give a toss who you are, where you’re from or what you do. People need to realise that they live in a different world, a world in which the word ‘recession’ doesn’t exist, a world that most of us in life will not even brush upon.

The reason the vast majority of celebrities join Twitter is quite simply to massage their egos. The fact Lady GaGa, a lady with a very average singing voice and a tendency for meat dresses has 3 trillion followers is just ridiculous. For a celeb, knowing you have a flock of a few million people that will retweet whatever you want them to, laugh at your shit jokes and pay you undeserved compliments must be a very satisfying feeling…

I once had a Twitter account (2 in fact as I forgot the login details to the first), and I just don’t think that the dynamic works. People jump on quite a few bandwagons, and this is one that gives the normal person an illusion of grandeur that teases them unfairly.