Rachel Martin https://wordpress.com/view/rachelmartin-writingportfolio.wordpress.com
In 2019, the #FreeBritney campaign gained momentum and served to bring public awareness to Britney Spears. Spears, a renowned pop star who had encountered persistent negative press coverage, was subjected to being held under conservatorship since 2008. Spears' negative press coverage is often blamed for the initiation of said conservatorship. This paper seeks to understand in what ways if any, Spears' portrayal by popular tabloid magazines has changed following the termination of her conservatorship through examining differences between pre- and post-dissolution coverage.
On February 1, 2008 Britney Spears was placed under an involuntary conservatorship with her father James Spears as her conservator. One year prior on February 16th of 2007 Spears entered a salon and used an electric razor to buzz off her hair. Four days later on February 20th, Spears hit a paparazzi photographer's car multiple times with an umbrella. These incidents received heavy media coverage, framing Spears as erratic and dangerous. Photographs from those days led to concerns over Spears' mental stability. After Spears received a psychiatric evaluation, a temporary conservatorship was granted to her father James Spears. During her recent trial in June of 2021, Spears made claims in court to dissolve her conservatorship. Spears alleged that James had complete control over her assets, her work schedule, her ability to have children, and at one point, had ordered to have her drugged. “I had to grow my hair out and get back into shape. I had to go to bed early and take whatever medication they told me to take.”
In Spears' memoir The Woman In Me she gives some insight to her “outbursts”, relating them to acts of rebellion and blames postpartum depression, as well as the scrutiny of her body and appearance in the media. “I'd been eyeballed so much growing up. I'd been looked up and down, had people telling me what they thought of my body, since I was a teenager”. Spears' journey from A-list celebrity to perceived lunatic in the eyes of the general public has meaningful rhetorical merit on its own. Spears became a symbol for the consequences of media harassment and serves as a strong example for the necessity of personal autonomy and privacy. While acknowledging those who speculate that her actions are influenced by substances or manipulation, it's important to recognize that the persistent harassment she endured likely contributed to her deteriorated situation.
Spears' appearances in tabloid magazines have fluctuated over the years. During the early 2000s her image was a prominent source of discussion within the magazine medium. The media frequently targets popular celebrities, seeking eye-catching headlines for an increase in viewership. These celebrities, often balancing their personal lives with outward appearance, may become exasperated with the upkeep of public appeal.
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