Internet Celebrity

With the Internet, just about anyone can go from ordinary to extraordinary in a relatively short amount of time. Plus, the use of the Internet is now more widely accepted as a main tool for communication and self-expression.

The typical mediums through which something such as a brand or celebrity became popular is now different and more than ever, the masses actually have a say in what is popular and what is not, based on Internet indicators. Where normally a celebrity would be someone who makes movies or is in a popular band, today the average person can become popular using the Internet as a means of launching themselves into the world.

Tila Tequila became famous last year for having the most friends on MySpace. Thus, the indicator of her popularity had to do with online social networking site MySpace.

Something similar occurred for teenager Corey Kennedy who became a celebrity after Mark Hunter of website, the Cobra Snake, snapped her picture and posted it online.

Kennedy quickly became a source of intrigue over her fashion and took off with some sort of cult following for her clothing. Plus, pictures of her seemed to place her with some of the most popular celebrities of today (such as Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan) - all of this was done via the Internet.

In many ways, this new means of communication has brought the idea of celebrity down to the masses since the Internet has the ability to connect people on a global scale. Thus, the possibility of gaining notoriety is that much simpler because anyone has access to the Internet. At the same time however, the sheer volume of people who can be reached via the Internet also poses to be the greatest challenge and maybe danger for the generation that only knows the Internet.

When Kennedy's mother found out about her daughter's Internet celebrity, she was not particularly pleased.

Likewise, some Internet users do not understand that their actions on the Internet can lead to similar consequences in the real world. Thus, the Internet has led some people to believe that online is a virtual world where the rules are not the same as in reality.

When teens in West Covina were caught by police tagging public property, the evidence came not from cops catching them in the act, but from pictures posted on one teen's MySpace profile. The teen went so far as to brag about the graffiti.

While the Internet in many ways has made it easier to communicate it also should not be taken for granted the fact that anonymity does not exist online - even if it sometimes feels that way.