Celebrities and Politics – From entertainment to political identity
Golden Page News | September 17, 2026
The boundary between entertainment and politics has become increasingly difficult to maintain, as audiences expect celebrities to reveal not only their professional work and personal lives but also their views on major social and political issues.
That changing relationship is at the centre of a discussion involving sociologist and author Ellis Cashmore, whose work on celebrity culture examines how fame, media and politics have become increasingly intertwined.
Cashmore, speaking with François Picard, argues that the modern celebrity operates in an environment where political neutrality is increasingly difficult to sustain. A public figure who chooses not to comment on a controversial issue can itself become the subject of political interpretation.
His argument comes at a time when a dispute surrounding Ed Sheeran’s Loop Tour has brought questions about artistic expression, political speech and commercial pressure back into the spotlight.
From entertainment to political identity
According to Cashmore’s analysis, the relationship between celebrity and politics has changed considerably over several decades.
The counterculture of the 1960s produced a generation of entertainers who openly connected their public profiles to political and social movements. Later, commercially focused performers were often able to separate their professional careers from contentious political debates.
The rise of digital media has altered that arrangement.
Social-media platforms have reduced the distance between celebrities and their audiences. Fans can now follow performers’ opinions, personal activities and political statements directly, rather than relying primarily on interviews, newspapers or television appearances.
Cashmore’s 2024 edition of Celebrity Culture examines this broader transformation, describing contemporary celebrity culture as a phenomenon shaped by consumerism, advertising, global media and digital platforms. The book also devotes a section specifically to the transformation of politics.
#MeToo and Black Lives Matter changed expectations
The expectation that celebrities should comment on public issues has also been reinforced by social movements.
Campaigns including #MeToo and Black Lives Matter created highly visible moments in which actors, musicians, athletes and other public figures were encouraged to demonstrate solidarity.
Cashmore’s work identifies these movements as part of a wider transformation in what he calls “visibility politics” — situations in which celebrity visibility can be used to draw attention to social causes. His latest edition of Celebrity Culture discusses #MeToo, the Black Lives Matter movement and other campaigns as examples of the way celebrity visibility can influence public discussion.
On issues such as racial discrimination and equal rights, entertainers and institutions can sometimes find relatively broad agreement. But the situation becomes considerably more complicated when celebrities address wars and geopolitical conflicts.
There is rarely a comparable consensus on those issues, yet audiences may still expect artists to explain where they stand.
The Ed Sheeran–Macklemore controversy
That tension has become particularly visible in the controversy surrounding Ed Sheeran’s current tour.
Rapper Macklemore was removed from the remaining dates of Sheeran’s Loop Tour after making pro-Palestinian comments during a performance in New Jersey on September 4.
Macklemore subsequently said he had been removed from the tour but did not blame Sheeran personally. Sheeran, for his part, said the decision was made by promoters and venue owners and described his own professional platform as non-political.
The dispute then expanded when other musicians announced that they would no longer participate in the tour.
Finneas, Lukas Graham, Aaron Rowe and Sheeran’s backing band Beoga all withdrew. Their statements cited concerns about political expression and the circumstances surrounding Macklemore’s removal.
The episode has therefore become more than a disagreement involving individual musicians. It has raised wider questions about who controls the boundaries of political speech at commercial entertainment events and whether artists can realistically separate their public performances from political debate.
Why neutrality has become difficult
For previous generations of entertainers, remaining silent on a political controversy could often be presented simply as a decision not to participate in politics.
The social-media environment has changed that calculation.
A celebrity’s followers can immediately ask why an artist has commented on one international crisis but not another, supported one social movement but not another, or remained silent altogether.
That does not necessarily mean that every celebrity has an obligation to express a political opinion. Rather, Cashmore’s argument is that audiences increasingly interpret celebrity silence through a political lens.
A decision to speak can attract support and criticism. A decision to remain silent can produce similar reactions.
The result is a difficult environment for entertainers whose careers depend on reaching audiences with different political views.
A new form of public visibility
Cashmore’s broader scholarship suggests that celebrity has moved beyond traditional notions of fame based primarily on talent or professional achievement.
His research describes the contemporary celebrity as a figure whose influence can extend into politics, business, social movements and everyday culture. His earlier work examined the “celebrification” of politics, while his more recent research has explored how athletes and other public figures increasingly operate as brands, activists and media platforms.
That transformation means celebrities increasingly possess their own direct communication channels.
An Instagram post, concert speech or public statement can reach millions of people without passing through a traditional newsroom.
The same direct access, however, means that statements can generate immediate controversy.
Entertainment becomes a political space
The current debate demonstrates how entertainment venues can become arenas for wider political disagreements.
The Sheeran tour controversy has involved artists, promoters, venue owners, fans and political campaigners, illustrating how decisions made within the entertainment industry can quickly become part of broader debates about free expression and political advocacy.
For Cashmore, this is characteristic of contemporary celebrity culture.
The celebrity is no longer simply someone audiences watch perform. Increasingly, audiences also want to understand the person behind the performance — including their values, beliefs and response to major events.
That expectation creates what Cashmore describes as a difficult “minefield”: speaking can have political consequences, taking a position can have commercial consequences, and silence can itself be interpreted as meaningful.
The Ed Sheeran–Macklemore dispute is the latest example of how those pressures can collide, placing the modern celebrity at the intersection of entertainment, politics, commerce and public opinion.
