“Manufacturing Celebrity presents fascinating ethnographic details and piercing social analysis on the production of ‘celebrity’ through sophisticated discussions of Latinx paparazzi, red carpet photographers, and women reporters exploited by the cultural dynamics of tabloid and mainstream news-making. This insightful book will be valuable to communication scholars, feminists, critical race scholars, media anthropologists, and general audiences interested in the representation and production of celebrity culture. Vanessa Díaz writes with a confident and a distinctive scholarly voice.”
JOHN L. JACKSON, JR.
Walter H. Annenberg Dean of the Annenberg School for Communication and Richard Perry University Professor at the University of Pennsylvania“Vanessa Díaz pulls back the curtain on Hollywood and the people who photograph and write about the movie stars of today and tomorrow. Manufacturing Celebrity is a must-read for anyone desiring keenly observed insights into the struggles of immigrants and women trying to catch some of the stardust in Hollywood’s dream factory. Their stories reveal a Hollywood undergoing change that is often resisted as it grapples with the contemporary demographic reality of the United States.”
LEO R. CHAVEZ
author of The Latino Threat: Constructing Immigrants, Citizens, and the Nation“In a time when ‘real’ and ‘fake’ news compete for airtime, the boundaries between politician and celebrity personae are more blurred than ever, and we maintain virtual communities with stars and family members at the same time, it is hard to think of a more timely ethnographic study of contemporary US culture! Manufacturing Celebrity fills several gaps in the scholarship about and around Hollywood culture production by accessing the industry at a level other scholars have not before. Diaz’s social and professional intersecting identities makes this a book that nobody else could have written: from her childhood as a Latina in California, to her political activism, freelance celebrity reporting and anthropology training. Every aspect of the author’s life helps her access and uncover for the reader the gendered, racial, economic and political complexities of celebrity personae production, the public’s consumption, and the creation and maintenance of a (White) American life imaginary shaped by racist stereotypes, unattainable female bodies, and their exploitation. What makes this book even more compelling is Diaz’s literary craftsmanship, reflexivity, and the conscious effort in making this book accessible to all: from those who produce and consume celebrity lives to those who study, theorize and critique the industry. It was a truly illuminating read.”