Celebrity deaths tend to attract more attention than current, more serious news. World news is harder to swallow than a passing of a famous celebrity, as there is a sense of falsehood that follows that. 

With the most recent passing of Matthew Perry on Oct. 27, fans of the Friends star are mourning the loss much more than any other recent death they come across. When considering why that is, the understanding of grief needs to be explained. Imagine you spend a great amount of time watching a TV show, growing fond of a fictional character so much that you feel as if you know them. When the actual actor is no longer here, it feels as if the fictional character died as well. Matthew Perry’s Chandler Bing may not have died, however fans feel as though he did.

News outlets tend to cover all of the gritty details of a celebrity’s death, making a quick story that fans will adore. It is easier to mourn the death of a famous person than something that is bigger. People are more comfortable with mourning someone who was well respected as an actor. Bigger conflicts that the news should be covering make some people uncomfortable especially when it comes to the most recent Palestine-Israel war. 

Media is inclined to spend more time covering their well loved actors and celebrities than the major international conflicts. Celebrity culture is the main focus of the news outlets, as it is easier to talk about than mass despair that plagues the world currently.