R u Keeping Up?

Michelle Woods

Is the success of the Kardashians a reflection on a society that has begun to lose its core values? 
It’s been a decade since the infamous Kardashian family first came to prominence with their reality show “Keeping up with the Kardashians”. With their display of enormous wealth and luxury lifestyle, the show was an instant hit, credited with being the most successful reality show of the past decade. Now ten years on and the show has cultivated the family into global icons that have capitalised on their unique brand of fame. From simple TV reality stars to amassing a global empire with a legion of fans. What is it about the Kardashians that keeps us coming back? And is their influence in popular culture one we should be celebrating?

The show started back in 2007, and since then the family have branched out from TV reality into business, fashion, makeup and everything Kardashian. With over 516 million followers combined on Instagram, I think it’s safe to say their presence online has changed the media landscape, reinforcing their power and celebrity status.  

The Kardashians hyper-narcissism has inspired a generation of young girls to go under the needle. They have promoted waist training on social media, which has resulted in a massive rise in adolescent girls using them, resulting in doctors coming out in their droves to remind people of the dangers of it.

Doctor Gina Sam, a gastroenterologist and director of the Gastrointestinal Motility Center at the Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, told the Business Insider that: “Waist training could cause shortness of breath, nausea, fainting and bruising.” Sam also said that more serious effects of waist training can result in “crushing or misplacing of organs to limiting the oxygen supply to vital organs.” Despite this, the craze continues, and as long as a Kardashian is promoting it, young girls are buying it. 

However, the family’s influence on today’s society is a complex one. On the one hand, their insatiable need for attention, fame and money makes it easy for some people to disregard them. Their influence on mainstream society has, at times, been a positive one. No one can deny the positive and significant impact the family have had on interracial relationships. No TV show in history has ever showcased interracial relationships the way the Kardashian show has. Khloe has publicly shamed those who are against mixed relationships. “We are all human beings capable of love, so why does skin colour have anything to do with it,” she said on her website. Many people are citing the show as the reason for the change in positive attitudes towards interracial relationships. 

The girls are credited with helping to break down social stigmas by displaying their enormous and continued support for the LGBT community. They have openly advocated for equal rights and have publicly denounced those who are against it, showing their constant support time and time again.

For many women, the Kardashians represent the very essence of the independent woman. Fearless and unapologetic, business savvy and ambitious in a world dominated by men.  The girl’s portrayal of their lives on social media is often one of extreme narcissism and wealth, with pictures of their cars, holidays, bodies and celebrity lifestyle often dominating their posts. Posts which can be seen by over 155 million people worldwide and more often or not their majority audience is young girls between the ages of 13-25.

Social media often leads to social comparison, where people are comparing their lives to someone else’s; this can often have a detrimental effect on mental health and self-consciousness. Girls are looking up to an idea of perfection that is heavily manipulated and doesn’t represent an accurate portrayal of the person. The Kardashian girls have been caught out for altering their photos to give a false representation of what they look like. Girls aspire to be like this and are often filled with self-doubt and insecurities when they don’t achieve something impossible to attain in the first place.  

It’s their influence on today’s youth that has me concerned. Is the Kardashians success a direct reflection on a society that has begun to lose its core values? A culture that place’s wealth, beauty and fame above kindness, education and inner beauty. In a world where shallowness is glorified and to be wealthy is to be adored. For as long as the media is dominated by controversy and celeb lifestyle, the Kardashians will continue to reign. 

Instead of using their voices in a more positive way to teach girls about body positivity, they have capitalised on the very idea that a woman’s worth is based upon their physical attractiveness and to be more beautiful is to be more successful. With the platform, the family has their voices and can impact a generation.

As a society, we need to start re-evaluating what our core values are. The success of the family is a direct reflection on what we see as being important in today’s world. Sex tapes have become a pathway for a successful career, rather than academic achievement. We need to start teaching girls that they are worth much more than just their body. We should not allow the media and celebs to capitalise on women’s insecurities and continue to package it up and sell it on. Confidence, good self-esteem, values, and work hard is the message we need to be sending out. There is no denying what a powerful entity the Kardashians have become. We live in a world where beauty and fame are idolised, and until our attitudes change, unfortunately, we will still be “keeping up”.