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The personal, the political and the popular: a woman's guide to celebrity politics
[journal article]
Abstract This article looks at articulations of gender, politics and citizenship by examining two European female heads of state: Tarja Halonen (Finland) and Angela Merkel (Germany). It discusses their personae in the context of emerging public debate about the merits and shortcomings of what is nowadays cal... view more
This article looks at articulations of gender, politics and citizenship by examining two European female heads of state: Tarja Halonen (Finland) and Angela Merkel (Germany). It discusses their personae in the context of emerging public debate about the merits and shortcomings of what is nowadays called ‘celebrity politics’, constituted by popularization and personalization. The analysis suggests that the increasing presence of popular culture in politics presents a complex and often unfavourable arena to women because of its inbuilt and extreme polarization of femininity and politics. It shows how Tarja Halonen and Angela Merkel have bypassed the personalization of politics and present a thoroughly political and professional persona to the public, rigidly concealing their private lives. As a result, female politicians - at least the two heads of state analysed here - tend to represent a classic ideal of political citizenship with clear boundaries and singular codes and conventions.... view less
Keywords
gender; image of women; political communication; ; femininity; Federal Republic of Germany; Finland; politics; Merkel, A.; management style
Classification
Women's Studies, Feminist Studies, Gender Studies
Free Keywords
citizenship; political communication; Tarja Halonen;
Document language
English
Publication Year
2006
Page/Pages
p. 287-301
Journal
European Journal of Cultural Studies, 9 (2006) 3
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1177/1367549406066074
Status
Postprint; peer reviewed
Licence
PEER Licence Agreement (applicable only to documents from PEER project)