Hidden cost of stardom: How celebrities deal with loss of privacy

In a world where any action taken by an individual will become viral in a matter of seconds, privacy is the new luxury enjoyed by the biggest stars in Hollywood. Out of social media exposure to the inescapable paparazzi culture, modern day celebrity faces more scrutiny than ever before; many have had to seek alternative methods of securing their personal lives and psychological well being.

Variety has claimed that the emergence of the digital media has made the distinction between private and public life no more to stars. A-listers such as Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, and Leonardo DiCaprio have voiced their personal discomfort with the emotional side to perpetual attention.

Privacy is not all about secrecy, Swift once told Rolling Stone. It is about your own space, where you can be yourself, without the noise. Many stars are resolving to either purposeful limits and electronic detoxes in response.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, a number of celebrities are using professional teams to control their accounts or tone down their use of social media in order to balance it.

Other celebrities such as Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock have chosen to live a low profile lifestyle, staying out of the limelight of the internet and refraining from interview unless they want to jeopardize their serenity. Close-knit support circles, therapy and mindfulness have also become critical coping. According to People Magazine, even big names, such as Adele and Justin Bieber, use therapy to cope with the demands of fame and being famous.

In a 2023 interview, Bieber explained that you need to create your world with people who look at you as an individual, not an act. The approaches to security have also changed, as well: there are gated houses and private jets, but also non-disclosure agreements with employees.

Experts, however, claim that emotional privacy is more difficult to protect than space. With social media and public interest ever-connecting with fame, celebrities are reinventing the very meaning of being in the spotlight. In the constantly observant Hollywood, coping does not entail hiding, coping is about regaining control.