Outline for Pop Culture Research Paper
Title:
Thesis: On June 25th, 2009 at 5:20pm Michael Jackson, our beloved king of pop, was rushed to the hospital after found collapsed in his Holmby Hills mansion, due to an abusive intake of the anesthetic drug, Propofol. Eight year old Michael Jackson and his extraordinary talent was introduced to the world in the nineteen sixties from the Jackson 5’s chart toppers “I want you back” and “I’ll be there.” Michael revolved around his fans constantly living in the spot light and fame from a little boy until his death. In 2009, before the drug overdose, Michael was rehearsing for a fifty concert tour to be performed in many countries. His death caused the entire world to mourn for the Jackson family’s grief and the loss of a pop legend. Michael, and many other celebrities of the past such as Heath Ledger, Anna Nicole Smith, Elvis Presley, Brittany Murphy, Patrick Swayze, Farrah Faucett, and Tony Snow, has fallen victim to the prescription drug overdose. To further investigate the impact on society these celebrity deaths have from seeking prescription relief, we must acknowledge the life of the celebrity, their psychological and medical state and why they have such an impact on the public.
Topic 1: How much control celebrities have over their medical treatment leads to lack of good healthcare. Explain a few “impossible patients” such as Adolf Hitler, Howard Hughes, and Elvis Presley. Different from society because of their fame, money, and power. The celebrities’ ideas of drugs (how drugs fix you.)
Topic 2: Why do celebrities take drugs? “Better than illegal drugs” Psychological aspect of prescription drug taking by celebrities. Their loneliness and suffering associated with the life of celebrities. Why this causes them to resort to drugs.
Topic 3: Celebrities trusting their doctors? Do they think prescriptions are safer? More effective for the outcome they want? Do they even listen to their doctor’s advice or just pay them off to give them the drugs they want. Why don’t the doctors, who are trained with medical safety knowledge, stop this celebrity epidemic.
Topic 4: Death leads to acknowledgement of their prescription addiction. Usually “heart failure” until autopsy proves it.
Topic 5: What the public learn from these celebrities. Scary reality of prescription drug overdose. Why the public sympathizes with these celebrities.
Conclusion: Deficit of quality of care, access to care, and affordable care in this country. Yet those on the other end of the spectrum, those with money, wealth, and power to get whatever they want does not mean they will receive what they need medically. They have unique situations to receive prescription drugs yet have an empathetic impact on the average person who cannot receive prescriptions as easy
Bibliography: (I still have some searching to do on certain celebrities stories with their prescription drug addictions to tie into main concepts in each topic.)
American Society of Health Systems Pharmacists. (2009). Survey Reveals Public's Concerns About Prescription Medication Overdose Risks Following Death of Michael Jackson. Retrieved November 14, 2010, from http://www.ashp.org/import/news/pressreleases/pressrelease.aspx?id=534
Friedman, Jeffrey C. “Michael Jackson’s Death Highlights the Alarming State of Celebrity Medicine”Couselor, The Magazine for Addiction Professionals, Mag. December 2009, v.10, n.6, pp.28-29. Web. November 10, 2010, from http://www.counselormagazine.com/columns-mainmenu-55/50-opinion/1003-michael-jacksons-death-highlights-the-alarming-state-of-celebrity-medicine
Addiction & the Hummanities. July 22, 2009. Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough: How Media Coverage of Michael Jackson’s Death Might Rais Awareness About the Dangers of Prescription Drug Abuse. Retrieved November 12, 2010, from http://www.basisonline.org/2009/07/addiction-the-humanities-vol-56-dont-stop-till-you-get-enough-how-media-coverage-of-michael-jacksons.html
Hewitt, Bill, Tresniowski, Alex, Aradillas, Eline, Benet, Lorenzo, Breuer, Howard, Clark, Champ Hammel, Sara, Messer, Lesley, Lang, Anne, Gray, Mark. “MICHAEL JACKSON'S DEATH DRUGS, DOCTORS & DECEPTION” People. Mag.August 10, 2009. Vol. 72, Issue 6. Web. November 9, 2010 from
Von Drehle, David. “A Little Boy Takes Charge of His Family’s Band, Then Leaves It Far Behind.” Time Magazine. Mag. June 26, 2009. Web. November 12, 2010, from http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,190709_1907486_1907481,00.html
Breo, Dennis L. Extraordinary Care. Franklin Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 1986. Print.
Toni,
ReplyDeleteWow! You have a seriously full plate here! I think your thesis statement needs tightening up. Are you primarily interested in the relationship between media coverage of celebrity illness and increased awareness/concern about this? Or are you trying to explore why we're interested/preoccupied by celebrities in the first place? The focus on drug use affords an interesting opportunity...what, for example, does the case of someone like Lindsey Lohan tell us about our views of drug abuse? Do we see an increase in awareness of prescription drug abuse (as opposed to illegal drugs such as cocaine, PCP, etc.) in response to these events? I think you need to focus in on one aspect of this and develop it...Michael Jackson and Hitler, for example, seem to be far afield! Do we care why celebrities use/abuse drugs, or are we interested in the public reactions to this, and the meanings we assign to it...do we excuse their abuse because of their status? You might place all of this in the larger context of a "war on drugs" in America...
Similar challenge could be noted for the recent discussion of legalizing marijuana...is that at odds with our goals in the drug war?
Bottom line...gotta narrow your focus! Choose 1, perhaps 2, topics and develop the arguments using detailed cases... Also, you need a theoretical framework. How will you study this? Think back to our pop culture text from week 2...