An entire column about ‘fame’

Someone called me “famous” the other day. It was meant as a compliment and I was grateful for the generous assessment, although I was so taken by surprise I stuttered somewhat as I expressed my thanks.

 

The exchange got me thinking, though. What are the criteria for “fame,” anyway?

 

Online artificial intelligence surveyed probably dozens of internet dictionary sites and came up with the summary “Fame means the state of being known, seen, or talked about by many people. It comes from having great skills, doing important work, or being a public star.”

 

Well, that’s not so bad. If that were the whole message the word sends, I guess I’d be comfortable with being “famous.”

 

There are numerous catching points, though.

 

An important beginning question is, how many is “many”?

 

As someone who takes often hundreds of pictures at public events, I frequently take my camera and step out where “everyone” probably notices me. Just this past weekend at Waldorf Days I may have caused my family members some embarrassment as I walked out into the street, sometimes coming within a few feet of the parade units. 

 

At graduations and well-attended school concerts, the number of people who notice me is likely in the high hundreds, but probably not into the thousands.

 

Then, of course, there is the cumulative effect. If we total up all the places and times I and my camera have made ourselves conspicuous over the course of the five years the Pioneer has been publishing, it certainly is in the thousands, probably even tens of thousands.

 

But also probably not as many as might attend–in a single night–a professional sporting event or concert by a nationally known artist.

 

Okay, criteria one, “seen by many people.” Maybe yes, maybe no.

 

You may have noticed I skipped over the “known” and “talked about” elements of fame.  That’s because I believe “seen” is by far my strongest option.

 

As far as “talked about,” it’s a significant element of being a news reporter that we are supposed to be as invisible as possible in our work. That is, readers’ attention should be on the people,  information and circumstances we are reporting about. Writers are supposed to be simply conduits for the facts, delivering them in an organized way using as few words as possible. Except in opinion pieces–a category that includes this column and items like Ben’s movie reviews–news writers do not overtly express their opinions or use the word “I” to refer to themselves.

 

Okay, now to the second part of the definition, the idea that fame is a result of having great skill, doing important work, or being a public star.

 

As for having “great” skill, I recognize that I am quite good with words, and that I have no fear of summarizing or explaining complex situations or circumstances. I excel, that is, I’m “great” in comparison to the many people who wouldn’t even attempt to write a news article. But there is also a group of writers among whom I don’t stand out so far.

 

Still, I do usually rank in at least one or two categories of the annual “Better Newspaper Contest” sponsored by the Minnesota Newspaper Association, of which the Pioneer and Star Eagle are members. And I am a large part of the high rankings we have earned in “general reporting” and “general excellence” categories.

 

Second criteria, great skill. Yes, probably, some of the time anyway.

 

Additional expectation: doing important work. Here, it is the Pioneer and the Star Eagle which excel, and I along with them.

 

You see, most importantly I am grateful for my skill as a writer because I can use it toward positive ends. I can inform people about goings-on. I can find words which do justice to the stories and experiences of the quietly remarkable people who make up Waseca County. I can call attention to accomplishments and milestones. In short, I can make other people “famous,” and that, my friends, is “important work” in every way. It’s my favorite part of being “known, seen or talked about by many people.”