Entertainment stories are what we skim through during our commute to work, lunch break, and before bed. They offer us a little mindless escape from real life, and social media has made it so much easier to share information about your favourite celebrities. That also means trends spread like crazy, whether we like it or not. Entertainment news is dependent on being the first one to report it, and getting the clicks, because by the next day, everyone has already moved on to the next thing. 2014 has been all about social media sharing, and the biggest entertainment and pop culture stories of the year are a reflection of that. Read on for the top pop culture stories of the last year.
Celeb Nude Photo Leak
Celebs. They’re just like us. Except with less privacy. Hundreds of (mostly female) celebs experienced an extreme violation of privacy when the iCloud was hacked and thousands of private nude photos were released to the public. Jennifer Lawrence might have been hit the hardest with multiple explicit photos stolen. In an interview with Vanity Fair, she called the incident nothing short of a sex crime. Others criticized the affected celebs, saying if they didn’t want their nude pictures to be seen, they shouldn’t have taken any. Reddit banned multiple threads used to share the photos, and the original hackers responsible have still not been identified.
Kimye Wedding
The wedding no one wanted to care about, and yet everyone did. Kim Kardashian and Kanye West got married in Italy on May 24th, and the first Instagram photo of the married couple has racked up 2.4 million likes. News of Beyonce and Jay-Z’s reported snub dominated entertainment sites for weeks, and the couple’s fame has only shot up even higher since the wedding. Kim even came close to “breaking the internet” with her recent Paper Magazine cover. Is 2015 doomed to be more of the same?
Feminism
Obviously feminism is not a new concept, but 2014 has been a huge year for a more widespread acknowledgment of feminism as gender equality. Popular celebrities like Emma Watson and Benedict Cumberbatch are even joining the movement, making it trendy to be a feminist. But with every big movement comes the haters, and feminism has its fair share of those too. TIME Magazine included “feminist” in its list of words that should be banned, and it was actually winning for awhile thanks to a thread on 4chan encouraging internet trolls everywhere to vote for it. Let’s hope next year feminism will continue its reign because it encourages positive change, and not just because it is “cool”.
Deaths of Robin Williams and Philip Seymour Hoffman
The deaths of two A-list actors shocked the world this year. First in February, Philip Seymour Hoffman was found dead of an apparent drug overdose. Then in November, Robin Williams committed suicide after reportedly battling depression. Both tragedies inspired an outpouring of grief on social media where fans were able to express their condolences to family and friends of the two men, and remember the actors for their best work.
The FIFA World Cup
The 20th FIFA World Cup took place in Brazil from June 12 until July 13, ending in a 1-0 victory for Germany against Argentina. Worldwide, certain games became the most-watched sporting event in 2014 for numerous countries. Needless to say, bars around the world also saw a huge increase in business during World Cup games. Nothing brings fans across the world together like a big game, and social media was able to facilitate conversations like never before.
Frozen
If you have kids, or know anyone that does, you know that Disney’s Frozen was the biggest animated film out there this year. It was actually released at the end of 2013, but the soundtrack (that song “Let it Go” that no one actually likes), and merchandise from the film have been everywhere in 2014. Frozen dolls, toys, games, books, and clothing are in high demand because of the fact that kids are obsessed with the movie, and Frozen seems be one of those ones that they like to watch over and over.
Taylor Swift
Let’s face it. Taylor Swift is a pop culture trend all on her own. With her legion of famous friends, catchy (until they get annoyingly overplayed) songs, ubiquitous Instagram posts, and love of crop tops, she is without a doubt the most famous pop star out there right now. The highly anticipated release of her first full pop album, 1989, in October made her the first female artist to have three albums sell a million copies in a week. She is also constantly making headlines for being extremely generous with her fans, so it’s pretty hard to deny she is probably here to stay.
