What does the fall of Jade Goody tell us? What is it about? Of course, on one level, it’s about Jade being a nasty bully. Who will forget the ‘face of hate’ - the lips drawn back, the brow furrowed? Up until now, we saw Jade as an unlikely success story with comic overtones. She did not appear to be attractive, or bright. She did not appear to have judgement, or taste. And yet, in spite of it all, she had succeeded.
The reason she succeeded, of course, was Big Brother. She didn’t win. But there was something about her - something people could see, and wanted to see more of, amid the flaws. Perhaps it was her vulnerability. Anyway, they bought her book, and followed her ups and downs, the changes of hairstyle, the pounds gained and lost. Every so often, there she was - in a glossy magazine, on a beach, looking better, or worse, than she had the time before.
Then there was the perfume. Jade’s scent began to do quite well, as did her book; she was reportedly worth £4m at the time of her fall from grace. So what does it tell us? Well, look at what happened. The tabloids did to Jade exactly what Jade had done to Shilpa. And what is Jade? She is the very essence of Big Brother - an ordinary person who became celebrated merely by being observed. So hating Jade is like hating Big Brother - and, by extension, yourself, for getting sucked into Big Brother. Which we have been, collectively. And so, collectively, we lash out.
Now, who does that remind me of?