Why Do the Deaths of Public Figures Touch Us Deeply?

A few weeks ago my husband and I were watching the news. One of the main stories was the death of Kobe Bryant. As we watched video of fans placing flowers, stuffed animals, balloons, etc. at makeshift memorials for the famous basketball player, my husband asked me a really interesting question. He asked why people were so affected by his death. People who had never met the man were embracing each other, crying, and extolling the impact he had on them.

I hadn’t given much thought to this phenomenon before, but it happens almost every time someone famous dies. Whether it’s a politician, an athlete, a musician, or some other celebrity, individuals feel personal grief over the loss of someone they’ve never met.

Why do these deaths touch us so deeply and, more importantly, are there things that we can learn from our grief that will help us live more meaningful lives?

Why celebrity deaths affect us personally

• Our relationships with public figures are personal. Even though we’ve never met most of the musicians, athletes, actors, authors, etc. that we appreciate, we have relationships with them. These relationships are one-sided, but they matter to us because we value these figures. We enjoy the products they create. We follow them on social media. We sing their songs to help us express our feelings. We read their books to become better informed or to find a momentary escape from life. We watch their movies to be entertained. We invite them into our homes. We share them with our families. Sometimes they are role models for us or they inspire us to follow our dreams. Given all of this, it’s not surprising that we feel personal loss when public figures pass away.
• Their deaths get us thinking about death. Most of us don’t walk around thinking about death. However, when someone famous dies, we start thinking about it. We’re reminded of loved ones we’ve lost, loved ones we’ll someday lose, and of our own mortality. These can be heavy thoughts and it can be difficult to process all of them at the same time. Our grief at the passing of celebrities is often a conduit through which our grief over these other losses flows.
• Media (especially social media) keeps the losses in front of us. With today’s technology, we have unprecedented access to the news. We see almost constant coverage of celebrity deaths on both traditional news media and social media, so we are bombarded by reminders of the deaths and by images of grieving fans. I believe these constant reminders of the loss intensify our feelings of grief.

What we can learn from grief over celebrity deaths

Though it’s not healthy to think about death all of the time, it is really beneficial for us to think of it on occasion. When I began working on this post, one of the first things that came to mind was Psalm 90:12: “So teach us to consider our mortality, so that we might live wisely” (NET).

When we think about the reality that we will one day die—and that our deaths can occur unexpectedly—we become motivated to prioritize how we spend our time. We remember to hug loved ones and say “I love you.” We remember to clear the air if there has been tension in particular relationships. We think on how we’ve lived our lives and make changes so we’re crafting the legacy we hope to leave behind.

Final thoughts

We don’t have to feel awkward or wonder if it is normal next time we feel grief over the deaths of public figures. We can even benefit from this grief by allowing it to be a catalyst for positive changes in our lives.

What has been your experience with grief over the deaths of public figures? Which losses impacted you? Did you make any changes in your life due to these losses?

Shared at the following:

Encouraging Hearts and Home, Over the Moon, and Busy Monday.