The Unavoidable Fishbowl Life Of Political Celebrity

(Source: MIRS.news, Published 04/17/2026) Being a politician means meeting with people, talking with people, and being scrutinized by people. It can all seem akin to the celebrity fishbowl, with the extra step of being held to account by the people who elected you.

The dictionary defines celebrity as a famous person or someone with broad public recognition, and that name identification is something politicians actively seek. That overlap has prompted discussion about where celebrity culture and politics intersect.

"They run for reelection. They spend a lot of money on ads. They want to be recognized for what they do, how they vote, and they need to be on their toes 24/7 when you go to the grocery store or the post office or fill up for gas," said former U.S. Rep. Fred Upton.

Upton was in Congress for 36 years. He is the uncle of model and actress Kate Upton, who is married to Detroit Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander. His great-grandfather was the co-founder of Whirlpool, based in the southwest Michigan city of St. Joseph.

Upton said he's been out of office for three years and still has people approach him when he's pumping gas or at a restaurant.

He said many times celebrities in public don't want to be recognized, because they are used to a more controlled environment, or they play a character who doesn't reflect who they are as a private person.

"Often you see celebrities shy away from what I call normal activities. They don't want to be harassed. They want a very private life for the most part," he said.

He said for Congressional members, it was nearly the opposite, at least for him. He wanted to hear about gas prices, mail delivery, flooding issues, because it gave him the perspective of what the people he represented were looking for. To accomplish this, he attended as many activities as he could — speaking at schools, attending service club events, parades, town meetings and interviews with people.

"I wanted people to know who I was and what my record was and cover the district like a blanket," Upton said.

He said the celebrity status of a politician can be fun and told a story about being invited to appear on Real Time with Bill Maher while he was still in Congress. Ultimately, he wasn't able to make the appearance.

"It's sort of fun to be asked," he said.

He said charity events were also the lane in which celebrities and politicians ended up coming together.

"I don't count myself as a celebrity, but you know, if groups can use me to help, sign me up," Upton said.

The name identification made running a campaign easier. In 1986, his face was on billboards and yard signs. That was where "call me Fred" started.

"I didn't want to be treated as lofty, out of touch, you know, too good to be a normal person. I wanted to be the average Joe, not wear a Brooks Brothers suit, or go by 'Sir,' or have a chauffeur," Upton said.

He said there was also a downside to the celebrity of being a politician, and he blamed social media.

"It's not going to go away, but it influences folks to be very negative. My wife would say — still does — don't go look at Facebook. You won't believe what some of these folks are saying," he said.

He said there were several instances of serious and credible threats against him. He'd show up to events and the FBI or undercover police would be around for protection.

Upton said it happened before his vote to impeach President Donald Trump.

When it comes to tabloids coming after politicians, Upton said he was confronted on the street by TMZ while he was still in Congress. He said they weren't looking for anything political, but wanted to talk with him about his niece.

"It comes with the territory, it just does," Upton said.

He said Congressional members like Lindsey Graham and Ted Cruz, who have a larger public profile, have to be ready all the time.

"They can't come off clueless, because otherwise they'll look foolish and no one wants that to happen," he said.

Upton did say he agreed with TMZ going after them for taking the two-week spring break, instead of working through to come to an agreement over funding the Department of Homeland Security.

"Newspapers used to run people's votes every week. There was more accountability. We need that accountability to come back," he said.

U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Dearborn) has been in Congress since 2015, and is friends with Upton from their time together on the Problem Solvers Caucus. She ran and won before the death of her husband, John Dingell, who was the longest serving member of Congress in U. S. history.

Dingell said it is the politician that sets the standard of their tenure.

"When you set a celebrity culture standard, or if someone is demanding favors or asking to be treated differently, is that a matter of transparency?" she said.

She said she doesn't like the entourage that comes with the job, but she said she understands it.

"You do have to worry about security," she said.

She said she doesn't see herself as someone who is untouchable and also tries to be as visible as she can. She talked about hitting 14 different events on one Saturday.

She also said she saw the underbelly of being a celebrity last year when she fell asleep in committee. She had been awake for 31 straight hours during a tense discussion on Medicaid cuts. Social media didn't care.

"People don't give you grace. People don't give it to you, and it hurts, but we live in a transparent world and unfortunately, if you're an elected official, you live in a fishbowl," she said.

She said she is a normal person and just wants to be out and about, because public officials should be in public.

Dingell said she doesn't think Congress should have taken a break while the TSA agents weren't getting paid. She said she didn't love that TMZ went after Congressional members.

"We're human beings. We are human beings. But I also really do believe that it's the member who sets the tone as to whether they're a normal person, which I am, and whether they want to be treated differently," Dingell said.

U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-Detroit) is an Indian immigrant who moved to the U.S. in 1979 and became a citizen in 1988. He became a millionaire from his chemical and pharmaceutical testing companies before running for office.

During his runs, he's used social media to capitalize on viral fame, but he said it is a politician's job to serve those that elected them and who they are representing in Congress.

"A public official must be held responsible and must be held accountable, but they are not celebrities in the same sense as an actor is, or the same sense as a music performer is, because the public needs to hold these public servants accountable," Thanedar said.

He said politicians shouldn't seek out celebrity status, because it could be more of a distraction than a benefit.

"In the social media of instant fame, I think we are starting to see that and some people actually play for the social media, so that really is a distraction from the job that we are elected to do," he said.

He said that it was unfortunate that social media has given celebrity status to some members of Congress and pointed to Marjorie Taylor Greene.

Thanedar said celebrity status can work for a politician or against them. He pointed to Texas U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, who was defeated by Texas State Rep. James Talarico.

However, he also said, in the era of social media and 24/7 news coverage, being held up as a celebrity is unavoidable. It's up to the politician to not let it go to their head.

He said he also has seen the harassment, social media trolling and threats made against him after he introduced articles of impeachment against Trump, former Department of Justice Secretary Pam Bondi and Department of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

"I became a naturalized citizen in 1988 and yet the MAGA loyalists of Trump are non-stop harassing me on social media. I think my concern is that there is a safety issue," he said.

He said his family has also been harassed and received threatening phone calls.

Because of this, he sees what TMZ did as something uncalled-for and even possibly dangerous for members of Congress. He said Congressional members don't have a normal job and deserve a break just like everyone else.

He said the ability to perform under the extreme visibility of Congress and under threat of attack was something that he felt was an expectation of the job itself.

"It just makes it harder, because you get that additional pressure from people. I think I can compartmentalize that and do my job without worrying about being in a fishbowl," Thanedar said.