When a celebrity passes away, their legacy can be worth more and in some cases, even the passing itself can be the culmination of celebrity. But for many, the passing of a celebrity can feel like the loss of a friend or family member, after a long and faithful friendship.
Authors Donald Horton and Richard Wohl first talked about parasocial relationships in 1956. Specifically, they defined the term as the "unconscious creation of an intensely close relationship with a media person".
"More screens, more celebrity mourning"
According to psychologist David Waskuri, it is highly likely that celebrity grief has become increasingly widespread due to increased access to screens and media.
"Grief becomes more visible and in that way more inclusive, even those who may not have related much to the celebrity, can be affected by the grief of others and feel sentimental feelings," says David Waskuri.
On SVT, the interest in features and articles about the deaths of famous people is very high. Among Kulturnyhetern's most visited publications, several of them are so-called "runes", i.e. publications about the death of a famous person.