Selena Gomez became a pop star through her roles on Disney Channel shows that appealed to teenage audiences. Her first studio album in 2009 with Selena Gomez & the Scene was commercially successful and marked her transition from actress to musician. Dating Justin Bieber increased her fame and kept her constantly in the media, though rumors later hurt her image. As with all celebrities, Gomez's star image is constructed for commercial purposes and to serve the music industry, though her involvement in charities portrays her as an ideal role model. Her persona has evolved from stereotypical teenager to more controversial portrayals as she has gotten older.

1. Star Image
Selena Gomez

2. How do you become a
pop star?
• Selena Gomez was born July 22,
1992 and is an American singer and
actress. Gomez first made her debut
appearing as Gianna in Barney &
Friends, lasting from 2002 to 2004.
Following this, Gomez starred in the
Disney Channel television series
Wizards of Waverly Place where she
played a stereotypical female
teenager which appealed to her
target audience.
• In 2009 she went from actress to
musician by releasing her first studio
album as Selena Gomez & the
Scene, titled Kiss & Tell. The album
was a commercial success, peaking
inside the Top 10 of the Billboard
200. This is the beginning of when
she changed from a pop performer
to a pop star.

3. Reasons why she became
a pop star
To the beginning of Selena Gomez’s
pop star career she began dating
heart throb Justin Bieber which helped
with her pop star image. Having a
famous boyfriend constantly had her
in the media which made her fame
begin to grow.
The well placed news stories of their
relationship helped with her pop star
image but also began to
destroy it when cheating
rumours began to be
released by the media.

4. Stars and construction
• No matter who the celebrity is, stars are
constructed, artificial images, even if they
are represented as being “real people”
with real emotions. From a young age
Selena was constructed as a stereotypical
teenage girl from the program Wizards of
Waverly Place but when she began to get
older they decided to construct her as a
completely different person.
• Her debut in the new film Spring Breakers
portrayed her in a completely different
image to what her target audience are
used to seeing her as.

5. Industry and Audience
• Stars are created to serve a purpose in the
music industry to make money out of their
target audience. Stars live for their meaning
from their audience such as Selena Gomez’s
meaning to her fans allow her star credit to
develop in the music industry.
• Merchandise allows the audience to make a
personal bond with the artist but also makes
money for the artist. This therefore can make
the artists target audience bigger if their
merchandise is sold world wide.

6. Ideology and Culture
• In October 2008, Selena
participated in St. Jude’s Children’s
Hospital “Runway For Life” benefit.
She is the ambassador of
DoSomething.org after being
involved with the charity Island Dog,
which help dogs in Puerto Rico. She
got involved while filming Wizards of
Waverly Place: The Movie in Puerto
Rico.
• Selena is also involved with the
charity RAISE Hope For Congo, an
initiative of the Enough Project,
which helps raise awareness about
conflict minerals and violence
against Congolese women.
• Selena’s involvement with charities
portrays her as the perfect “idol” for
her target audience.

7. Character and Personality
• Pop stars can show their true
persona through different types of
media such as social networking
sites. Selena’s personality reflected
in her new film Spring Breakers
which was a very controversial film.
She is portrayed in the film as
something her fans have never
seen before which caused conflict
in the different media industries.
• Her personality of a typical
teenager was shown through her
work on Disney Channels
programmes but when she began
to go through her teenage years
her persona changed.