Exploring the New Docs ‘Fake Famous’ and ‘Framing Britney Spears’

Motherhood in Hollywood

You know I love a good documentary! Two new documentaries have the Internet buzzing this week and we need to talk about them. The first is “Fake Famous,” a documentary from former New York Times and Vanity Fair reporter Nick Bilton. It follows three people who claim to want to be famous, at any cost and explores how easy it is to create fame on platforms like Instagram.

Courtesy: FX/The New York Post

The second documentary called “Framing Britney Spears” was trending all weekend on Twitter. The doc was produced by The New York Post and is available on FX via Hulu. It aims to delve into the mystery surrounding pop star Britney Spears and why she has been under a conservatorship overseen by her father for the past 12 years. She’s basically dropped out of the spotlight in the last few years, except for the occasional erratic social media post of her dancing. And fans who are concerned for her well-being have started the #FreeBritney movement in an effort to get her out from under her father’s conservatorship.

Chris joins me this week to talk about what these documentaries got right, and what they got wrong. And in the case of “Fake Famous” there is a lot of things they got right when it comes to people buying followers, likes and bot comments. But the film also never gets the perspective of anyone working on social media at Instagram or any other social platform. The movie mostly focuses on Instagram and how easy it is to fake your following. In fact, the main star of the film ends up getting signed by a big agency and books acting work based off of her fake following. But it also never offers a resolution to this obvious flaw in the social media system. Where is the oversight? Who is making sure these fake influencers are held accountable and why are brands so willing to give them money and product just for a post on the gram?

Courtesy: HBO

I have been called an influencer myself and have first hand knowledge of what it looks like to be “famous” on the internet. I’ve always hated the term “influencer” but it’s now an industry standard term so I gotta roll with it. I don’t feel like I have the ability to influence anyone to do something they don’t want to do. But I am a content creator and I love sharing about my life online, which I hope resonates with people. I see the good side, and dark side of “influencing” and it doesn’t seem like it’s going anywhere anytime soon.

As for “Framing Britney Spears” there’s a ton to dissect in this one. Britney rose to fame when she was very young. Then had several very public heartbreaks, and public meltdowns before her father took control of her finances and well-being. This film explores the years leading up to that, and what has happened since. Most notable, her recent request to regain control of her finances was denied with little to no explanation.

Chris and I decided to try something new this week! We recorded the show live on the Clubhouse app where listeners could interact and join in the conversation with us. It was really fun! My friend and Bravo TV star Meghan Conroy-Resich joined us as a moderator and jumped right into the conversation. If you haven’t heard of the Clubhouse app yet it’s the hottest new app where people are trying to make their mark. It’s audio only and listeners can request to join whatever conversation is going on and ask questions or speak their mind. I’ve really been enjoying it so make sure you follow me and engage with us on future episodes!