"In the world of the celebrity, the hierarchy of publicity has replaced the hierarchy of descent and even of great wealth"

C. Wright Mills acknowledges a cultural shift where society's values and structures of influence have changed. Previously, social standing and power were largely determined by hierarchy of descent – one's family lineage, aristocratic bloodlines, or the established names that conferred inherited privilege. In some instances, immense wealth could transcend or reinforce this descent, offering social mobility and consolidation of power among those who possessed great fortunes.

However, with the rise of mass media and the culture of celebrity in the modern era, the mechanisms of fame and influence have undergone a transformation. Publicity – the ability to command public attention, consistently appear in the media, and remain a recognizable figure in the broader social imagination – has become its own form of social currency. The "hierarchy of publicity" refers to this new ordering, where those who achieve the greatest visibility, regardless of their background or origins, are accorded exceptional status. Influence is now distributed according to levels of recognition and media presence rather than strictly by family background or financial holdings.

Celebrity thus operates as both a democratizing and destabilizing force. Individuals can ascend rapidly through the ranks of society if they manage to capture collective attention, regardless of prior status or historical privilege. It is not the accumulation of ancestral titles or even enduring fortunes that guarantee entry into the upper echelons of social importance, but a person's capacity for generating and sustaining public interest.

Mills' observation reflects the profound implications for social power: traditional elites may find their privileges eroded or challenged by newcomers adept at publicity, while wealth and pedigree no longer alone secure eminence. In this climate, identity, legacy, and authority are continually mediated, constructed, and contested within the theater of public visibility. The metrics of fame, interviews, appearances, viral notoriety, remake the criteria for social hierarchy, foregrounding spectacle and media presence over birthright or fortune.