I don’t see “without merit” in the definitions of nepotism I looked up. Calling someone a “nepobaby” is forcing them to confront their privilege, but also calling out a system that gives advantage to the children of privileged people.
Doesn’t “nepobaby” imply that he didn’t earn it since nepotism is literally defined as “without merit”? If there’s another word to better describe his successes while also acknowledging his worth ethic, it is a bit unfair to call him a “nepobaby”.
BeefPiano@lemmy.world 9 months ago
Pistcow@lemm.ee 9 months ago
Did he have to wait tables and suck dick until he got his big break?
Deceptichum@kbin.social 9 months ago
That’s not what I meant when I said you have to show some gumption to get into the biz.
dpkonofa@lemmy.world 9 months ago
www.wordnik.com/words/nepotism
The whole point of “nepotism” as a term is that someone is getting favoritism based on their relation rather than their actual merits. Look up the etymology and history of the word. It comes from the same root as “nephew”.
Lauchs@lemmy.world 9 months ago
Nepotism, the unfair practice of granting jobs and other favours to relatives, whether by blood or marriage. Nepotism occurs in all kinds of workplaces and fields, but it is often associated with favouritism in business and politics.
- Britannica.
Where have you found a definition that has “without merit” ?
dpkonofa@lemmy.world 9 months ago
Read the full page that you pulled that definition from.
www.britannica.com/topic/nepotism
“The opposite of nepotism, and of favouritism in general, is meritocracy, in which positions and rewards are granted to people based on their abilities.”
The entire point of nepotism is not that the relation “helped” but that it is the reason given without merit or without regard to the person’s abilities.
Lauchs@lemmy.world 9 months ago
I think you’re slightly misunderstanding.
Yes, the opposite of nepotism is reward based entirely on merit. But nepotism doesn’t mean that someone is entirely without merit. Consider the first example they give, legacy admissions. Nepotism can get you further than a better applicant but you still had to have some degree of merit to get into the school. Or the example of Murdoch’s daughter, who was overpaid for a tv channel but still had to have one etc.
dpkonofa@lemmy.world 9 months ago
I’m not misunderstanding. You dishonestly left out and ignored the last part of that example - “primarily on the basis of their family connections.” The entire point is that you don’t have to get the good grades and do the volunteering that everyone else does. You gain entry just by virtue of the family connections aka “legacy admissions”. And the Murdoch example is also disingenuous because her father owned the network the channel was on.
ThunderingJerboa@kbin.social 9 months ago
I mean nepotism happens everywhere and it happens in a varying amount of ways. The fact you know the right someone is typically called "networking" but its nepotism with a fancy coat of paint on it. Sure people who get hired to due to nepotism probably do a ton of work but its clear the nepotism got their foot in the door to be where you are. Having 2 famous actors as parents probably helped move his career far more than most since yeah most people who work from the ground up with no reference probably work as hard as him but he had the luck of having the right parents.
dpkonofa@lemmy.world 9 months ago
I’m not denying that. But that’s not nepotism. Nepotism is getting being shown favoritism because of your relation to someone rather than your abilities. That doesn’t seem to be the case here.
ThunderingJerboa@kbin.social 9 months ago
You don't think his first set of gigs weren't because he had actor parents to the point? His first role was as an antagonist in the blockbuster Hunger Games (this doesn't imply that film series is good but its big enough to make a huge splash in your career). Most upstart actors start as extras and take far smaller role, its pretty obvious he had preferential treatment because of who is related to. Good for the dude for making use of the opportunities given to him and he does good work today but at least he isn't denying that his bloodline is a decent part of his success.
dpkonofa@lemmy.world 9 months ago
That’s not the same thing. Having opportunities that other people don’t have is not the same thing as being given a job because of who your parents are. If he had to audition, it’s not nepotism. If he didn’t, it is.