The glow of celebrity is bright. Most people know Steve Martin as a popular entertainer, movie star and standup comedian. He is, though, also a very serious art collector and, most recently, an author of a novel set in the art world, An Object of Beauty. At a recent event in New York, the serious side of Martin was not appreciated, given the demand for the celebrity. I see this as a manifestation of a basic social problem.

The simple proposition, “there is a time and place for everything,” which I take to be not only a popular saying but a fundamental condition of modern life, is challenged in our present media environment. Now on different fronts, the significance of the challenge is becoming most apparent.

I’ve already observed this in thinking about the spread of economic logic to more and more spheres of our social life (link), (compactly named by Jurgen Habermas as the “economic colonization of the life world” in his Theory of Communicative Action) And clearly the issue arises in the case of WikiLeaks. But it also appears in surprising moments and locations.

There is the strange case of Steve Martin’s latest visit to the 92nd Street Y in Manhattan, leading to the embarrassment of all involved. (link) Martin went to an institution known for serious discussion about all sorts of issues, but was not permitted to have such a discussion with Deborah Solomon, a writer for The New York Times and art historian and critic.

At the Y, the demand for the entertainer silenced the collector and writer. I think the primary reason for this was that the event was telecast nationwide and the email messages from that electronic audience did not permit the live event from developing as it otherwise would have.

Solomon is an expert interviewer, Martin an expert performer. The interview apparently started unsteadily. They wanted to frame their discussion about art and not entertainment. They needed to reframe audience expectations. In that Martin and Solomon are accomplished professionals who have worked together before, it is predictable that they would have succeeded. And this . . .

Read more: Steve Martin’s serious side