What is Reddit's opinion of Idols and Celebrity in Japanese Media Culture?

From 3.5 billion Reddit comments

It's uncertain to say for these kids, but the Japanese idol culture is based on extreme capitalism, japanese conservatism and involves many svengalis. Hence I'm afraid it might be so, but I can't tell for sure. I do know that the business practices behind the facade tends to be quite pathetic or unethical (in my opinion).

This book has been written by (foreign) scientists who live in Japan and have researched the culture. It's an interesting read to say the least. You can find it elsewhere as well.