Britney Spears is back in the hospital. I, like millions of Americans, have read about this online and seen it on the cable networks; even major news sources are selling (I mean, telling) the story. Today, I even--and I'm now mortified by this--went to TMZ to read about it. (I'm specifically not linking to TMZ today because it makes me feel dirty.)
So I'd like to apologize to Britney. In taking part in a culture of celebrity obsession, I have promoted the existence of the magnifying glass that has, if not caused, then at the very least worsened, her sickness. I don't always have sympathy for celebrities who complain of the lack of privacy. But this woman is very, very ill. Gawking at her downward spiral is like making fun of someone with cancer.
I'm not one for New Year's resolutions, but here's one a month late: I will no longer read TMZ or any of it's incarnations online. I will only participate in star culture when it is in the forum of fashion and the red carpet, which is an arena in which celebrities willingly take part.
I'm sorry, Britney. Really, I am.
4 comments:
I admit it: I watch tabloid TV. However, I often wonder how "reporters" at E! can "sympathize" with the stars' dislike for the paparazzi. They talk about how insane the "stalkarazzi" can be, and they appear at times to condemn this behavior. At the same time, though, they *always* show paparazzi videos and photographs, which they pay for and off of which they make money. Makes no sense.
Excellent post, megs. And Harrogate, too, is sorry.
Go back through the hallowed archives of this blog, ye will see that Harrogate has long been on record as a Spears partisan. Indeed, Harrogate was one of the few in the blogosphere to take Chris Chrocker's plaintive cries with the rhetorical seriousness that they deserved.
Your claim, "But this woman is very, very ill. Gawking at her downward spiral is like making fun of someone with cancer" is abolutely spot on. We are all complicit in what is going on with her.
It is indeed time to "leave Britney alone."
I made a similar belated resolution, which I posted at Separation of Spheres. It angers me, though, that respectable news outlets like the Today Show, MNSBC, and the NYTimes are discussing Spears' life--it makes it damn hard to keep my resolution when they talk about it in the middle of the morning news. I have repeatedly felt complicit in her downfall.
OMG, I'm in celebrity withdrawal. The MSN gossip link in my Hotmail account nearly led me astray. Keep me in your thoughts this weekend.
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