May 23, 2008
Has Public Voyeurism Gone Too Far?
My latest at Pajamas Media:
Most people love gossip. It seems to be an ingrained human trait. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if the first intelligible words uttered by cavemen were, “Did you hear that Ogg’s wife is leaving him?” It used to be that gossip was relegated to backyard fences, the office water cooler, and local gossip columns. But as modern society has given us more leisure time and the technology to spread the word, peeking in on the lives of others has gone beyond idle curiosity, becoming fodder for mass consumption entertainment. As I said earlier, it’s one thing when individuals allow themselves to be exploited on reality television. It’s quite another thing, however, when individuals find their personal tragedies in the spotlight through no fault of their own.
Read it all here.
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Yes - it has gone too far. I cringed every time "breaking news" came on about Anna Nicole Smith, John Mark Carr (did we really care what a pedophile creep had for lunch on his flight to the US?) and Scott Peterson. Thankfully, we have not been "treated" to discussions of Britny Spears and Lindsey Lohan in a while.
People without lives of their own thrive on this stuff. It's like slowing down on the interstate to look at an accident.
The MSM is partly to blame by making such things "news". This poor girl in Austria will never live a real life - the media and those viewers looking for the next "train wreck" will not allow it.
