Invasion Of Prvacy - Or The Cost Of Fame?

[andy-hughes]

Paul Weller wins damages in a court case against the Daily Mail website.

Personally, if 'public interest' was the yardstick by which the Mail's website was judged, then its endless shots of 'toned thighs' and 'bikini bodies' would be removed, and the entire site would collapse instantly.

So - is Mr Weller entitled to this level of privacy for his children, or, as the Mail contended, has he already placed his family in the public eye voluntarily?

What do you think? Media URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-27049435
Description:

[emmie]

the funeral of Rudolph Valentino, it proves only that this, its not a new thing, phenomenon

wiki
An estimated 10,000 people lined the streets of New York City to pay their respects at his funeral, handled by the Frank Campbell Funeral Home. The event was a drama itself: Suicides of despondent fans were reported. Windows were smashed as fans tried to get in and an all-day riot erupted on August 24. Over 100 mounted officers and NYPD's Police Reserve were deployed to restore order. A phalanx of officers would line the streets for the remainder of the viewing. The drama inside would not be outdone. Polish actress Pola Negri, claiming to be Valentino's fiancée, collapsed in hysterics while standing over the coffin, and Campbell's hired four actors to impersonate a Fascist Blackshirt honor guard, which claimed to have been sent by Benito Mussolini. It was later revealed as a planned publicity stunt.[74] Media reports that the body on display in the main salon was not Valentino but a decoy were continually denied by Campbell.

[emmie]

rubbernecker's who gawp at accidents, horrible, those who glory in others misfortune, same

not new, and i am pretty sure had the Pharaohs had a tabloid papyrus, then the scribes would have had a field day, as to the ordinary Egyptians, would they have cared, maybe not, perhaps they were too busy in putting up monuments to their leaders.

[andy-hughes]

emmie - I do appreciate that 'celebrity culture' is nothing new, but it has changed beyond all recognition.

The early film stars were looked upon as gods-on-earth who didn't even breathe the same air as the rest of us - they simply appeared at events like premieres and were photographed and interviewed, and that was it.

Now, the opposite is true - pop and film stars are seen as fair game wherever they are, and whatever they are doing - which feeds the mass-market magazines i have mentioned.

It's almost as though stars are not as human as the rest of us, but less human, because they are photographed looking less than their best, or in circumstances that back up spurious gossip - or as in extreme cases like the one under discussion, at moments of intense private grief.

I say again, I don't know how we have reached such a situation, but it saddens me to see us there as a society - even if it is a large minority that feed this horrible trend in media expoitation.

[ChillDoubt]

ChillDoubt - I don't think I've actually seen that video before. Not sure how CM managed not to commit murder in that situation.
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I agree Ed. Had it been me, I'd have beaten him about the head with the camera itself.




Tilly2
Did you notice that Chill's video was entitled, 'Stupid Famous People'.................what?
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Was it? Must've missed that, I thought it was titled 'Chris Martin Attacks Paparazzi'!?

[emmie]

the reason you didn't learn of the lives of celebs of old, like Flynn, Gable, Tracy, Bogart, was the studio system in operation, they paid huge bungs to the press to stop them reporting on the shenanigans that went on, its only now that celebs, who after all are not unknown courting Publicity rolling out of clubs pissed, high on drugs, they must know that the paps are laying in wait, not just in UK but in USA, anywhere that celeb stars hang out.
i wouldn't like it i agree - but i am not a high profile star, or indeed a two bit z lister getting my mug in the paper every few moments, or appearing on these shows like i'm a celebrity,

[andy-hughes]

emmie - I take your point in part, but i think the main reason why the media has changed so much is the advent of the internet, and social media, where instant access to pics and gossip is possible in a way undreamed of in the past.

I, and most of the musicians I have ever dealt with, accept that attention from the media is part of their job - but i stress that it is a job, and like anyone else, they are entitled to time away from 'the office'.

I refer yet again to the utter disrepsect and callousness of the paps who caught Mr & Mrs Martin at one of their most difficult times, and handled their contact in such a crass andf unfeeling manner. That is what virtually defines the term 'Invasion Of Privacy' I am sure you will agree.

[Tilly2]

Chill, the video is provided by a site called Stupid Famous People. You can see the SFP logo on the clip, up in the top right hand corner.

[emmie]

in the case you speak of i agree,