The Ethics of Privacy

Privacy…an aspect of life that us “ordinary folk” often take for granted. Typical America isn’t plagued by fears of someone rummaging through our garbage and analyzing our latest Safeway purchases. Nor are we in a constant state of worry over what people are saying about us, thinking about us, and seeing of us. But this isn’t America. This is Hollywood, where nothing is typical. It is where celebrities are flocked by herds of ferocious photographers and reporters, as the aspect of privacy goes straight out the door. But how far is too far? What are the ethics of invading the privacy of the rich and famous?

Perez Hilton, a blogger who has become famous for blogging, would say they are fair game. He happily flaunts the flaws and misfortunes of celebrities by showing the latest panty-less party of Britney Spears and the naked naughtiness of Vanessa Hudgens. Hilton isn’t the only one, as the industry of celebrity obsessing has grown to an obscene degree with the Usweeklys, Peoples, and In touchs of today’s newsstands. Last March, the celebrity news blog Gawker.com began taking advantage of the Google Maps tool to show exactly where and when a star was spotted just moments after a sighting.

But for celebrities, the industry of obsessing over their everyday routines is invasive and often dangerous. Earlier this month, video obtained by tmz.com showed George Clooney scolding paparazzi for driving recklessly while following him on his motorcycle. "What they're doing is illegal," said Clooney in an interview on Entertainment Tonight. "It's high-speed chases and they're competing with each other. They're not trying to catch me doing something stupid, they're trying to create me doing something stupid. You don't get to break all these laws and then say, 'I'm just doing my job.'" And although some would argue that they asked for this, because they are in the spotlight, it is the degree to which it has been taken, that has gone to far. "You can drive all you want, you can take my picture all you want, but what you cannot do is put people in danger," said Clooney.

I admit, that the consumption of these magazines can be a guilty pleasure (only People for me!), in which the average girl can phase out the stresses of their daily lives and contemplate that of others. However, I fundamentally disagree with the lengths to which it has been taken and believe that the youth of today’s generation should be concerning themselves with issues of true importance (like the Iraq war, our upcoming election) in which the invasion of privacy is a necessity in furthering our social education.