The Paparazzi Essay, Research Paper

The Paparazzi

Joe hit it big; his music single hit number one on the Billboard and he’s signed deals with Virgin Records. His time has come to be bombarded with riches, bathed in fame, and stalked. Where stalking is referring to being hounded day and night by those whose job is to be indecent and bothersome. The aptly named “stalkerazzi” are to blame. Their career rewards them millions for a single piece of paper that shines these four words; tabloid, scandal, money and gossip. This group of Vikings is interrelated with the media that the nation trusts like CNN, ABC, and NBC. They both serve the same purpose and have similar goals but with two different aspects. One chooses to report on issues that actually happen, the other chooses to make up things with blurred, unauthorized photographs as their support. The Paparazzi are unyielding in their efforts to push the button that will earn their living. In Europe it is quite commonplace to have a single photo sell for 20,000 USD to 40,000 USD. To reach their goal is to hide, dress up, and master the art of being furtive to get the job done. Although, morally they are ridiculed, the public continues to support their work just out of human instinct. It is apparent that much of American life is centered around the famous but having obscene pictures on the front page of some magazine sold nationwide is not exactly a trademark of fame. To have the opportunity to discover the deep dark secrets of someone else’s life is a chance that nearly nobody will turn down. For it has been recurring since life began, better known as gossip.

Privacy is one of the most treasured things to an individual because it allows a feeling of being secure and comforted. Individuals should have the right to privacy, whoever they may be, and be able to have family time or eat a romantic dinner with ones’ wife. Being able to have this freedom is something that cannot be revoked by any person. However this concept seems to mean nothing to the paparazzi. In fact they believe it is their right because they are the “press.” It is unlawful to invade someone’s home and install cameras in their house. It is nefarious to insert cameras under a bathroom stall when someone is in there but these are just examples of what the Paparazzi do for a living. Violation of one’s right of privacy should be considered a crime but it’s not because the paparazzi is strategically playing on the border between celebrity publicity and tabloid mania. Celebrities have tried nearly everything to thwart these invaders including bringing them to court, using violence, and boycotting their work.

Princess Diana of Wales was one such person who crashed to her death because she was not allowed to have solitude with her lover. She was forced to flee when photographers on motorcycles began bombarding her with bulb flashes. After a short chase Princess Diana was forced off the road and crashed, dying instantly, along with her lover. Fingers automatically pointed towards the paparazzi. A royal British photographer is quoted saying, “They never left her [Princess Diana] alone. They do it for money, money, money. It’s the great incentive to lose all principles.” How true he is. In Princess Dianas’ case the paparazzi lost enough of their morals to allow her to die. What will stop them from doing the same thing again? Hiding behind the wall of the press they have the power to do so. Princess Diana was doomed from her day of birth. Born under the British royal family she was destined for a life of stalkers and cameras. Her picture kissing her lover, Dodi Al Fayed, sold for 450,000 USD and ended benefiting photographer Mario Brenna with seven million. Earning this kind of money for a single photograph is absolutely sensational and very attractive. Their job provides for them well but so does pirating, stealing, and kidnapping. They counterattack, saying that’s the price of being a celebrity but if they were to switch positions then they may come to a realization at how grotesque their job really is. Jane Kirtley of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press even went as far to say “that if we were to thwart this industry it could be a real threat to legitimate new gathering.” Those that pay for their disgusting work are tabloid printing presses like National Enquirer. Their magazines are without content, containing only lies that correspond to pictures taken. By inserting words under a hazy picture will have the public buying their product. Their tricks are able to keep the public interested and when all else fails, they may alter the picture to make up a story. Their heinous acts have reaped themselves millions of dollars but not without the support of the world.

The paparazzi are not primarily to blame for these scandalous acts but in reality the culprit is the public. The common interest in gossip about a person is of alluring to anyone and if that person happens to be the President the intrigue is multiplied by a hundred. Gossip has existed since who knows when and paparazzi photography is the visual form of it. People enjoy gossip because it is natural for them to do so especially if it is someone they know. To have a feeling of superiority is great and gossip allows it making it ever more popular. Gossip makes a person seem lower in status and has the tendency for ruining one’s reputation. Human suffrage is what tabloids thrive on. They talk shameful things of people and other people will listen attentively. For it provides them with an odd feeling of satisfaction. The only reason tabloid companies are able to exist is because society has always been bewitched by such things. Humans are unaware of their support. Chiding the paparazzi sounds logical when it is heard, but when one sees their work it is hard to resist to pick up the magazine and flip through pages of outrageous pictures and texts.

Mankind is at fault and to fix the problem would be to change the thinking of the world. A nearly impossible task but still plausible. Obviously not within the next decade or so but it may be added into the standard morals as a no-no as did slavery, child labor, and racism. If the paparazzi are shunned constantly then slowly it may become ‘fixed’ and imbedded in people’s minds that their work is not something to praise. Their work has abused their government given rights and harmed innocent people with their dirt, attractive lies. In many ways, the world is responsible but however the paparazzi has crossed the line of human decency and has gone against human morals. In closing, the paparazzi have gone beyond the call of the press and assaulted the privacy of humans.