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January 31, 2008
You Know...
I didn't think I was actually going to get angrier after watching Entertainment Tonight promote their ongoing rape of Heath Ledger's dead body.
But I did.
Because they were doing something even worse that I saw coming.
They are trying to position this shite as not only a healthy choice on their part, but one that can help others.
First, they blame the video being shown on Australia’s Channel 9... while they negotiated for the exclusive and as noted in an earlier entry, were already threatening people to prevent infringement on the "news."
Is pretending that you are covering a breaking news story when you are busy buying rights to old, exploitative, private video a lie or just spin?
Then they trotted out Jess Cagle, now at People, selling their coverage of Ledger’s drug use.
Then they bring out Dr. Drew Pinsky, speculating that this tape could offer insight into how and why Ledger died… even though at his time, there is no indication that illegal drug use had anything to do with Ledger’s death. And I assume he was lying by omission when he talks about having seen the Ledger drug tape "floating around Hollywood." Please! He didn't see it in the ET office before spouting hs crap about the tape "scaring someone straight" and "maybe saving a life?"
And unless it is the rarest of tapes of people doing drugs, is it really more "tragic" than an average Saturday night on Mullholland? Are we at the point where celebrities doing coke at a party is actually shocking? Are we really comparing cocaine use at parties, however dubious a choice, and the major addictions that so many have struggled with in this town? Has anyone ever met a 26-year-old actor that was a brooder without being a major drug addict? Or is it just hypocritical posing? If it turns out that Ledger's death had zero to do with illegal meds, will Dr Drew be spending time apologizing for embarrassing a dead man over his use of recreational drugs?
And what if it turns out that he was an addict? Shouldn't the media be waiting until it clears some sort of journalistic hurdles before we start spreading it all over? Can't we wait to learn our lesson (and sell more ads)?
I will allow myself the belief that Pinsky is sincere and is being used, not throwing out his Hippocratic oath. But he should be busy thinking about the ongoing loss of those in Ledger's life and trying harder to make sure he isn't being used as a rationaization for what cannot be rationalized as anything but the raising of blood money.
The show used 2 of the first 3 minutes of a 23 minute show to sell their blood wares, sticking a camera into Farrah Fawcett’s cancer in between. Then they did another disgusting 3 minutes in which Cagle talked about how the family is trying to keep things private and how there is a rush to judgment on the drug issue... after having participated in ET's rush to judgment in the opening segment.
Do unto others, muthaf-ers…do unto others…
Posted by poland at January 31, 2008 12:25 AM
Comments
Maybe Dr. Drew IS a sincere guy, but in general I have a hard time giving him the benefit of the doubt about his intentions.
Ever aince he turned up on season one of the US version of BIG BROTHER as some sort of behavioral expert but really de facto co-host of sorts, not to mention his role in NEW YORK MINUTE, I can't see this guy as much more than a bullshit TV "personality" looking for more camera time.
His intentions may be noble, who knows. But his choices of venue are SERIOUSLY suspect? BIG BROTHER? Doling out predictable, cookie-cutter advice alongside Adam Carolla? Fronting a VH1 rehab show that professes sincerity about addiction but still makes time for THE LEAD SINGER OF CRAZY TOWN indulging in Surreal Life antics?
Just seems like thorough hack.
Posted by: LexG ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.mcnblogs.com/thehotblog/nav-commenters.gif)
at January 31, 2008 01:43 AM
Providing medical diagnosis through videotape has been, and will continue to be, utterly asinine. Anyone remember Bill Frist & Terri Schiavo? When he denied she was in a vegetative state by watching videos and thinking she was responding?
Back to square one again.
Posted by: Tofu at January 31, 2008 01:50 AM
I'm going to stick up here for Dr. Drew as a guy who sincerely wants to help. He was doing Loveline for free as a public service for a decade before Adam Carolla arrived and turned it into a profitable show.
It seems like he enjoys showing up on television, but mostly because he's a normal guy who's just tickled that he has the opportunity. He's a decent human being, not somebody who's in it for the celebrity.
Posted by: Eric at January 31, 2008 05:07 AM
Dr. Drew is actually a very good guy with very noble intentions. I agree with Eric, he doesn't mind the spotlight, but there's always an urge on his part to not sell a lie of easy fixes or quick judgment.
As for the tabloidization of the media, you are where i was a year ago. The only thing you can do is turn it off. It will never get better. It continues to seep into the so called 'legitimate news'.
Bill Hicks was right. In 20 years it will be pictures of women spread eagle with a line that reads "Buy Coke". And people will buy it.
At some point, you have to either accept that you're the kind of person that
a) accepts things for the way they are and try to learn and live with it
or
b) accept that things desperately need changing and do everything in your power to do so.
Entertainment Journalism has never been anything award worthy, but nowadays it's just videocameras, vaginas, and voueyerism. That's never going to change.
Posted by: anghus at January 31, 2008 07:54 AM
Posted by: mutinyco at January 31, 2008 08:10 AM
Dr. Drew is a huge hypocrite in many ways. His entire claim to fame is coming on a radio show created by his friend Jim "The Poorman" Trenton (who also introduced Pinsky to the woman who'd become his wife), claiming he'd stand by him, then throwing him to the wolves when Trenton pissed off management.
Loveline was a top-rated show long before Carolla.
I don't put anything past the Doc. He loves that media spotlight.
Posted by: LYT at January 31, 2008 12:01 PM
i don't know who dr. drew is, but in regards to the buzzards feeding on poor heath's corpse, i think whatever integrity the 'entertainment media' had is rapidly evaporating; i was thinking back to when my beloved river died in 1993(?, wow 15 years ago if i'm right about the year), it was big news but handled fairly respectfully; it's a completely different world now, imagine the feeding frenzy if river had died the way he did today, someone would have likely filmed him convulsing to death on the footpath with their mobile phone and it would all over the internet and 'entertainment' shows in an hour. maybe it's just me, but the world is going to hell in a handbasket
Posted by: leahnz at January 31, 2008 02:48 PM
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