Celebrity Gossip!

Okay, so TMZ has been a hot topic lately, which isn’t new because they are qutie often a hot topic.  Harvey Levin seems to crave the controversy that he is constantly attracting with his product, TMZ, and TMZ on TV.

The most recent controversy has been a big one, and it’s over their posting of a picture taken of singer Rihanna after she was allegedly beaten by her boyfriend, Chris Brown.

However, before you start defending TMZ too much as a legitimate site for “news” I’d like to point you to this “story” as well.  I have absolutely no comment on that one.  I shouldn’t have to express an opinion for you to be offended by that.

Paparazzi

As far as the topic of paparazzi goes, I’m not exactly going to take the traditional view here. A lot of people hate the paparazzi, and I simply don’t have a problem with what they do. I know that’s easy to say for someone who’s never had to deal with them before, but I know that there’s a lot of famous people in Hollywood that think the same thing that I do.

Some celebrities realize that paparazzi help the up and coming stars shine much brighter.  If it wasn’t for the paparazzi, it would take much longer for a celebrity to develop star power.

The Big Conspiracy

Here’s the thing you have to realize about TMZ. It’s very corporate.  There’s nothing seriously cutting edge about them.  They are owned by Time Warner.  When a movie company, such as Warner Bros wants to stir up interest for an upcoming movie, they’ll give word to TMZ to start covering certain celebrities from the movie.  It’s all very organized, and is just one of the many ways that mainstream media controls what you want to see.

Legalities…

In California, it is 100% legal for paparazzi to take a picture of a celebrity.  What’s more is that I believe that a celebrity makes certain tradeoffs when they decide that they want to make more than a million dollars a year.  It is the unwavering, rabid desire of the fans to see all of their movies that allows them to cash their paychecks, so if a celebrity has a problem with the fact that there’s a demand for their pictures, then they entered the wrong business.  No, it’s not fair that your kids can’t have a “normal” life.  It’s also not fair that we’re struggling to make ends meet while you party every night, and only work a few weeks a year.  I have little sympathy for celebrities who are ambushed my paparazzi.

But Seriously… Who Watches This?

With that said, I don’t like what they do on TMZ.  I don’t think that what they is necessarily wrong, I just think it’s tacky.  It’s not uncommon for them to photograph someone in an unflattering fashion, and make fun of it.  Usually, these types of pictures feature the celebrity in a swimsuit or a speedo.  I mean, taking photographs is one thing, but to make fun of them afterward?  And THEN to pass that off as a form of entertainment?

Personally, I don’t understand how people can watch TMZ on TV.  The show is nothing more than a series of 1 minute montages of the TMZ crew cracking jokes at the expense of celebrities being bombarded by nosy cameramen, trying to pretend to be their friends.   What do you think?