Oops... They Did It Again!

Conservative commentator Ann Coulter called Democratic Presidential candidate John Edwards a 'faggot' during the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington, D.C., on March 2. The New York Post reported that Junior's in Brooklyn has banned troubled artist Foxy Brown after she refused to pay for her food at the popular eatery. And the press detailed every twist and turn of Britney Spears' bizarre behavior last month before she again checked into rehab. Who actually cares about these people as they desperately seek to generate attention while their stars continue to sink?

Well, that question has perhaps an all too obvious answer -- Americans consume these stories in the same way that they consume junk food. They simply can't help themselves. But let's follow the lead of the Associated Press for a second and examine it's decision to ignore socialite Paris Hilton for a week [www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/TV/03/02/ignoring.parishilton.ap/index.html]. The queen of shameless promotion [and sex videos] was arrested late last month for driving with a suspended license. The arrest was certainly not breaking news compared to the War in Iraq, the Presidential campaign and the tornadoes that had devastated parts of the South. The Associated Press, in its journalistic brilliance, decided to ignore the over-exposed heiress for one week. Kudos to the AP for actually showing some restraint and denying Hilton the coverage that she and her ilk obviously continue to crave. The agency did not provide the public with a play-by-play of her oh so fabulous life. The American public did not capitulate from the lack of Hilton coverage and we continued on with our lives. The same observation could be applied to Coulter, Foxy Brown and others who continue their desperate quest for attention while their stars continue to sink. These figures do little more than promote themselves with outrageous comments, self-serving press conferences and other PR tactics. Let's not be naive about their true motives, but we, as media consumers, can do better than falling into their ongoing cycle of self-promotion and selfish antics. Break the cycle!