But Farrell’s career probably won’t falter, and could even benefit in
what has developed to be another media outlet celebrities can now work
in. Some critics feel that celebrities may even be in on the sex tape
“leaks”. It makes them more interesting and promotes their name.
Although our obsessive celebrity culture has been rising since the
1990’s, this public desire to see their sex tapes is a new development.
Why? Partially because in our culture, the media divulges so much
personal information about celebrities that people feel they know them
on an intimate level.
After Paris Hilton’s sex tape surfaced, her superficial resume bulked
up, and her freaking dog even wrote a book! In 2005, Yahoo's seventh
most-searched term in the world was “Paris Hilton”. Her tape is only a
well-known example in the celebrity pornography trade, which increases
dramatically with each innovation in motion picture technology.
In the past, Hollywood studios worked hard to curb inappropriate
behavior. Celebrities under contract had to sign morals clauses, but now
celebrities are constantly over boundaries of sexual explicitness that
is almost encouraged. Consider 2001’s Monster’s Ball, with an intense
and almost too-long sex scene between Billy Bob Thorton and Halle Berry.
The odd thing is, although people eagerly delve into media’s warped
values, what we expect from ourselves or our politicians are radically
different.
As a U.S. Senator your career would be ruined if your sex tape was
leaked. A regular citizen such as me or you would be looked down upon.
For example: A former Taiwanese Council woman was involved in sex
scandal with her husband. She was described as disgraceful and forced
from office. On the other hand, icon Paula Abdul had a sexual affair
with a contestant on “American Idol” but is still a judge even after
recordings and phone records displayed her relationship with the
contestant…but the network claimed there was no proof.
What do these instances say about our society and our values? Why does
our culture reward celebrities with publicity for their lewd acts?
Lauren Wise is a junior studying journalism at Arizona State University.
She is editor of the college newspaper, a column writer for the
independent paper Cellar Door created by students, the community
college's campus paper, and does freelance work over the internet and
for local businesses. She is planning on joining the Peace Corps when
she graduates in 2007 and write about her experiences so more people in
America will know the conditions of countries that we rarely hear about.
She loves writing, painting, playing the piano, going out with friends
to sports bars, and works fulltime at a resort.
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