media mongers
kelly | 24 January 2008 - 11:40pm
Everyone is buzzing about the death of Heath Ledger, and the media coverage is completely rankling me. Every time there's a new detail released, it gets splashed around in headlines that, the very next day, are proven wrong. "Heath Ledger found facedown and naked on his bedroom floor!" (Oh wait, he was actually in bed.) "Sleeping pills scattered around Heath's apartment!" (Oh wait, they weren't scattered, actually. They were on his nightstand and in his medicine cabinet.) "Rolled-up 20-dollar bill found in Heath's apartment with traces of white powder!" (Oh wait, the bill was clean. No illegal drugs were found.)
Entertainment reporters (if you can call them that) are the worst, but even legitimate news organizations get into it. I hate how the media spreads all sorts of rumors before any actual truth comes out. Since his death, news reports have been suggesting (sometimes outright, sometimes with strong hints) that he overdosed - maybe intentionally, maybe accidentally. But we don't even know yet if drugs were involved in his death! Sure, he owned sleeping pills. He also suffered from insomnia, which he was very open about. Why do we immediately assume he died from an overdose? Initial reports were that he had pneumonia, too. Not sure if that's true, either, but why do we leap for the idea that he overdosed and ignore the possibility that he might have had a health emergency?
A better question is why are we making wild speculation at all?! Oh right, because scandal sells. How honorable. This isn't news - it's rumor. And by spreading it, we disrespect the person who died, not to mention his family and friends who have to endure all these claims before anything is confirmed.
I realize that given his age, Ledger's death is mysterious. And it may turn out that the official findings show he did die of an OD. Frankly, it's none of our business, but I hope the cause, whatever it may be, is announced soon - so he will no longer be a tabloid target and can actually rest in peace.
- 411 reads
all comments photoblog
Seriously, right?! I was totally disgusted at the pictures of him in a body bag being loaded into an ambulance with 50 or 60 "photographers" in the background. And I saw that on a headline of a major newspaper!
I totally agree with you - it has been absolutely sickening.
As a bit of an antidote, here is one thing I read about him that I thought was completely appropriate and touching:
http://www.slate.com/id/2182669/
Amen. I second all of it. There's one more thing I noticed, because our agency works with so many kids and adults with ADD and ADHD. Many of the people who have interviewed Ledger talked very melodramatically (IMO) about how he was at ease in front of the camera, but "tortured" (or some such) and ill-at-ease with himself in person. As evidence of this, someone showed video where he was very fidgety; someone showed him happily (it seemed to me) running and dancing in a park in between questions; someone described his doodling on a napkin during the entire interview. I don't mean to add to the speculation, but what I thought was, "ADHD." That's not "tortured." That's a common psychological/physiological condition that every 5th person around you has traits of. I don't know whether the guy had that, or anything at all, diagnostically, but I do know that the media types are reaching for the most sinister, the most negatively sensational aspects of the story they can find, when there's every possibility that the truth will be just sad. Not sinister, not scandalous. Just sad. Like a good, decent guy who was sick and had a bad meds interaction, or made a mistake with his meds. It happens. Rest in peace, Heath. And thank you, Kalki, for saying what many decent people are thinking.
Well said.
Whenever famous deaths greet us in the news, I get annoyed with people who get annoyed with other people for showing sadness. All too often I hear, and usually from my dad, "why is everyone so sad when they don't even personally know him, just another death..." But that's the point. I think people get very sad because when there is a famous death in the news, at least for me, it's a reminder of our mortality and how this kind of stuff happens every day (to people we don't know), so stop taking life for granted and appreciate it all. Plus, here's an actor who had a gift and that gift will be missed. I've been looking forward to the next Batman movie, in which Heath plays "The Joker." I've seen clips and it looks like he does a phenomenal job. I'm excited, albeit sad, to see this movie.
I agree, the rampant speculation about this (and other things) has reached ridiculous levels. What ever happened to reporting, you know, FACTS?
I agree with you that the reporting is out of hand...but reporting the story and getting the facts are two different things.
Someone reporting what they believe to be true is someone reporting the truth. But not reporting the facts.
WIlliam Faulkner said "Facts and truth really don't have much to do with each other."
I think that is evident in Ledgers death.
But we, the public, eat up the "truth" but not the facts.
I'm confused at your comment, William.
You said that someone reporting what they believe to be true is someone reporting the truth. But how can something false, even if they believe it, be the truth? Wouldn't you need to say that they are reporting an _assumption_?
I can't see how saying pills were scattered around could be considered the truth.
Aside from that, I agree with everything that is being said here. I will miss his acting. It is sad when anyone dies, but even more sad when we feel like we know them and have respect for their talents.
You are so right. Everything is so damned hyped and everybody jumps to the worse conclusions automatically. It is truly sickening.
Danielle,
Thats kind of my point. They are reporting what they consider is the truth. A "reliable" source said ther were pills scattered around the room.
Scattered to you, is very different than scattered to me. Scattered to you may mean 50 pills (of the same type or 50 different types) on the floor in a 30 foot radius in a haphazard manner. Scattered to me may be 3 pills in a 3 foot radius. But there is "truth" to the statement (or assumption) that there were pills in the room.
But the facts will not be known until the storm clears.
It's shameful, Bente. Death should be sacrosanct and observed if not with solemnity then at least with serenity. There is none of that here (except in the beautiful, heartbreaking expressions of his family).
Thanks for sharing that link, Ern. I'm glad to know someone is doing this right.
Exactly, Susie. Nothing worthwhile is gained by such sensational speculation. And don't even get me started on the media maelstrom surrounding Britney Spears right now, which is different from this in several distinct ways but nonetheless an example of the very worst in "news" reporting. If all the reporters who have diagnosed her as bipolar really cared, they would shut the fuck up already.
That's true, doreen. Although I know where your dad is coming from, because even in the past couple days I've thought, "If only we cared about the massive number of people dying in Darfur as much as we do the death of one actor..." But I don't think we can relate personally to (and are also completely overwhelmed by) that sort of dying. And also, I think we're startled by the death of a famous person, like if it can happen to them, then....
geeky, it's even carried over into other areas, like reporting on politics. I love that after the New Hampshire primary results came in completely different from how the media had predicted, Lou Dobbs admitted that perhaps they had all gone a bit too far and should just stick to reporting the actual news from now on. Amen to that.
That's a good point, William. And a great quote. I would like to see a news organization say something like, "Heath Ledger has died. Rather than publish unverified details and speculation, this news agency will not report further on this story until an official announcement has been made regarding Ledger's death." By waiting, they would be more accurate in the end and more honorable, too.
I definitely think a lot of assumptions are being made here, Danielle. I also think that even though he was a public figure, we don't need to know all the truths or facts, even. His family should be able to release whatever details they want, and keep the rest confidential. This should be about them, not us.
It reminds me of middle school, Kranki.
William, I suspect that some of these reporters have pretty loose standards for whom they consider a "reliable" source. And your "scattered" example is a good one. I thought that same thing. The pills were, technically, scattered throughout his house, in that pill bottles were found in various locations. But that fact has been worded with a more scandalous connotation, and that angers me because it is possible to report the facts straight. Or even better, wait until the storm clears before reporting anything. We expect to be informed of every development immediately, but I don't think with this sort of "news" we as the public aren't owed any information at all.
After a couple of reports I stopped reading. The first one said there were pills found and he was found in M-K Olsen's apartment. The radio station I listen to in the morning was nice. They reminisced about his movies and said they were sad for his daughter and Michelle Williams and that he was so young. Anyway, I definitely feel for his family in all this!