Over the past several weeks, Hong Kong media groups have focused their attention on the complicated relationship between star couple Nicholas Tse and Cecilia Cheung, scrutinizing their every move.

Of course, the media scrutiny is also the result of the couple's triangular connection to Edison Chen, Tse's former best friend and Cheung's illicit lover, whose sex snaps with various other celebrities were exposed online several years ago.

Tse and Chen were once students at my high school, which made me feel oddly connected to the issue.

There's a soap opera fascination in following celebrities' lives, especially with a case like this that hits such a perfect storm of sex and scandal. But still, we shouldn't cheer celebrities' lives being broadcasted to the public.

Fans often follow the media reports about their favorite stars as they see them as role models, examples of success. As the personal lives of their favorite idols begin to unfold, however, people become disillusioned and abandon the idol whom they admired before their personal issues were revealed. Underneath the luxurious lifestyles and the glamorous magazine covers, the people that we idolize are still normal human beings. Everyone makes mistakes, and everyone should have the right to privacy.

Some argue that entertainment celebrities effectively sign a bargain with the public, giving up their right to privacy in return for fame and fortune. But the media's appetite for celebrity drama extends even to fields like sports and science, where such arguments couldn't apply.

The Tiger Woods scandal serves as a reminder of the devastation that can be caused by the public appetite for gossip. Prior to the scandal, Woods was treated as a hero. He is the youngest person to achieve a career Grand Slam in golf, athlete of the decade according to Associated Press, and founder of multiple charitable organizations.

Suddenly, a man whom everyone respected was scorned as news of his infidelities spread following his car crash.

But wasn't he cheating on his wife while he was winning major tournaments and setting up altruistic foundations? His marital downfall was the accumulation of bad choices he made over the years, not in one day, and his bed-hopping affairs were no reflection on his quality as a sportsman or a philanthropist.

Nobody likes a cheater, but it's hardly a problem confined to celebrities. According to a study done by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, 22 percent of the men and 15 percent of the women have cheated on their spouses at least once.

If their shame is shared by millions of other ordinary citizens, why should we single them out for scandal?

The media needs to learn to respect a certain distance. Scandals that expose hypocrisy or corruption are one thing, ordinary peccadillos another. It's one thing if a wealthy official keeps a mistress using public funds, or an anti-gay politician in the US is caught soliciting a male prostitute, but what business is it of ours, really, if an actress cheats on her boyfriend, or a young movie star sleeps around a bit?

The media hypocritically blames the stars for their moral failings, while playing up the sex appeal of the stories and voyeuristically leering themselves.

And it's not just the celebrities who get hurt, but their families. The complications of exploring a celebrity's personal life do not merely end with them.

The scandal lingers in the public consciousness, and eventually come back to haunt the celebrities' children. It is not fair for those kids to face the humiliation of an event outside of their control or to be judged by their parent's actions and not their own ability.

The media must be aware that the consequences of intruding in other people's lives are not temporary but irreparable.

The author is a student at the Hong Kong International School. viewpoint@globaltimes.com.cn

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)