Weighing in
A weekly look at reader comments and reactions to the news
The Spokesman- Review published the deaths of pop icons Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson on Friday’s front page. Editor Gary Graham, after debate within the newsroom and telephone calls from readers, invited readers to share their thoughts online. All of the responses can be found on Huckleberries Online at spokesman.com.
Jreighley: I think these celebrities will slip into History and nobody will remember them in 70-150 years. … But everyone remembers them now. News is what everybody is talking about. If people don’t want to read it, they can always start reading on page 2.
Lynne: just don’t understand people’s obsession with celebrities? Those Jon and Kate people have been splattered all over the press, and Net, for weeks. I don’t even know who they are and I sure as heck don’t care about their marital problems. Flipping through stations trying to watch the news this morning and all I saw/heard was MJ, MJ, MJ. Good Gawd, enough already!
Moscow_minidoka: They both warranted front page coverage, not because they were celebrities, but for what they achieved. “Jon and Kate” is a bad comparison, because they are “famous” just because of a stupid reality show … .
OrangeTV: Yes, yes, yes. It’s very big news. …. I think it’s sad when people are too uptight to allow themselves to enjoy the fun things in life like terrific entertainers. They add color, spirit and joy to my life and I feel not one speck of guilt or shame for that.
BlueinIdaho: I think these deaths warrant front page status more than most of the political items that pass for news.
Marianne Love: I’m betting that if Farrah Fawcett had been the only death yesterday, her story may have gone on an inside page. Hours later, however, when Michael Jackson died unexpectedly, a different dynamic in news occurred – two in one day, both commanding attention from two generations of fans.
Edmitch: Unfortunately, the timing of these celebrity deaths meant that the unrest in Iran, the passage of possibility the grandest tax bill in history (cap and trade), North Korea threatening to wipe out the United States, and health care legislation all became a lower priority – and seemed to have disappeared off the public’s radar screen. The celebrity focus meant Congress could secretly add 300 pages of text to today’s cap and trade bill without giving anyone, even most Congressional Reps, a chance to read what they were voting on. Which will affect us the most next year or beyond? Not the celebrity deaths.