So Gary Speed has been the topic of many conversations, all ending with the same question- why?
There are photos of him hours before, smiling and happy talking about the World Cup- talking in future tense. This of course can mean nothing- anyone that understands the solitary nature of depression knows that the outside presentation of yourself is often the opposite of the person screaming for help inside. But depression is more physical and all-consuming than many are aware- the world becomes an inaccessible place, you almost don’t speak the same language as everybody else such is the solitude of that darkness that gnaws at you like a rat.
That didn’t look like a depressed man at the BBC. Either he’s a good actor, or…. And many said the same thing, discussing the day’s tabloids that were spread on the table… there’s something else. With rumours flying around, the one that keeps re surfacing is the format we are most used to- a paper had a story on him, and whatever the nature of that story, it was bad enough that Speed couldn’t face it. Tabloid-wise this narrows it down- stories they dig up and splash across front pages that could cause a man to hang himself come in catagories we have all seen before and perhaps it is unwise to make suggestions here as to not add to hearsay. It would also be wise to take into consideration that we don’t know this man – we know the media representation of him which is a very different thing.
No doubt the truth will out as it has a habit of doing when tabloids are involved, but it should make you aware of the two avenues of debate—
What was the secret? / Why do we want to know?
Is it our business to know the answer to this man’s last painful hours? Is this ‘news’? Why do you, the reader, need to know? Yes his job lead him to be in the public eye, but I have a feeling that our thirst for the answer doesn’t lie under the heading of compassion, but of curiosity. We don’t ask why to heal our sorrow the way his family needs to ask why, so where does the line fall between public knowledge and private?
I think this is why the Leveson Enquiry is something we should all be taking note of, not in terms of seeing which downtrodden celebrity is moaning about being harassed or infringed upon- this is not new. What is new is the sudden self-awareness it has generated in the public about how it’s got this far, how deep it goes and what we’re willing to tolerate in order to satisfy our own demands of a media-lead society.
I think it’s a fair summary to say the nail in the coffin of the scandal was the hacking of Milly Dolwer’s phone, and hearing her mother speak at the enquiry highlighted the significance- how she had thought as a consequence, that her daughter was still alive. It would be naive to think that this is a new practice in the underworld of ‘investigative’ journalism, so what’s changed? What did hacking the mobile phone of Milly Dowler show us that made us all so uncomfortable?
It’s the fact it has highlighted our responsibility, as readers, as members of the consumer public. It’s nice and comfortable to blame an Elderly Australian who actually, doesn’t look like he knows what day of the week it is, letalone heard of NOTW (1% of his empire) That’s too easy. Underneath is a darker truth that maybe we’re not ready to look at. We live in a world of supply and demand, so we should take collective responsibility for the media monster created, not scurry away and search for a scapegoat; individual slimy journalists and red haired women to pin to the wall. If there was no demand, there would be no need for the supply.
We buy those 90p magazines of such quality we shouldn’t even wipe our bottoms with them letalone take their content as bible truth, with articles stretched so far from the truth that one quote form a ‘source’ can span into a whole interpreted article of whats-their-names dramatic weight loss or failing marriage.
It is our generation’s interest in reality TV and a cheap 5 minute celebrity shelf-life and as all of this grows we endorse it; the perfurme, the books, the t-shirts, until it is impossible to flick through 1000 Bky channels without a constant hum of our so called ‘reality’ seeping through; supply and demand supply and demand.. Turn on any TV channel and it is guaranteed you’ll find some concept of ‘reality show’ from Tool Academy, Judge Judy, to celebrity love island/jungle/rehab/farm, following people we can laugh at, love, hate, write about. We’ve been doing this for hundreds of years- people in the stocks, public hangings- but internet and television have twisted such concepts into a whole new species; look at TOWIE, Made in Chelsea, Geordie Shore, and the latest Desperate Scousewives (God help us.)
The line between entertainment and reality has bled into one another; I liked the Royal wedding but why has Pippa Middleton’s buttocks become national treasures? I don’t mind Sienna Millers movies but why do I have to know about every male she sleeps with? I like JK Rowlings books, but why were journalists harassing her children? And most importantly, why do the Kardashain clan exist??
Perhaps the most infamous case is the death of Princess Diana, hounded by photographers into a tunnel and a fatal car smash. Churn out those conspiracy theories all you like BUT paparazzi don’t go on the hunt for pictures to frame copies on their walls, they take them because they sell- and who is the highest bidder?? We are. A newspaper is the middle man.
As a society we are each individually to blame for phone hacking- we should accept that it’s us that has turned Sunday night television into something that features ‘celebs’ eating animal anus’s and enduring cockroaches up their noses. Supply and demand supply and demand. It’s an interesting little circle that we have actively chosen to be a part of, like a hamster in a running wheel.
Maybe Gary Speed’s secret will come to light, or maybe there’s no secret at all- but if that headline does arise, read that paper knowing that story cost that man his life. The debate shouldn’t be what did he do, but what did WE do. We are holding the reins; the people, the public, the consumer- imagine the media like an animal that we hold the leash to- we feed it, goad it, poke it with a stick, and then wonder why it turns round and bites a small child. The Leveson enquiry shouldn’t result with a tap on the nose and ‘bad dog!’ to journalists and media giants, but make the owners look at the animal it created. When I say owners, don’t think the Murchochs- they don’t own the media- WE do. We keep the Murcdochs pockets lined- so let’s decide what we line it with.
Don’t endorse bullshit. And bullshit shall not be produced.
#DontEndorseBS
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