Opinion: In today’s pages: Cheney, Farrah, and the FCC
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Documentary producer Craig J. Nevius thinks tabloids have finally gone to far when they try to violate celebs’ medical privacy:
The National Enquirer proudly proclaimed a worldwide exclusive on its website on May 16, 2007: ‘Farrah’s Cancer Is Back!’ (Please note the excitement and enthusiasm indicated by the exclamation point.) Adjacent to this attention-grabbing headline was an advertisement offering this inducement in bold, colorful type: ‘GOT GOSSIP? WE’LL PAY BIG BUCKS.’ Just 48 hours earlier, actress Farrah Fawcett had received the devastating diagnosis from her doctors at UCLA Medical Center. The Enquirer’s story ran before she was able to tell her son or her closest friends about the recurrence.
Columnist Gregory Rodriguez dissects Vice President Dick Cheney’s West Virginian incest insult. Hastings College of the Law professor George Bisharat denounces a new neoconservative term to describe the actions of Iran: ‘national suicide.’
The editorial board urges the U.S. to pursue food diplomacy, and examines the FCC’s plan to provide free Internet for all. (The catch? It’s slow and porn-free.)
On the letters page, readers discuss the editorial board’s ‘Lakers love’ piece. See why Santa Cruz’ Mike Futch says, ‘I found your editorial strange and bizarre for a hometown newspaper. I couldn’t tell if you were praising the Lakers or damning them.’
*Illustration by David Suter.