For decades, media has treated “outing” — reporting that a person is lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender — as taboo, which is perhaps remarkable when almost every other aspect of celebrities’ lives is fair game for tabloids. Citing a fear of invading privacy — or potential lawsuits — most reporters choose not to disclose the sexual orientation of celebrities they know to be gay. Or, as in the above example, the language will be coded. In this cautious approach, it remains the responsibility of a public figure to make a public statement about being LGBT, either through a press conference, speech, or interview, in order to officially be considered out, and for a “gal pal” to graduate to “girlfriend.” Until then, the media will apply a different standard of scrutiny to them than to their straight peers.
One of the things that’s always fascinated me about our collective national obsession with celebrity is the degree of attention we afford to who said celebrity is sleeping with. We mere mortals expect our privacy to be respected, yet that’s the courtesy we’re least willing to extend to celebrities. It seems that the very fact that one is a public figure- whether it be politics, sports, music, or acting- makes one’s sex life an open book. Of course, many celebrities recognize the game and play it to their advantage (Leonardo di Caprio, anyone?), so it’s not as if potential victimization is always and consistently an issue. That said, how is it that Joe Sixpack could be buggering goats and no one is likely to care…but Kristen Stewart cozies up to another woman and the paparazzi is all over the “story?” In what rational world is that even newsworthy?
The idea of “outing” someone as gay when they may or may not wish it to be public knowledge has been a matter of debate within the LGBT community for some years. Once upon a time (the mid-20th century), the privacy of celebrities was protected and their sexual proclivities kept out of the public eye. Now, with outlets like TMZ seemingly focused exclusively on the lives of celebrities, there’s a lucrative market for information of a far more prurient nature. Today there are no boundaries, no place where privacy is respected and celebrities are granted the right and ability to enjoy and express their sexuality out of the spotlight.
Worse, there are those who believe that those in the public eye who happen to be gay but don’t necessarily wish to go public deserve to be outed. Those who hold to this belief feel strongly that gay celebrities are “traitors to the cause” if they’re not open about their sexuality. The fact that a perceived lack of openness may simply be a desire for privacy and not necessarily cowardice seems to matter not; anyone who is gay is expected to be out and proud, and if they can’t do it for themselves, there are those ready, willing, and able to do it to/for them.
I’m not certain when the private lives of public individuals became fodder for advancing political agendas or selling advertising, but today’s media is obsessed with their sex lives. I’m not about to argue that public discussions of sexuality are a bad thing, but it would seem a matter of basic decency to not involve those who don’t wish to become part of the conversation. It seems that if one is a public figure, one is assumed to have foregone any right to or expectation of privacy; ergo, all aspects of their lives are, and should be, open to public examination. If you’re a private person like myself, that probably sounds like your idea of Hell…and you probably find yourself wondering why achieving success should mean your private life is ipso facto should be deemed public property.
Openness and honesty is a good thing…but forcing that standard upon someone who may be unready and/or unwilling to meet that expectation in the way a media outlet believes they should is as wrong as it is unfair. Fame and fortune shouldn’t come with the implied understanding that in order to be successful, one must forfeit any right or claim to privacy. We’ve become a nation of busybodies who believe the private lives of celebrities to be far more interesting and exciting than their own. How sad.
