Page 344 - Battleground The Media Volume 1 and 2

Paparazz and Photograph c Eth cs |

almost anything to get the shot. Paparazzi stake out events and locations for
days at a time, they follow, and sometimes stalk, stars and celebrities to get the
unusual picture able to command a high price. Those are the ones used to sell
tabloid papers and tease TV audiences to stay tuned through the commercial
break. Paparazzi bear an enormous cultural burden; they are under pressure to
record the most sensational situations, the most private celebrity moments, and
many times the most unflattering poses, for these are the ones that most interest
the public and please the editors. Yet they are often reviled by the same culture
they try to please by filling a quite evident demand. They are accused of violat-
ing the privacy of public figures and are sometime sued and even attacked by
those they try to capture visually. An outraged Alec Baldwin approached the
vehicle and started swinging at the photographer in front of his house trying to
get pictures of his wife Kim Basinger and their newborn baby. Analysts attempt
to account for this intrusive aspect of celebrity culture; some blame the sensa-
tional media, others the spoiled celebrities and ruthless photographers, while
still other lay the ultimate blame at the feet of the public and its endless desire
for titillating celebrity gossip.
It is most likely a combination of these factors, and most importantly the dy-
namics of the interaction between the culture of celebrity, and media practices.
As the most profitable, least difficult entertainment content, mainstream media
talk endlessly about the stars, who at the same time are promoting the mov-
ies, TV shows, albums, and products tied to cross-promotional deal and cor-
porate synergy. In addition, psychologists of media culture have identified the
“para-social interactions” that certain viewers experience with media celebrities.

CaMeron diaz and the PaParazzo

On November 10, 2004, the New York Post published a story about the actor Cameron
Diaz titled, “Cameron ‘Snaps.’ ” Most of the celebrity news piece consisted of two dramatic
photos. The larger image, taking two-thirds of the page, show Diaz physically attacking a
21 year-old “paparazzo” named Saul Lazo. She is shown swinging and grabbing the photog-
rapher’s camera in a scuffle that took place when Diaz and Justin Timberlake were leaving
a Hollywood hotel. The smaller inset photo pictures a distressed-looking Lazo grabbing
Diaz from behind in an attempt to retrieve his expensive camera. Readers are informed that
Diaz, 5’9”, 117 pounds, is a fitness freak who is trained in the martial arts. Timberlake also
intervened, trying to stop the second photographer, Jose Gonzalez, from taking pictures of
the “wild melee.”
Timberlake evidentially failed, and the two photographs were published in the Post as
“exclusive photos from U.S. Weekly” credited to Fame Pictures. Diaz and Timberlake report-
edly kept the pricey gear. The incident illustrates the pressures for exclusive, exciting, and
candid images, even as they are taken at increasing risk to photographers themselves for the
commercial benefit of media owners. Such candid shots please readers eager to gaze into
the private lives of celebrities, even as it angers those very “celebs” caught on camera.