National Enquirer's Shameful Cover this Week

[jkmaletic]

Yesterday I was at the check-out aisle of the local grocery store. As I was placing my products on the conveyer belt, I saw Whitney Houston in her coffin on the COVER of the National Enquirer.

Now, I realize that they are known for this kind of crap. But why did they have to put it on the COVER?! Some people, like myself, don't want to see anyone dead, in a casket . I prefer to remember how people looked when they were alive. I avoid "viewings" altogether and I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels this way.

The fact that they put it on the cover offers no warning to those who don't wish to have that image in their heads. Isn't that why TV stations have to warn the public before they show something graphic or sensitive to some viewers? Doesn't the press have some standards to live by? I was unable to find anything like the FCC for the press, unfortunately.

I've already writtten a letter to the N.E., and plan to call them today, for what it's worth. Evidently, they have been taking some heat for this. Their publisher was quoted as saying they stand by their decision because the photo is "beautiful". Maybe it is, but regardless, it did NOT belong on the cover.

What do you guys think?

Jamie

[cliffdweller]

Originally Posted by jkmaletic

Yesterday I was at the check-out aisle of the local grocery store. As I was placing my products on the conveyer belt, I saw Whitney Houston in her coffin on the COVER of the National Enquirer.

Now, I realize that they are known for this kind of crap. But why did they have to put it on the COVER?! Some people, like myself, don't want to see anyone dead, in a casket . I prefer to remember how people looked when they were alive. I avoid "viewings" altogether and I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels this way.

The fact that they put it on the cover offers no warning to those who don't wish to have that image in their heads. Isn't that why TV stations have to warn the public before they show something graphic or sensitive to some viewers? Doesn't the press have some standards to live by? I was unable to find anything like the FCC for the press, unfortunately.

I've already writtten a letter to the N.E., and plan to call them today, for what it's worth. Evidently, they have been taking some heat for this. Their publisher was quoted as saying they stand by their decision because the photo is "beautiful". Maybe it is, but regardless, it did NOT belong on the cover.

What do you guys think?

Jamie

I totally agree. This is bad taste and disrespectful to the dead AND the living (who have it shoved in their faces at the check out line in grocery stores-kinda hard to avoid). The sad thing is, it doesn't surprise me that they've sunk to this level. Can't expect much from them.

[Richard B]

As a kid, I remember when Elvis died, his coffin pic was everywhere, not just the Enquirer.
I don't think it's a big deal, people die. Hopefully it gives all the fans closure, like a funeral and a last goodbye generally does.

Honestly, I found the National Enquirer's pics of her drug bathroom several years ago far more disturbing and in poor taste.

[vivfox]

I was thinking about this a lot yesterday. I was curious to see the photo and then questioned myself as to why I wanted to see it when I avoid wakes for the very reason of not wanting to view a deceased body. She looked like she was sleeping, not dead. I thought it would be more tactful if it were on page 3 or somewhere other than the cover. Then I thought of the loser family or friend who took the photo and sold it to the Enquirer. That's low.

[Macfanforever]

These rags have no class.Including tv shows that do the same crap.They've been sued 100 times for the trash they print.

[Kena]

Originally Posted by vivfox

I was thinking about this a lot yesterday. I was curious to see the photo and then questioned myself as to why I wanted to see it when I avoid wakes for the very reason of not wanting to view a deceased body. She looked like she was sleeping, not dead. I thought it would be more tactful if it were on page 3 or somewhere other than the cover. Then I thought of the loser family or friend who took the photo and sold it to the Enquirer. That's low.

I haven't seen the photo yet but I am going to look it up in a few minutes. I avoid wakes also because dead bodies freak me out. I once attended a funeral for a young child and she looked like a baby doll laying in the casket. To me, it wasn't really her, just the shell of her body. Looking at a picture is different... cause you're not actually in the room with the body.

Yeah I wonder about who took the picture and how much they got paid for it, which probably wasn't a lot.

[HejiraNYC]

Originally Posted by Richard B

As a kid, I remember when Elvis died, his coffin pic was everywhere, not just the Enquirer.
I don't think it's a big deal, people die. Hopefully it gives all the fans closure, like a funeral and a last goodbye generally does.

Honestly, I found the National Enquirer's pics of her drug bathroom several years ago far more disturbing and in poor taste.

This. And I also remember seeing in the news the miles-long lines that formed so that people could actually view Elvis's body in person. Now that's morbid.

In a way, I think the National Enquirer is like the smartest kid in the room that everyone bullies. Time after time, the NE has been spot-on in their coverage of emerging major news events, yet they are ridiculed as being a tabloid that simply makes up all of their stories. Accordingly, despite their oft-times better coverage of the news, they will act out in an over-the-top manner, if for no other reason than the fact that it's expected of them. The fact remains that, if it wasn't for publications like the NE and other so-called "tabloids," the world at large would not have known about Whitney's problems. And despite Whitney's repeated denials of her troubles, the NE continued to uncover her struggle, time after time. Sure, it's all none of their business and it's really not any of our business either. But when a person chooses to have a public life, a certain level of scrutiny is all but inevitable. People generally do not take kindly to hypocrites, and time after time, the NE sought to reveal the unsavory details that belied her carefully manicured public persona, as if to impart a lesson about the perils of accepting things (and people) at face value. Drug and alcohol addiction is a very serious and ubiquitous, yet hidden thing that more people should be discussing out in the open. The NE was consistent and correct in its coverage of Whitney all along, yet nobody is willing to admit it.

So what was the point of putting Whitney's coffin on the cover? Sure, they wanted to sell some paper. But the larger subtext for me seems to be: "Told ya so."