Thursday, December 9, 2010

Re: Willow Palin in Facebook hot water for using gay slurs against schoolmate

Willow Palin is now facing some controversy for using homophobic slurs against a school mate who criticized her moms show "Sarah Palin's Alaska." She supposedly called the boy "so gay" and a "faggot". The gossip website TMZ.com picked up on the meltdown, which has now raised questions about the media spotlight that's so often upon children of political families and about the role of social media in modern-day politics. Feminist website Jezebel.com defended the younger Palins by saying "We have to feel bad for [them]. They didn't ask for their notoriety, and though the financial and publicity benefits are copious, it probably doesn't make up for that glaring spotlight and the fact that they're made to answer for their mom's choices." However, Dallas Lawrence, the managing director of digital public affairs at Burson-Marsteller, strongly disagreed by saying "Sarah Palin opened the door for media scrutiny of her family. You can't ask for anonymity or privacy out of the one side of your mouth while at the same time having a reality show, a book, Fox News appearances and one of your daughters on 'Dancing With the Stars'. She invited this attention and it's ultimately up to her to make sure her family is ready for prime time."

I don't agree with the way Willow handled the situation. Calling someone "so gay" and a "faggot" isn't the way to go. However, Willow is a teenager, and those words tend to be present in many teenagers vocabulary. I think the media made it a bigger deal then it was supposed to be. Yes, she's under constant media attention and should be careful of what she says due to this, but she didn't ask for media attention. Her Mom did.

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