Privacy Please

The announcement of Bristol Palin's pregnancy drew quite a stir from the media prior to the Republican National Convention held in Minnesota last week. Rumors and erroneous reports began to seep towards the nation's airwaves, while the Palin family and party advisers scrambled to clarify the details of the pregnancy. As the whole situation continued to unfold last week, I couldn't help but wonder about the loss of privacy in our nation.

The 24 hour, 7 days a week news cycle churns out opinion and information at a blistering rate. No one is really immune to it's scope; just ask Levi Johnston. I bet he never dreamed that he'd go from high school hockey player to being on the stage at the Republican National Convention. By now, his name has been mentioned thousands of times on the air, in print or in online publications. And to think people around the nation will know him not for his slap shot, or thunderous checks, but as the guy who got a vice presidential candidate's daughter pregnant. I must say it seems just a tad unfair. I'm not trying to rationalize or make light of his and Bristol's decision, but it's amazing to see how sometimes the consequences of our actions shine like a full moon on a cloudless night.

I found part the Palin family's statement regarding the pregnancy pretty interesting, "Bristol and the young man she will marry are going to realize very quickly the difficulties of raising a child, which is why they have the love and support of our entire family. We ask the media to respect our daughter and Levi's privacy as has always been the tradition of children of candidates".

It just seems like this story has been the great gossip at this juncture in election campaign. And instead of the whispers, stares and finger-pointing that happen in smaller social circles around the country, this situation exploded into a gossip that the whole nation could take part in. It's not just that they are a young couple with a child on the way, but they are a young couple with a budding pregnancy in the midst of a presidential election. Any privacy, decency and accuracy that the media, bloggers or other personalities may show would go right out the window.

For the youtube, myspace and facebook generation (of which I am a part); this should be a tale of caution. Even though we may long to pad the number of views on our web page, posts on our blogs or acceptance of friend requests, we may be in turn setting ourselves up to be the next Levi Johnston.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Have we lost privacy in our nation? Do we shoulder some of the blame in that loss of privacy? Is the media play the hero or villain when reporting such stories and issues?

Jonathan