I don't know maybe I should just stay away from FoxNews. When I hit their website, I tend to see something that gives me sympathy for people I don't care much about, only because the website will make a stupid comment. Case in point: Matthew Perry.

I'm not a big fan of FRIENDS and wasn't a big fan of Matthew Perry. I know enough about the show and of him that he had some drug issues during the show. His weight changed so much his clothes were very baggy on him and there was much speculation for the weight change until he came clean about the drugs. So here's this guy who made millions off the show, who had a serious drug problem and from all accounts has been clean for many years. Yes, something to applaud on the grand, must have someone on a pedestal, but for my life I could care less about the guy. I don't wish him ill will; I just don't care about him.

Well, the FoxNews website had a listing of stars who went from fab to flab. It was written like someone was trying to do their best, snarky British tabloid headline for each picture shown. The candidates for the flab moniker pushed the definition on what is considered flab. In only a few cases, like the famously weight bouncing Kristie Alley, would you consider the people listed as fat, using real world standards. Sure, in the land of sticks and bones, some with a healthy weight might be considered fat, but still the commentaries placed on the pictures which were meant to highlight the supposed weight gain, seemed rude and in some cases cruel.

Like I said, Matthew Perry has had drug problems, lost a lot of weight and now seems like a normal guy with a little bit of a belly. All things considered, a little weight might be good for the guy, but for this article, the small midsection was FAT. There was a picture of Ozzy Osborne, which from the article made it seem he was heading to the pork farm. I looked at the picture and recalled videos of him from the early 80s. In those early videos, a shirtless Ozzy Osborne was a frightening sight and you could plainly see there wasn't a doughnut the guy didn't miss. In the picture FoxNews showed, he was wearing normal clothes and didn't look too much different than he did on his TV show, where he looked 10 times better than he did in his early video days without the shirt. If they had a shirtless picture with flab showing, yeah I would probably say he was fat, but a covered up picture I'm not so sure.

While I can somewhat sympathize with the Perry picture, the cruelest photo and comment had to be about Hillary Duff. Again, I'm talking about someone I don't care a thing about, but even I, if I were an editor, probably wouldn't have included her picture and especially wouldn't have made a comment about her arms being flabby and needing to be photoshopped. I'm sensitive enough to know there are legion of women with self esteem issues. Making fat jokes about someone who is clearly not fat and looked up to, even if you have arguments with is, for so many young girls is a psychic esteem crisis waiting to happen. How many girls, reading that article on their 'hero' might look at themselves and feel if people think she's fat what about me? How many anorexics will be created because of a stupid snarky comment?

While I think people who would base their esteem on what others would say or who would compare themselves to some Hollywood starlet is stupid, to add fuel to the fire is something I wouldn't want to do. There will be people, upon seeing this article, who will starve themselves because of trying to reach the ideal weight.

I didn't want to feel sorry for the stars but I do, because the article doesn't allow for people to change, to grow old, or more to the point, to be normal. The ridicule is the same thing the talk shows thrive off of, wringing their hands with the cruel comments and impossible standards ‘the media’ set for young people. The protesters are the ones throwing the mud in this instance.

 

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FoxNews Gives Trama to People Online for Flab Remarks - May 26, 2009
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