18 March, 2009 | Leave a Comment

I was shocked yesterday when I saw this edition of OK! magazine on sale:

Those of you in the States may not know who Jade Goody is – she’s a reality TV star who is terminally ill with cervical cancer, which has spread throughout her body.  The nation has been gripped by her slow ghoulish crawl towards death, much of which has been filmed and photographed for the nation’s entertainment.  She recently married her boyfriend on TV, selling the rights to a TV station and OK! so she can put the money in a trust fund for her sons.  Her chemotherapy was filmed as well.  Only now that she’s so close to death has she stopped being interviewed and filmed. The British media – from the tabloids to the more “respectable” outlets – are covering every aspect of her impending death.  Mind you, before Jade was stricken with cancer, she was vilified as a racist bully, but now she’s a saint. She’s one of those ubiquitous British celebrities who is famous for absolutely nothing, besides being famous.  I know that reality stars gain fame in the U.S. as well, but it’s nothing like it is here.  The fact that Jade is pure white trash and her husband is on parole (and has recently been convicted of another assault) just adds to the fun.

So anyway, back to my original point.  Apparently, OK! magazine is just so excited about Jade Goody’s death that they’ve rushed out this tribute issue, complete with the dates 1981-2009, which makes it seem like Jade Goody is already dead.  I’m sure they’re hoping she’ll die this week, so then they’ll be the first to have their tribute issue on sale.  Like kids at Christmas, they are so excited for her death that they just couldn’t wait any longer. It’s like Jade is a character in a soap opera and her creators have decided to kill her off. The fact that the real Jade is lingering on in her death bed is inconvenient, because the public is thirsty for her death now.  They want an end to the Jade Goody story, even if Jade herself is not yet dead. And since the tabloid and celebrity media created Jade, they have the power to get rid of her whenever they please.

Now that the “character” of Jade Goody is dead, maybe the real Jade will die in peace.

1. Comments RSS

1. Caroline Says:

   March 18th, 2009 at 9:37 pm

   This is very sick. Anglofille, sometimes I do not understand why you are so angry about things but in this case I do understand and you have written about it with a cold, clenched eloquence that conveys the depth of your disgust and despair very effectively.

   I feel so sorry for those poor little boys…

2. Anglofille Says:

   March 18th, 2009 at 10:30 pm

   I just now read an article about this in the Times. It seems a lot of people are outraged, which is not surprising. Now the Press Complaints Commission might investigate it.

3. william Says:

   March 18th, 2009 at 10:32 pm

   tacky, tacky, tacky!

   And here I thought the media in the States was out of control!

   W-

4. Ken Says:

   March 19th, 2009 at 10:57 am

   It is very sick, indeed. This is why the Jade Goody story would make a good comedy.

   The late Paddy Chavefsky would have gone to town with this material.