Do Celebrities Deserve Privacy?

Ultimately, celebrities themselves determine their own level of privacy. It often baffles me when people talk about how horrible it is to be followed around by the paparazzi and have no privacy because I think about celebrities we never hear about in the tabloids. And I'm talking about big names like Johnny Depp and Daniel Day Lewis.

It's important to remember that some celebrities are only famous because they are so prominent in our magazines and gossip websites. Lindsay Lohan hasn't done anything remotely praise-worthy perhaps since Mean Girls, yet she is one of the most well known celebrities. It is because of how much she chooses to expose herself to the public. Paris Hilton has never done anything to be famous for. She's famous for being famous. These are the people who are usually complaining about having no privacy.

Do they deserve privacy? It's arguable that they are human and of course they do. It's almost inhumane to be followed around everywhere while they drive around their city. Or to have your car mobbed by photographers every time you stop at a red light. But at the same time, some people will tell you that it is the price to pay for being extremely rich and desired for simply doing their job, like everyone else.

However, I feel like it's up to the celebrity to determine how much privacy they want to have. Some celebrities are just asking for the attention. If you go out with no underwear and flash photographers as you go into the most well known club in Los Angeles, you forfeit your privacy. And those who truly value that, avoid those things. People who make it a point to dine at the Ivy and run around dancing on tables at every hot spot in town have no right to complain about their privacy being infringed.

Some celebrities even take advantage of this. If photographing celebrities was outlawed tomorrow and all the gossip magazines were shut down, there are some people we would never hear about again. Because they have no talent or real job, just a knack for being outrageous at the right place at the right time.

I think everyone deserves privacy if they want it. But usually arguments about this are based on people that pretend to care about their privacy but don't. Actions speak louder than words and in this day and age, candid photos do, too.