In Promoting Ashley Dupre, New York Post Trashes Traditional Values

Ex-prostitute-cum-celebrity Ashley Dupre has recently become the darling of the New York Post. It is a supremely sad commentary on the current state of American culture.

Ashley Dupre was the Emperor's Club prostitute who serviced former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer, infamously known as "Client 9." According to reports, the Emperor's Club employed prostitutes hired at between $1,000 and $5,500 an hour. The 2008 scandal forced Spitzer from office and spawned several federal criminal investigations.

The New York Post has recently been running a series of articles promoting Ashley Dupre. The Post has also been promoting Ms. Dupre's songs on its Web site. In a September 3, 2009 article, The Post reproduced large sections of a blog entry Ms. Dupre published on Global Grind, a Web site run by hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons.

In her September 2, 2009 Global Grind entry, the intellectually challenged Ms. Dupre rants against women in "dishonest relationships." In the entry, she suggests that her life as a prostitute was morally superior to those of women in loveless entanglements. Dupre is particularly disdainful of women who stay married for the sake of their children and single women who date men for their money.

There is no equivalence whatsoever between a prostitute and an ordinary woman in a loveless relationship.

Prostitution is illegal in most American jurisdictions, including New York State. Prostitutes repeatedly sell their bodies for a fee, are at elevated risk for venereal disease, and are often managed by gangsters.

By contrast, a loveless relationship between consenting adults sans prostitution is perfectly legal. A woman who stays married to spare her children the trauma of divorce should be admired, not disdained.

While it is not a course of action I would necessarily recommend, remaining married for the sake of children can produce happier childhoods. As a product of divorce, I can personally attest to the fact that growing up with a single father is no picnic, even though I had an excellent relationship with him.

Women who date men for their money could be gold diggers, but they could also just be ladies looking for security and stability in their lives. Men with good jobs and money are usually more reliable partners. And women who choose such men, for whatever reason, are certainly not prostitutes.

When you're in your in your twenties, it might be cool to live with a starving artist, but mature people generally crave stability. It's a prudence thing.

In a September 14, 2009 article, The New York Post reports that Ashley Dupre greatly admires Madonna. How appropriate!

Most dismaying about its shameless promotion of Ashley Dupre is that The New York Post is a conservative newspaper. Conservatives are supposed to promote traditional values. Glorifying prostitution is not a traditional value. Apparently, hyping prostitution to increase circulation is more important to The Post than doing what's right.

The New York Post has also been running a series of articles about a conservative videographer and a young woman who posed as pimp and prostitute in order to expose ACORN's suborning tax evasion in several major American cities. ACORN, which stands for Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, has ties to President Obama and received millions in federal funds. ACORN is a criminal enterprise that should be shut down, and The Post and others should be commended for covering this story.

That said, it is extremely hypocritical of The Post to condemn ACORN's coddling of prostitution while promoting a notorious ex-prostitute. The only reason Ashley Dupre isn't still turning tricks at the Emperor's Club is that she got caught.

I am a political independent. The New York Post was my favorite newspaper, but that is no longer true.