the media is shit #45298

[deathboy]

And so, the mawkish canonisation of a dead gay dude begins.

It's kind of funny watching them wrestle against the fact that, as stars go, he was a relatively unremarkable, replacable boyband muppet. So, now he's being cast as a hero for being the first boyband member to come out. Except he didn't want to come out, a newspaper threatened to out him, so he collaborated, so they'd have some control over the story.

Surely the point here is that while he had any choice in it, he chose to remain in the closet? So, he's not in any way the hero they're painting him as. He was just some guy trying to keep his head down and get on with his shit. Fair play and all, but he broke no boundaries by choice.

And wait a moment, but seriously, how fucking limp is this accolade anyway? First member of a boyband to come out? I wasn't aware the categories had become so stratified... next, we'll honour the first member of a boyband (backing and choreography) to come out while wearing an orange kilt (england and northern ireland).

I look forward to being horrified at the death of North East London's first openly bisexual one-legged TV presenter (he dies in a yachting accident, btw). It was heart-breaking! He broke so many boundaries *sniff* - what a fighter! He was a symbol for young monopedal bisexuals everywhere!

Yep. Pushed gay rights forward light-years, I reckon.

Comments

[hamsterhotep.livejournal.com]

Of course, it's typical for my brain to take this a little further. I can see Z-list wannabes mutilating themselves to become the first openly bisexual zoophilic one-legged TV presenter in question.

I hope Mr Twinkles is okay.

[selectnone.livejournal.com]

I can see Z-list wannabes mutilating themselves to become the first openly bisexual zoophilic one-legged TV presenter in question

Well at least they died doing what they loved: televised autoamputation, while up to the hilt in a hermaphrolabradoodle

[deathboy.livejournal.com]

Well at least they died doing what they loved: televised autoamputation, while up to the hilt in a hermaphrolabradoodle

I love you, dude.

I also now wish to own a hermaphrolabradoodle.

[sweetdirtygurl.livejournal.com]

Apparently its a huge huge tragedy for Irish music and culture O_o

[lineoutrecords.livejournal.com]

Isn't it a bigger tragedy for Irish music and culture the belief that this is a tragedy for Irish music and culture.

My brain just imploded. It's only monday :(

[smarriveurr.livejournal.com]

This is the system now. Most of the barriers have been broken, so the media want to create new barriers for people to break.

Trust me, I expect to spend the rest of my life watching American TV give me stories on "the first woman X from Y state!" "the first African-American X from Y state!" "the first Latino X from Y state" "the first openly gay X from Y state" and, eventually, "the first lesbian half-black half-latina woman X from Y state!"

That's how news is packaged now.

[darkcryst.livejournal.com]

Yeah, agreed. He wasn't a hero - he was a milestone.

[deathboy.livejournal.com]

well put!

[darkcryst.livejournal.com]

thanks ;)

Celebrities dying always brings out the "they were so special and unique" type of mourning. They weren't - every celeb I've met has been the most normal person ever. What they did however touches some people in an emotional way, bit it music, acting, art, being incredible clever at science, etc.

We want to rationalize their achievements because we didn't do those things. There are very few people out there who are unique and c-list boy band memebers certainly don't qualify, but we feel like we knew him - just a little bit - so the empathic grief at anothers death manifests itself in odd ways.

He'll be remembered, but probably not for who he was, but what he represented to some people.