Grief porn: Difference between revisions
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'''Grief porn''' is a [[pejorative]], [[neologism|neologistic]] expression often used to describe a hyper-attention, intrusive [[Voyeurism|voyeurism]] and "gratuitous indulgence of tangential association with tragedy". It is usually used to describe the behavior of the news media in the wake of a tragedy. It is distinctly different from Schadenfreude in that it describes a forced or artificial commiseration in response to unfortunate events, whereas the latter refers to a joy at the misfortune of others. Commentators have noted that the distinction can be blurred by the 24-hour news cycle and its need to produce news stories. {{Fact|date=June 2009}} |
'''Grief porn''' is a [[pejorative]], [[neologism|neologistic]] expression often used to describe a hyper-attention, intrusive [[Voyeurism|voyeurism]] and "gratuitous indulgence of tangential association with tragedy".<ref name=OB>{{cite web | title=Boo hoo, said the crocodile | archivedate=2008-01-03| archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20080103225710/http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/observer/archives/2005/04/07/boo_hoo_said_th.html|url=http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/observer/archives/2005/04/07/boo_hoo_said_th.html | work=ObserverBlog | publisher=The Guardian | date= | accessdate=2009-06-02}}</ref> It is usually used to describe the behavior of the news media in the wake of a tragedy. It is distinctly different from Schadenfreude in that it describes a forced or artificial commiseration in response to unfortunate events, whereas the latter refers to a joy at the misfortune of others. Commentators have noted that the distinction can be blurred by the 24-hour news cycle and its need to produce news stories. {{Fact|date=June 2009}} |
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== Definition == |
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Robert Yates, assistant editor for the [[The Observer]], used the term in a news conference on April 7, 2005, describing it as "Gratification derived from a tenuous connection to the misfortunes of others; the gratuitous indulgence of tangential association with tragedy; getting off on really bad news". Yates was remarking on the phenomenon he first noticed following the death of [[Diana, Princess of Wales|Princess Diana]] and the media frenzy that occurred afterwards. He reportably observed an increase in activity during times of national mourning and international disaster, and commented dryly that it primarily affects people working in media.<ref name="OB" /> |
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Carol Sarler, speaking as a guest columnist for [[The Times|''The Times'']], notes that "this new and peculiar pornography of grief" is sometimes called a 'tribute', "the cruder truth is that ersatz grief is now the new pornography; like the worst of hard-core, it is stimulus by proxy, voyeuristically piggy-backing upon that which might otherwise be deemed personal and private, for no better reason than frisson and the quickening of an otherwise jaded pulse.<ref name="NewType">{{cite web | author=Carol Sarler | title=This new and peculiar pornography of grief | url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article2402693.ece | work=Comment | publisher=TimesOnline | date=7 September, 2007 | accessdate=2009-06-02}}</ref> |
Carol Sarler, speaking as a guest columnist for [[The Times|''The Times'']], notes that "this new and peculiar pornography of grief" is sometimes called a 'tribute', "the cruder truth is that ersatz grief is now the new pornography; like the worst of hard-core, it is stimulus by proxy, voyeuristically piggy-backing upon that which might otherwise be deemed personal and private, for no better reason than frisson and the quickening of an otherwise jaded pulse.<ref name="NewType">{{cite web | author=Carol Sarler | title=This new and peculiar pornography of grief | url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article2402693.ece | work=Comment | publisher=TimesOnline | date=7 September, 2007 | accessdate=2009-06-02}}</ref> |
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Revision as of 00:32, 30 June 2009
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Template:Rescue Grief porn is a pejorative, neologistic expression often used to describe a hyper-attention, intrusive voyeurism and "gratuitous indulgence of tangential association with tragedy".[1] It is usually used to describe the behavior of the news media in the wake of a tragedy. It is distinctly different from Schadenfreude in that it describes a forced or artificial commiseration in response to unfortunate events, whereas the latter refers to a joy at the misfortune of others. Commentators have noted that the distinction can be blurred by the 24-hour news cycle and its need to produce news stories. [citation needed]
Definition
Robert Yates, assistant editor for the The Observer, used the term in a news conference on April 7, 2005, describing it as "Gratification derived from a tenuous connection to the misfortunes of others; the gratuitous indulgence of tangential association with tragedy; getting off on really bad news". Yates was remarking on the phenomenon he first noticed following the death of Princess Diana and the media frenzy that occurred afterwards. He reportably observed an increase in activity during times of national mourning and international disaster, and commented dryly that it primarily affects people working in media.[1]
Carol Sarler, speaking as a guest columnist for The Times, notes that "this new and peculiar pornography of grief" is sometimes called a 'tribute', "the cruder truth is that ersatz grief is now the new pornography; like the worst of hard-core, it is stimulus by proxy, voyeuristically piggy-backing upon that which might otherwise be deemed personal and private, for no better reason than frisson and the quickening of an otherwise jaded pulse.[2]
The Times' Daniel Finkelstein, defines the term as "a rather tasteless fascination with other people's disasters and a sentimentalism that is out of place"[3], but considers it misapplied at times. Using the example of the Madeleine McCann a four-year-old child who went missing while on holiday with her parents, Finkelstein theorizes that "we don't follow the McCann case because we are grief junkies. Most of us follow it because we fancy ourselves as (Inspector) Morse.[3]
See also
- Advocacy journalism
- Citizen journalism
- History of Journalism
- Misery lit
- Objectivity (journalism)
- Parachute journalism
- Yellow journalism
References
- ^ a b "Boo hoo, said the crocodile". ObserverBlog. The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2008-01-03. Retrieved 2009-06-02.
- ^ Carol Sarler (7 September, 2007). "This new and peculiar pornography of grief". Comment. TimesOnline. Retrieved 2009-06-02.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ a b Daniel Finkelstein. "Can you solve the Madeleine McCann case?". Comment Central. Times Onlie. Retrieved 2009-06-02.
- Hipo Flix review of Moonlight Mile which uses the phrase
- Use of the phrase in Ten Little Indians
- Use of the phrase in 9/11 Culture
- Use of the phrase in Understanding Sherman Alexie