Interesting article in relation to the media pile-on of Elle Macpherson earlier this week. According to the authors, her decision to avoid chemotherapy may have been completely normal and sensible given her circumstances. We don’t actually know because no one from the ABC or any other outlet bothered to check before running their stories citing her former relationship with an anti-vaxxer, or claiming that she ignored centuries of medical advice. The authors conclude that Australians have missed a great opportunity here to discuss the current state of non-invasive breast cancer research and treatment.
I mean…how much of the story are we really entitled to when it comes to someone’s personal medical situation and surrounding decisions? I’d say none of it.
Ordinarily I’d agree, but remember that she is the one bringing her cancer story to the public’s attention through the publication of her new book, its associated publicity interviews (such as the one in the Women’s Weekly which started this controversy) and her “wellness” company WelleCo. So it’s not really a case of the media delving into a celebrity’s private life uninvited - the celebrity literally came to them and divulged all of this information. I think the scepticism is warranted but I also think if media coverage of an individual is going to be this critical then it needs to be well researched and the individual in question needs to be given the opportunity to correct any misconceptions beforehand.