Michael Parkinson seems to be the sole public figure who has the moral courage to speak about Jade Goody as she was. The 'lad from Barnsley' had clearly had his fill of the intense media hypocrisy over the recent veneration of Ms Goody. "Her death is as sad as the death of any young person, but it’s not the passing of a martyr or a saint, or, God help us, Princess Di," said Mike.
By stating this simple truism guarantees him some highly negative press - I am sure he can take it. But Parky had a wider point to make by describing the tabloids' elevation of a once vilified non-entity as, "all that’s paltry and wretched about Britain today”.
I saw the Observer's take on the funeral last Saturday and it read like a pretty well-written Private Eye sketch. Did Max Clifford really describe it as a "perfect funeral?" Did legions of fans wear the Goody perfume as their own personal tribute? Did the floral tributes include the words "Minging" and "East Angular"? Did the funeral director (http://www.albins.co.uk/) start selling Jade Memorial candles? Did her tagged husband have to back home by 7 because of his recent conviction for assault?
All true, I'm afraid.
Tabloid editors, helped by publicists such as Max Clifford, can now create a parallel reality where a person's worth is to be judged exclusively on their level of fame. No-one now dares repeat the bullying racism Jade dished out on Big Brother to Shilpa Shetty.
It certainly feels like a new low for tabloid journalism. OK magazine cannot be beaten for most ludicrous exaggeration of the impact of Jade's death, "A nation mourns its brightest star." And the Sun's plea for the family to left alone was pure double-think. The media backlash against Parkinson for speaking his mind promises to be equally absurd. More evidence, as if it were needed, that we live in a post-ironic age.
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