When will we finally leave Britney Spears alone?
Britney Spears is hardly ever the one who benefits from the attention thrust upon her. Who does?
Aux Features Britney Spears
Britney Spears is not the subject of an impending intervention, according to Britney Spears. The rumor sprang from (who’d’ve thought) TMZ, which claimed her family (this time husband Sam Asghari, not her parents) are afraid for her life, that she’s been taking some unnamed medications and “flying off the handle.” An intervention was planned and called off; Spears instead met with a doctor and it “went well.”
Except the tabloid report isn’t true, according to the woman herself. “It makes me sick to my stomach that it’s even legal for people to make up stories that I almost died … I mean at some point enough is enough !!!” Spears posted on her Instagram. “I’m probably going to have to stop posting on Instagram because even though I enjoy doing it, there’s obviously a lot of people who don’t wish me well !!! I’m honestly not surprised at all. … Again doing the best I can !!!”
She concluded on a pertinent reminder: “Again, the conservatorship has been over for almost a year … No folks, it’s not 2007 … it’s 2023 and I’m making my first homemade lasagna at home !!! I finally got my fireplace to work in my living room !!! As my hubby says it best: don’t believe everything you read !!! All that love right back at ya !!!”
It’s no wonder that Spears needs to point out that we are no longer in the aughts; the playbook is the same. Maybe the language has evolved—we’ll call it a “mental health crisis” instead of “going crazy”—but the exploitation of a famous woman’s wellbeing is all too familiar. The fact of the matter is that Britney-in-crisis is good for business. It was good for Jamie Spears, who used his 25-year-old daughter’s troubles to assume vampiric control over her personal and professional life. And it was certainly good for the tabloids, which have essentially spun the Britney beat into its own lucrative industry.
Hardly any media outlet is totally exempt from this implication, but perhaps none is more complicit in Spears’ exploitation than Harvey Levin’s TMZ. “Britney is gold. She is crack to our readers. Her life is a complete train wreck, and I thank God for her every day,” Levin said in 2006 (via The New York Times). “Britney is Old Faithful” for luring in traffic, he shared in 2007, morbidly adding that, love her or hate her, “everybody wonders how it’s going to end.” Except it never has ended, and Levin and his company have continued to make money off of Spears’ struggles for nearly two decades. Some fans have even speculated that TMZ has colluded with the pop star’s family, mutually assuring and exacerbating an existing issue. All this to say, when stories begin circulating about Spears’ mental health (particularly based on suspicious anonymous sources), it’s worth asking: Who benefits from this?
Of course, the gossip rags aren’t the only party to blame for continuing to cash in on the Spears train. The New York Times, several notches up from TMZ on the journalistic respectability scale, attempted to examine the media’s exploitation of the star, but for Spears herself, the call may as well have been coming from inside the house. In the wake of the Framing Britney Spears documentary, she posted that she hadn’t watched it in full but nevertheless “cried for two weeks” over it. “I have been exposed my whole life performing in front of people,” she wrote. “It takes a lot of strength to TRUST the universe with your real vulnerability cause I’ve always been so judged… insulted… and embarrassed by the media… and I still am till this day.”
Even her loyal fans bear some fault for the singer’s current predicament. While the #FreeBritney movement may have helped end the conservatorship, supposedly well-meaning fans have now taken a paternalistic, overzealous interest in her welfare. “I love and adore my fans but this time things went a little too far and my privacy was invaded,” Spears posted to social media last month after police visited her home in a welfare check reportedly called in by fans. Law enforcement “quickly realized there was no issue and left immediately,” but the incident left her feeling that she was “being gaslit and bullied once the incident made it to the news and being portrayed once again in a poor and unfair light by the media.” She concluded the message with a request for privacy, but a source told BuzzFeed News that these welfare checks are being called by fans “fairly often.”
Spears can’t enjoy the privacy of her own home without fans (see also: total strangers) violating her peace. She can’t go out in public without the expectation of someone filming her and selling the footage to a tabloid to portray her in the worst possible light. A People source, picking up on TMZ’s story, voiced reasons for the intervention that include her being “increasingly combative” and that she “has a lot of anger.” If that’s true—and it’s a big if, coming from another anonymous tabloid source—could anyone blame her? The conservatorship may be over, but the unceasing, invasive attention of the world makes it so that Spears’ life still isn’t her own.
Spears said, in her 2021 court testimony, that she no longer trusts people after what she’s been through with her conservatorship. People, in general, haven’t done much to regain her trust. This is someone who takes pleasure in making lasagna (her first ever!) and getting her fireplace fixed, posting stream-of-consciousness reflections on her social media, and sharing videos of herself dancing. She no longer seems interested in the business of Britney Spears, yet the public won’t let go. Will we ever be able to view her as a person—with respect for her privacy, her boundaries, and even her very reasonable anger—rather than a product? Will there ever be a day when we actually, finally, leave Britney alone?
57 Comments
Not today.
No offense, when Spears was “freed” and went on her revenge media tour to celebrate, you didn’t have to be a practicing therapist to see that a relapse was going to happen in short order. An infrastructure of people telling her that none of her problems are her fault isn’t helping.
So maybe stop doing these pieces?
“When Will WE Finally Leave Britney Spears Alone?”I’m pretty sure articles like this are the only reason why most of us these days are even reminded of her existence.
This right here. I never think about Britney Spears until I read an article like this.It’s the all encompassing we, when they should instead say “why don’t tabloids, blogs, and news agencies leave Britney alone”?
I was leaving Britney alone before it was cool
I still listen to her music because girly has some bops, so she still exists. But yah, Britney at this time seems to want to keep her fandom limited to her social media posts, and that should be enough for people.
“Become the solution, not the problem.”
I’m pretty sure that people being obsessed with celebrities is a part of humanity that’s existed since we’ve been human.
“Why people not leave Kronk alone. Kronk kill biggest mammoth one time many moons ago and now everyone stand outside Kronk’s cave asking “Where is Kronk?” Kronk just want peace!”
“Breaking news: Kronk spotted with steaming hot hunk … of bear meat.”
Not soon enough.
What does this sentence mean?“The New York Times, several notches up from TMZ on the journalistic respectability scale, attempted to examine the media’s exploitation of the star, but for Spears herself, the call may as well have been coming from inside the house.”Spears often has not been treated fairly by the media, but the idea that we should be angry about any attention she received — accurate articles about her, people taking her photo when she is in public, etc. — is nuts. So is the idea that Spears “hardly ever” benefits from the attention “thrust upon her.” Spears in a rich, world famous pop star, and has been for decades. That’s a benefit — she has something lots of people would love to have.
God you’re the worst
police visited her home in a welfare check reportedly called in by fansIs the concerntroll version of SWATing?
So literally anyone can call for a wellness check on any total stranger?
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ That’s what this article makes it sound like.
(Psst, yes it is true, but probably best not to advertise that fact…)But seriously, usually the responder will want some specific information and some verification that you actually know the person or have real first-hand knowledge that raises concern
Still sounds easy enough to fuck with.
It is and it’s also almost always the wrong thing to do in many situations. The police are not social workers, trained therapists or EMTs. This is what people do not understand when people say “defund the police”. It’s not that many believe we don’t need any sort of law enforcement, it’s that much of the stuff that the police are called for do not require a trained(in many cases not well) enforcer with a gun. If cities and states hired people better trained to do things like wellness checks we’d need less police. But the only way to get that money to hire those people is to take it from the police who are already over spending it in shit like “riot control” vehicles.
The riot tanks do look pretty bad-ass on the tee-vee though, don’t they?
The New York Times, several notches up from TMZ on the journalistic respectability scale…Not by much. Whether it’s Trump, bigots, terrorist, Nazis, or some detached pasty boomer dickbags at an Ohio dinner falsely portraited as “regular Americans,” the Old Gray Lady has spent the last few decades peddling political bothsidesism, propping and normalizing fascist assholes in the process.At least everyone knows TMZ is just a sleazy tabloid. The NYT is far more problematic.
She ain’t what she used to be
Oh FFS. There is no question that the NYT is not in favor of Trump, Neonazis, or Republicans in general. Every day there are articles in it to that effect. But anytime they suggest that these people with views that they disagree with might actually be, you know, actual people which maybe it is worth understanding as to why they got to where they are rather than just being cartoonish villains out of a Marvel movie a tiny fraction of the Left loses its shit. They don’t get that demonizing their opponents doesn’t work.
Oh FFS. There is no question that the NYT is not in favor of Trump, Neonazis, or Republicans in general.
Then you obviously haven’t read the editorial section.
Are you maybe confusing editorials with op-eds? The whole point of an op-ed is it isn’t the editorial position.
What does “work” mean here? Maybe we should demonize Trump Republicans because it’s true, and the truth has its own value.
I feel like this article could really have used an answer to the question. When will you?
“When Will WE Finally Leave Britney Spears Alone?”
I dunno. Is Tuesday good with everyone? I’ll check my calendar to make sure
“Why won’t people leave me alone?” asks famous person who continues to use publicly available social media whose ONLY PURPOSE IS TO NOT BE LEFT THE FUCK ALONE.Sometimes physician needs to heal thy fucking self. And I’m sick of reading about the privacy rights of people on platforms that are BY DEFINITION not private. We’re not talking about some “blame the victim” situation either. Instagram is expressly attention seeking. And she could reject any follower if she didn’t like their behavior.This is not on media or her fans. This is on her for continuing to engage. Leave her alone? Sure! When she leaves the public alone.
you’re right. posting on Instagram is like saying, “EVERYBODY SEND THE COPS TO MY HOUSE EVERY DAY”oh no wait you’re a fucking idiot
I mean, yes and also no! Some people reach a level of fame where the choice is not “people paying attention to me” or “people ignoring me” but rather “the media creating/profiting-from my identity” or “me having a role in how I am perceived” (see also Prince Harry and Princess Meghan). Look at Marylyn Monroe and Alexander Hamilton. They are long dead but people are still defining them. The disturbing thing about Ms. Spears is that she seems to have no idea of how to present herself to the world, probably due to the fact that she was controlled by others during her formative years (teens and twenties) when most people learn to cook, operate appliances and develop a social identity. In this respect she is similar to people who were addicted to drugs during their teenage years because she has skipped an important developmental step and it is hard to go back when all of your peers are dealing with completely different issues.
And if we were talking strictly about paparazzi invading her privacy I would agree. But we’re talking about an extremely obviously public-facing social media platform. You can’t walk into a town square, do a funny dance, and then get mad when people talk about your funny dance. If we are expected to treat her like the autonomous adult that everyone insists she is (and I agree that she IS), then SHE needs to fucking ACT like an autonomous adult using social media. She’s not a grandma with no concept of the internet. (And let’s be real, even that doesn’t apply as much anymore. Grandmas are increasingly internet savvy.) She’s not an infant who can’t understand digital consent. And I’m really sick of the self-righteous bullshit from the LeaveBritneyAlone crowd who seem to think that just because she was mistreated it means she is absolved of responsibility for any and everything she does now.
Who wrote this article? The “Leave Britney Alone!!!” guy?Stop writing about her, and public interest will fade. But hey, gotta get them clicks!
When? The second we leave Marilyn Monroe alone and not a second before.
The fact of the matter is that Britney-in-crisis is good for business. Right. For you and the AV Club, too.
Odd that you barely mention the “medications” she’s taking. The rumor in the shaved-head Britney era was that she was taking drugs. And there’s a new TMZ article today that you didn’t link to that says she’s abusing Adderall, among other things, and self-medicating to avoid taking whatever unnamed prescriptions she’s on for her mental health. The intervention would have been to get her into a private form of rehab.Also, isn’t the point of an intervention that someone doesn’t know about it until the intervention starts? So why would Britney be our best source about whether or not an intervention is planned?I would have been with you if this article had said “Leave Britney alone, so she won’t be tipped off about any upcoming interventions, guys.” Otherwise, it reads as “Leave Britney alone! Except for her Instagram. But don’t question anything on her Instagram!”
As someone who has maybe been known to abuse substances in the past, being scared about the well being of someone abusing Adderall is pretty funny. As a stimulant it can cause health issues, mostly heart and blood pressure stuff. And it can make someone irritable. But most the time abusing Adderall leads to some giving their bathrooms the greatest cleaning ever, organizing all the screws in your garage and maybe some high scores on some classic arcade game you haven’t played in a decade. I’m not saying it’s good to abuse but it’s also heavily prescribed and used by countless people on the country. It’s not making people crazy. Of course different brain chemistries and such and if she’s mixing and matching maybe it’s part of a problem. Who knows.
Dude you’re WAY underselling amphetamine abuse. It makes you a scrawny neurotic zombie who can’t eat or sleep properly.
In my anecdotal experience. Meth will do that. I’ve seen very few adderall abusers that fit that mold. But again not an expert. Just saying the mental health issues that Britney has been accused of having don’t really fit the norm for that sorta drug abuse.
When will we finally leave Britney Spears alone?When she leaves us alone.
When will you stop writing about her?
When she bows out of the public spotlight, I guess? And maybe not even then. Thus is the price of fame and fortune.
I’m not saying that is correct, but it is the way it is. You want to be famous and make obscene amounts of money? It comes at a cost.
[raises hand]I’ve been happily ignoring Britney Spears for the past two decades or so.
And now you failed and have to start over again from scratch. Good job.
Damn, I just lost the game.
You. Are. Covering. Her. Now.
Maybe, I don’t know, stop covering her?
Genuinely not sure what point this article is even trying to make. Britney is no longer living under a conservatorship, and free to make her creepy “deer caught in headlights” naked dancing Instagram videos in peace. She is being left alone, aside from thinkpieces like this that treat her like a prop for the writer’s own concern trolling.
This is America. If she wants to get high and lose her shit on social media, like a good chunk of the rest of the country; fucking let her.
Uhhhh, have you not seen her social media for the last couple years? If this was someone I knew personally I’d be trying to get an intervention going for them as well. It’s mostly incoherent rambling, of someone obviously not well, mixed in with nude pics/vids. Obviously, I’m not judging her, or anyone, for putting whatever pics or vids they want out there. Spears though goes from incoherent, leave me alone, vids to posting stuff like (disquieting) nude shower videos hours later. There’s no rational connection between her actions, and she clearly doesn’t see how one is in conflict with the other, so she needs some help.
I started around what, 1995?
What’s all this ‘we’ bullshit? You guys are bothering her infinitely more than I am. I barely pay attention to her existence these days.
“As my hubby says it best: don’t believe everything you read”.No shade intended, Ms Spears, but I think your husband might have cribbed that one.
Hopefully never. When you decide to glorify your no talent white trash ass and the asses of all the white trash that hover around you, you deserve all the pain that can be delivered.
LEAVE BRITNEY ALONE *sobs*
This article does not help.