Thinking Weekly

From announcing celebrity deaths before families are informed to outright stalking stars, living in the era of TMZ is truly unsettling.

With the recent tragic death of One Direction’s Liam Payne and TMZ posting invasive, utterly disrespectful photos while announcing his passing just minutes after it happened, TMZ’s gruesome tactics and history are under the spotlight once again. TMZ has been around for ages, and from their exploitative coverage of Britney Spears’ 2007 mental health crisis to breaking the news of Kobe and Gianna Bryant’s deaths before their family was notified, it’s clear they’ll do anything to be first, even if it means publishing stories that aren’t fully verified. From falsely claiming Beyoncé’s attendance at the Democratic National Convention to incorrectly reporting Jerry Lee Lewis’s death, TMZ has always been desperate to cash in on the ad revenue from these so-called “breaking” stories. But what is journalism if it’s all about clicks? Why do we keep turning to TMZ when it’s clear their only goal is to generate traffic by being first, not by being moral?

TMZ’s model of needing to be first with the most sensational story is outdated. They’ve gone from being a go-to source for celebrity gossip to a site that’s only accurate when they feel like it. This shift shows how the internet landscape has changed. What used to be exclusive to magazines and gossip sites now unfolds in real-time on social media. Paparazzi are everywhere, and there are fan accounts that are dedicated to anyone who’s had a supporting role in a Netflix mini-series, so people don’t need to look beyond their favorite social media accounts for celebrity news and photos. While it’s neither moral nor acceptable, TMZ has had to scramble for the most jaw-dropping and invasive stories—about deaths, divorces, addictions, etc—just to keep people interested enough to visit their site.

Now, TMZ is really only relevant when something about a celebrity is unknown, and people are looking for confirmation. This is especially true with deaths. When reports about Liam Payne came in, everyone I know was waiting for TMZ to confirm it. Even though they’ve been wrong before, they have a reputation for doing shady things to get information from the police. Who knows the lengths TMZ goes to get these invasive photos of moments that should never be shared with the world?

It’s human nature to want more information about negative situations in someone else’s life to make sure you avoid it yourself. The parasocial relationships we build with celebrities by constantly seeing them on our screens creates the perfect breeding ground for a publication like TMZ. While most of us know it’s immoral to tune into tragic moments in celebrities’ lives, there’s something about it that keeps us from looking away. And because of that, no matter how disgusting TMZ is, I don’t see them going anywhere anytime soon.