North Texas Daily

People are nosy. The love lives of celebrities are consistently put under a microscope, but why? It doesn’t concern anyone else but themselves. You’re not entitled to know about it especially since you do not know these people personally. Paparazzi know people will eat it up, so they push and push to get everything out that they can because they know the public is demanding and love the drama of it all.

This has been seen most recently with the Liam Hemsworth and Miley Cyrus relationship fiasco. You want to know what happened? They broke up as some couples decide to do. That is all you need to know about it.

Those on the outside looking in have made their own speculations and assumptions about what happened between the two. Cyrus releasing her new single “Slide Away” was apparently not good enough because people still wanted more of an explanation.

There have been rumors of Cyrus cheating, or Hemsworth leaving her because she was starting to become “too wild” again. These rumors became too much for Cyrus and she went on a Twitter rant about the immature things she’s done in the past and clarified that she in fact did not cheat on Hemsworth. One of her tweets read, “I can accept that the life I’ve chosen means I must live completely open and transparent […] 100% of the time”, but she still does not owe anyone an explanation to anyone and especially not why they decided to split. Relationships are a private matter and the public seems to care too much about what goes on behind closed doors. The intimate details of what really happened is not the public’s business.

I could make vague posts about an ex, but that does not mean that I have to explain the situation if I am not comfortable sharing it. The amount you decide to share should be up to you and not for the sake of satisfying anyone else. Some of us nowadays do not even go public with our relationships unless we are serious enough or are both ready to open that door to everyone. Even as non-celebrities, there are often criticisms and people trying to tear your relationship down but for celebrities, it is much worse.

So many eyes are on celebrities already that the least people can do is respect their privacy.

Another example is when rumors of “Riverdale” stars Lili Reinhart and Cole Sprouse splitting over the summer showed that people pay too much attention to the gossip. Things were blown out of proportion and an issue was created from nothing. There was speculation that Reinhart and Sprouse broke-up after a mysterious source mentioned it along with their “distance” at San Diego Comic-Con. There were clips going around of her “snarky attitude” towards Sprouse, which were used as speculation of a possible break-up. Those rumors were shut down after the couple posted some pictures together on Instagram. The story wouldn’t have gotten as big as it did if people had just minded their own business.

The bond between two people is something special. It’s admirable how Reinhart and Sprouse handle that boundary with the public, especially when questions are persistent. They refuse to talk about the details of their relationship and openly poke fun at rumors.

Celebrity relationships can make for good content, but that still does not make it right. They are not a show made for our consumption to be labeled as entertainment. Then, social media makes it easier to press them for answers and even opens it up for them to see what you are saying about them which may lead to a response from them.

Relationships require a large part of you. You’re putting love into someone and when that’s ripped away, it is hard enough to deal with even without the constant questions and nagging. Imagine dealing with heartache and on top of that having people pry you for information or beg you to get back together because “you two were so cute!” You root for their love but it is not a game show. People look at celebrity couples and quickly view them as the ideal relationship “goal” without knowing much about the actual relationship aside from the facade they decide to put up. The public does not know how things are behind the scenes or what their personalities are like, it’s all based on what’s heard. Sure, there could be relatability and assurance in knowing that they are “just like us” even with relationship problems and triumphs. But they deserve common decency and respect the same way you would want.

It is basic human decency to have privacy. They are not your friends and you do not personally know them. There is absolutely no need to pry them about their love lives.

Featured Illustration: Olivia Varnell