This month last year, a bunch of snapshots of Hong Kong star Edison Chen and several starlets engaged in extremely explicit scenes surfaced online.
Questions lingered for many days before the photos' authenticities were verified.
This week, an even bigger star appeared, seminude, in dozens of photos made public and betraying no hint of PhotoShop meddling.
Zhang Ziyi, of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon fame, was snapped lying on a beach with her fianc Vivi Nevo in a series of images that can be called intimate but not exactly inappropriate by Western standards.
OK, I'll be frank. Without the benefits of illustration, the photos seem to have caught the couple in the first phase of foreplay.
So, it was deja vu all over again, but a major letdown nonetheless for those who have exposed themselves to Chen and his flashing light bulbs.
Is there a pattern here?
Are we to be treated to confidential images of movie stars during the lull between New Year's Day and the Chinese New Year from now on?
Will it grow into a new tradition a la the monster CCTV gala?
Who will be 2010's star caught in a moment of titillation or stark exposure?
The key difference between Zhang's case and Chen's is morality.
Zhang is engaged to the person in the photos; Chen was not. What Zhang did was normal to most people, and what Chen did was outrageous to many.
If it was a private beach, as rumored, or a public nude beach, Zhang and her fianc did not break any rules of propriety. Of course, it can also be argued that Chen's conduct only involved consenting adults.
But if you look at some of the online reactions, you'll detect traces of male chauvinism and shallow nationalism.
While many were initially shocked to come face to face with Chen's "licentiousness", there was a gradual increase in expressions of envy among China's netizens. What man doesn't want this kind of "emperor's treatment", they asked.
With Zhang, the interracial interplay obviously got on the nerves of those under the illusion that they would have dated "China's gift to Hollywood" had a white man not preempted their dream.
Now let's imagine if it had been Chen with a white woman. I bet he would be hailed as a hero among the testosterone-drenched but sexually starved nerds hunched over their Lenovo notebooks.
There are people who condemn Chen and Zhang with equal gusto. Celebrities should uphold the moral and behavioral standards of our day, they maintain. But they seem to have forgotten that celebrities have their private lives as well, and it's none of our business.
However, things can get complicated because celebrities have public personas, and the rises and falls of their careers are based on that. This blurs the line between their public and private existences.
As long as they are seen in public, even if it's because of paparazzi or computer leaks, the private side becomes integrated into the public facade.
From that, you can argue it's their responsibility to "keep on playing the role" unless they're absolutely sure it won't become public knowledge.
In a sense, it's just like their makeup and wardrobe. They can be dressed however they like, but once seen, it will affect others' perceptions of them.
Now, let's turn the tables and focus on the audience.
If you conduct a survey about public opinion on paparazzi, it will be predominantly negative.
But if you ask around as to who would refuse to view private photos taken by paparazzi or leaked by computer repairmen, I'll be shocked if many go along.
In other words, most people know paparazzi intrude on others' privacy, which is morally reprehensible, but they would gladly enjoy the fruits of this labor. Few realize that it's public interest that sustains the livelihoods of paparazzi, and, therefore, few would come away from a viewing session with a guilty conscience.
Now, with a print media outlet, it's more clear-cut: You buy a copy and you support what its photographers do, including sneaking around stars' hangouts and filming them in awkward moments.
But once the platform moves online, it becomes a whole new ballgame. There's a sense of altruism: One forwards these kinds of images to a network of friends as if they were self-generated jokes. Few are troubled by ethical or legal implications.
The communal atmosphere of the Internet intersects with the communal nature of celebrity information.
In the old days, people gossiped about their neighbors. In the digital age, tidbits about entertainment luminaries form the common threads that bond us together, providing us with topics for conversations and armchair theorizing.
The Internet-addicted generation has such a voluminous appetite for tabloid information that it would appear to make up most of their knowledgebase. Or so it seems to me.
What does it have to do with me, at all, if Zhang Ziyi makes out with her fiance?
I'm not her family member, nor am I even her friend or acquaintance. If she did not go out with a media tycoon, she would not have dated me - the chances are less than one in a million.
Why should I care?
Likewise, Chen's photographic activities do not tell me what I should or should not do.
I never equate the roles he played with his real self. Some people talk about stars as if they're their bosom buddies. But they are not. All the mountains of information about them are only good for killing time.
As for the pervasiveness of explicit images online, these images are basically compensating for the lack of a Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition, or, more bluntly, the absence of real porn.
Most portal sites in China look like a high school boy's fantasy room, with half naked women in all kinds of postures.
I guess that's the reason several of the most heavily trafficked websites in China were cited for "low and vulgar practices" and became a target for a Net nanny campaign.
This reminds me of a brief scene from the Swan Lake ballet in a classic Soviet film, which was the only provocative image of feminine allure allowed during the "cultural revolution" (1966-76).
People flocked to the theater just to see it. For a long time, ballet and body-hugging period dramas from the West served a purpose other than artistic appreciation.
My grandma complained that Western women were naked from the waist up and Western men from the waist down. She would have understood the fuss about Zhang wearing a bikini on a beach.
The era of movie stars crouching and hidden under a protective layer of puppetry has phased out. Instead, we now have the industry standard of "any exposure is good exposure".
Some netizens even suspect Zhang orchestrated the beachside-fondling incident to unseat Vivian Chow and Joel Nieh, whose breakup and makeup story had monopolized headlines recently.
Ultimately, it is Zhang's own business if she is relaxing under the sun or rehearsing under the glare of the camera.
You can critique her work, but don't intrude on her privacy.
You're not part of her life, so don't let her be part of yours.
Go get your own life.
上一篇: 不折腾
国内英语资讯:Xi inspects military, stresses training, war preparedness
国际英语资讯:Hungarian president praises quality work at EuroSkills closing ceremony
国际英语资讯:Syria to re-open Nasib Border Crossing with Jordan in Oct.
国际英语资讯:Feature: War-weary Afghans further tormented by severe water shortage
The popularity of Civil Servant 公务员热
On Attending CET-4 and CET-6 Repeatedly 关于多次参加大学英语四、六级
双语阅读:My View on the Crazy of Civil Servant 公务员热之我见
国际英语资讯:Asia-Europe Parliamentary Partnership Meeting stresses multilateral cooperation
国际英语资讯:Trumps 2nd Supreme Court pick Kavanaugh sworn in
体坛英语资讯:Former Judo Olympic champion Xian Dongmei recognized by Judo Hall of Fame
双语阅读:世界最贵的高跟鞋亮相迪拜,售价1.2亿!
国际英语资讯:Chinese embassy in Sweden rejects insincere apologies over racist program
国际英语资讯:Latvians vote to elect new parliament
国际英语资讯:5 injured as train derails in northern Iran
国际英语资讯:Leading Bangladeshi, Chinese universities share experience in tackling climate change
国内英语资讯:Chinese official pledges greater cybersecurity measures
国内英语资讯:Premier Li stresses reform and opening-up, unleashing market vitality
国内英语资讯:China confers Friendship Award to foreign experts
双语阅读:H&M利润竟然大幅度下降!这是什么情况?
The Importance of Learning History 学习历史的重要性
国际英语资讯:U.S., Canada close to reaching NAFTA deal this weekend: report
Will Online Shopping Replace Traditional Shopping 网购能否代替传统购物方式
国际英语资讯:Indonesian president calls for relief measures after strong quakes hit C. Sulawesi province
国内英语资讯:Chinese railways carry more passengers as holiday nears end
双语阅读:金钱不能买到幸福?那是你不会买
国内英语资讯:Another 25 counties in Tibet shake off poverty
国内英语资讯:Senior Chinese official visits Vietnamese embassy to mourn late former party leader Do Muoi
My View on University Ranking 关于大学排名
国际英语资讯:Tunisia denies Egypts toughening entry visa for Tunisians
My View on Advertisement 广告之我见