da cassino： Where do we draw the line between the public’s right to knowand an individual’s right to privacy, especially when thatindividual is a celebrity
Sherrylyn Clarke27-Oct-2001Where do we draw the line between the public’s right to knowand an individual’s right to privacy, especially when thatindividual is a celebrity?In the wake of comments by Reverend Wes Hall, president ofthe West Indies Cricket Board, telling the media to leaveBrian Lara alone FANFARE took the question to the streets.He has a responsibility and when you are in the positionLara has reached, you have a responsibility to the publicand the fans, said Wayne Miller.Lara is a world class player, so his life has become an openbook. Everyone will want to know who his girlfriend is, whohe is dating. He is a celebrity and that goes along with it.This view was also shared by Earl Ifill.When you become a celebrity, I don’t feel you should be leftalone. You need to keep proving yourself more and more, so Ifeel Lara should be out there trying to perform to letpeople know he is still the cricket king, Ifill said.But he drew the line with his privacy.When it comes to your private life I feel that should beleft alone, but once it comes to sport, it should be open.Derek Marshall was all for preserving the privacy of theindividual since everyone makes mistakes and deserves achance.It is clear that Hophni Sargeant is a fan of the Trinidadianbatting star. He felt the media put too much pressure onLara and that affected his performance.When you have the media out there hounding you down, andevery time you pick up the paper and see somebody withsomething negative about you, it can’t help your confidence,and we need Lara full of confidence to take on the SriLankans, he said.It is all right to be interested, but to be applyingpressure with your comments and negative criticism, I don’tthink that is good for the athletes, regardless of who itis. They should leave him [Lara] alone and let himconcentrate on his batting, he added.Lara is one of the better players in the team and he is acelebrity, so obviously people would tend to be moreinterested in him. I really think they should leave Laraalone, because once you try to question what he does itwould put more pressure on him so it would be hard for himto concentrate and perform at his best, said Vincent Burke.You have to draw the line somewhere, said the domino player.