Back when then Twilight movie was first cast we used to cover various shots of the stars when they weren’t working, things like them going for coffee, out on the town, greeting fans, etc. After awhile we stopped and got really picky about what photos we ran because we realized a couple of things 1) you can only see a star going for coffee so many times and you realize there’s not a story there, 2) even though one shot may seem fine you have no idea if they were hounded before or after that shot, 3) it’s not just the matter of pictures or aggressive in your face pictures, it’s often the matter of having vile things said to the star to provoke a reaction. Questions like so “Have you stopped beating your wife yet? Does you daughter do Ecstasy naked in the hot tub with you?” Things that there are no answer to and are aimed at provocation so that then can then write a story with a reaction photo that talks about what a jerk the star was not wanting to talk about their day. 4) The same guy who was taking legit behind a barrier “actors working photos” up in Vancouver was the next day tweeting out Stephenie Meyer’s flight info when she wouldn’t give him the time of day, and he has a pattern of this type of behavior.
Some people think, well you’re famous, can’t you put up with a few photos? In our opinion, it’s not just the matter of people putting up with a few photos it’s a constant invasive hounding. It’s never being able to have a single private moment without your every word and action being warped for a sensationalistic media site’s economic gain. Anyway, we knew we’d never stop it from happening, but for us we just didn’t want to add any more into the laws of supply and demand, so we stopped covering things that made us uncomfortable. We’ll still cover fan encounters that don’t seem stalkerish (ie You bumped into a star on the street rather than you camped out on their kids school.), stars working if photos were taken behind barriers at a premiere or at a publicly visible movie shoot, but after that we decided it was just too hard to tell the manner in which photos were obtained.
Robert Pattinson had an episode of exactly what we are describing above. At first they were just photos of him out on the town in Malibu, then it was a constant stalking with a fabricated car accident. The grand irony is in the middle of the chaos, Rob actually signed some autographs for some teens who stumbled in the situation, so it’s not as if he isn’t appreciative of his fans. Every time a celebrity who is C-list at best comments on stars being divas for not being able to take the attention, they ought to walk in Rob’s shoes for a month and see how much they appreciate it.
Both E! and Gossip Cop have covered the story.
“Did Team Edward have a run-in with an age-old enemy?
Robert Pattinson is trying to shoot down reports that he slammed into a dude’s car in Malibu and then sped off without as much as exchanging insurance information.
Instead, the sparkly Twilight star is blaming his bad press on a pack of werewolves shutterbugs.
“Robert was pulling out of a parking space after a quiet day in Malibu and was relentlessly pursued by paparazzi,” his rep tells E! News. “He has no knowledge of having bumped or damaged another car in the process. The story has been manufactured for headlines.”
“The problem is: The media often portray events as they didn’t happen, in order to fit the narrative their readers been instructed to follow.
Robert Pattinson — like hundreds of other famous people — is hounded relentlessly by paparazzi. Surprisingly, just like everyone else, he doesn’t care for it.
Some celebs have handled their frustration with violence.
Others scream and carry on.
It’s not the best route to go, and it surrenders some of the moral high ground to the predatory photographers.
X17Online.com is pretending that Robert Pattinson made similar mistakes when pestered by paparazzi over the weekend. He supposedly “yells” at a photog after committing a “hit & run.” He got “pissy,” sneers the site.
It’s a total misrepresentation.
There’s no hitting and running. There’s no yelling. There’s no prima donna hissy fit. He barely even raises his voice.
Pattinson looks frustrated and exhausted, and he repeatedly — politely — asks the paps not to follow him. The outlet even provides video of the incident, and it shows Pattinson being completely civil.
You can even hear a photographer praising Pattinson as “such a nice guy.”
X17 asks viewers to ignore what they see in favor of a more dramatic, sensational confrontation. Consider that Pattinson is literally forced to pull off the California Pacific Highway to ask for some privacy and to ask nearby police officers (presumably) whether they can help. When the harassment begins, it’s still light outside. By the end, it’s dark. It’s ridiculous.
Yet X17 wants the takeaway message to be: If Pattinson can’t handle harassment, he shouldn’t be a celebrity. And if he does handle himself like a gentleman, just misrepresent events to make it look like he didn’t.
Shameful.”
So thank you to Rob for making movies that we love, and sorry that the price of your instant fame is harassment because like the drug trade, unless the demand stops, the supply never will.
I cried when I saw this and won’t watch it again. Please, instead of all of our talk, how can we show Rob we support him. I feel the need to DO something, a petition, a call to the Malibu PD or the CA governors office, something. Rob looked so alone and lost, I want him to know he isn’t. He always has his fans. If I had seen this, I would have yelled at the Paps for him, like some of the fans did on the WFE set and ran them off. There must be something we can DO TO ORGANIZE SUPPORT FOR ROB.
It’s ridiculous to see how low the paparazzi really is. I completely understand the publication of this story in order to defend Robert Pattinson, but the publicity that has been given to these pathetic websites is what keeps them in business. Hopefully one day soon, this will be illegal and people (even famous ones) can lead at least some what of a normal life.
While I’ve been a twilight fan for awhile I’m new to TL so I can’t comment on how TL handled Kristen giving the paps the middle finger. But you’re all right, these celebrities need protection and at the very least from the police. Maybe they’re getting paid off by the paps not to stop it. Kristen was portrayed by other media outlets in a bad way for what she did and let’s be honest, it has got to be exhausting doing all the press and traveling for an upcoming movie so let the girl have a cig by herself! I watched an interview awhile ago where Kristen was talking about the papparazzi and how they contribute to making you super-famous but they are also the ones that tear you down. Time and time again the headlines read something derogatory or false about a celebrity to catch your attention, so we all buy the magazine to read about it. Hense, magazines make more money and tell nothing but lies. I think these people need to watch interviews of Rob and read articles from Rob and realize that he is truly a kind, caring soul that would never hit someone’s car and drive away. That is completely ludacris. Rob could buy that guy 25 cars if he even hit it in the first place. Bottom line: Rob wouldn’t leave if he did hit a car and the police should be very ashamed of themselves. We need to do something!!
I read an update somewhere today that said the damage done was to a neighbor’s car and it was so slight that the owner of the car wasn’t even concerned about it and the owner also felt bad for Rob and said that the papz had probably purposely blocked Rob in.
There’s a site you can go to to support legislation that will put a stop to this – Paparazzi-reform.org. You can send an email to the state senator in California who has sponsored the legislation and/or print out a letter that you can send. It has passed in the state assembly and will go to the state senate in August – don’t let them water it down. There is also one of the most disturbing videos I’ve ever seen, it’s of Kate Moss and HER CHILDREN absolutely being attacked by hordes of these scum at the Los Angeles airport. This may be the best way we can help these celebrities who have given us such wonderful entertainment experiences. GO THERE NOW!
Thank you for this post!! I will certainly visit the site and sign any petition to prevent something like this from happening to Rob, or any other celebrity for that matter, ever again.
Just went to the site . . . the video of Kate Moss and her child had me in tears. That was the worst thing I’ve ever seen.
Man, this video seriously broke my heart. Why can’t they just go? Someone above mentioned that Rob should learn a lesson that he can’t travel without an entourage anymore…I disagree! In fact, I like that about him. He just wants to walk around like a normal person and have people respect his privacy, is that so much to ask?
These people are the scum of the earth. If someone followed any of us that way, the police would have them up against the car and in handcuffs. It would clearly be stalking. Why is it that Rob would be any different? And the reason they kept going even though they had tons of pics of him is because that wasn’t enough. The pics were nothing compared to what they would get if they really got him bent out of shape-that was their aim, they wanted to get him to blow up so they’d have a headline. Fortunately, Rob is above that and it backfired and they ended up looking like the jerkwads they are.
Someone mentioned Diana above. What is it going to take for this to stop? Will it take a Diana-type incident where someone that everyone considers beloved dies or gets injured for the paps to be reigned in by the law? Thanks to the Lexicon for being above board with this story and for not printing pap pictures. I truly hope Rob knows that those of us who are really his fans don’t want to see that stuff, know he’s a good guy and would never want to invade his privacy like that.
Anna, I am a realist and the reality is that no Rob (or Kristen or Taylor or any person who has the kind of celebrity that they now have) cannot go out without protection. How do you think Rob feels about it right now. Can you imagine that he will ever consider it again. Ideally, yes he, and other celebs should be able to go about their private lives without being hounded and harassed, but…that’s not reality. What I am most concerned about now with Rob is that these scum are really going to be out for him, it is NOT SAFE FOR ROB TO GO OUT ALONE, SAD, BUT THAT IS THE REALITY. If you want to do something so that at least the police can get involved and/or the scum will know what they are doing is illegal and they could be arrested (that is not the case now) go to Paparazzi-reform.org and learn what you can do to make this stop.
Kitty, I understand your feelings and the realism of the situation. But that’s the thing. If he caves and does start running around with bodyguards and such, to him that might be like letting them win. He must feel like he wants to retain at least some normalcy in his life. Why shouldn’t a person have that right? I totally understand your point of view and will definitely go to that website. The law has to be changed before someone-whether a celebrity or a citizen-gets hurt.
Very well put; this is why I visit your site, no BS is taken here!
I watched it and felt terrible. I felt like a peeping tom. I too no longer buy those magazines that make up the stories, do they think we are stupid! I long to see more of Rob but not that way. Good for this sight for refusing to promote that kind of hurassment. I hope that all of the Twilight sites follow suit!
OMG! I wanted to cry when I saw the video. All he wanted was for them to stop following him. It didn’t look like he was doing anything remotely interesting for them to take a picture. They got more than enough so why didn’t they leave? You could just hear it in his voice how frustrating and sad he was. He even stood still for awhile and let them take pictures but they kept on taunting him. It made me really sad for him.
After reading the comments here so far about the papz and their disrespectful, thoughtless and demeaning tactics and harassment of not only celebrities but of other people like victims of crime, Acts of God, and so many others who as humans should be allowed their private lives as well as public, I suddenly had the thought of what tourists at many of our National Parks and Forests are admonished about not disturbing the wildlife. If a bear and her cubs were harassed in Yellowstone and went on a rampage going after some stupid idiot human for encroaching on the bear’s territory or too near her cubs, would anyone blame the bear? I, for one, cheer the polite, respectful and gracious celebs who allow moments of their private lives to be recorded, but when they’re disrespected and denied their deserved privacy, it’s right that the paparazzi should get their share back. Who knows, maybe their private lives are just as “juicy” and “gawk-worthy.” Maybe they’d enjoy being followed by some unknown cars or surrounded by them. Maybe they’d like their names slandered and libeled and without recourse. If L.A. has this kind of problem with the paparazzi, I think I’d get a kick out of seeing the true fans of the Twilight cast (and other celebs) form “neighborhood watches” to help protect the celebs by surrounding the paparazzi so the celeb can leave peacefully and risk free. Thank you, TL, for your moral fiber and guts to take a stand on injustice in reporting. It’s too bad that Rob doesn’t have Harry Potters’ Cloak of Invisibility.
I couldn’t agree more. I cannot imagine what it would be like to have cameras thrust in my face, insults hurled at me and never being able to enjoy a minute of peace outside of my home. We all have celebrities that we admire, but that doesn’t give anyone the excuse to bother them. If you run into one, admire them from afar. What difference does an autograph or a picture make in the long run? Everyone deserves to be treated with respect. ~peace
I have not bought a gossip magazine in over 8 years for this exact reason. The excuse of the “price for fame” is just plain B.S. We live in a sick, voyeuristic society that believes we are entitled to know where someone is every second of every day. I am a fan of many stars, but it makes me sick to see pictures of them in the grocery store! This is why so many famous people (especially younger ones like our favorite Twilight stars) turn to drugs and alcohol…….
There should be laws…in any other situation, this would be considered stalking.
Poor guy. This makes me think about TMZ, have only watched it once and didn’t even make it through. It really is being a glorified stalker that these people are. I can’t really say much else that hasn’t been said already.
This is why the Lex is one of the only sites I visit as a twi-hard. Thanks for being fun and not sensational.
People in CA seem so rude. Rob (and Kristen) should come hang out in Taylor’s home state for awhile. We would love to have him film a movie in Michigan!
This makes me so upset. It really made me sick to see and here this. No one deserves this, especially Rob. Rob is an amazing actor and a sincerely nice person. I can not understand why the pap. have to be so disrespectful. I thought he was very nice to them and handled himself very well. I would not have been able to be that nice. I just hope he knows how much he means to us and that he doesn’t let a group of idiots get to him. TEAM ROB!!
And here I thought I couldn’t love Robert more, I do now after learning about what he went through and how he handled it. I personally can’t do anything about his situation but I do pray for his health and his safety…and his sanity. Take care everyone.
The biggest problem in Hollywood is that it is unfortunately fueled by greed. While there are a LOT of wonderful people that live there, there are a quite a few, of whom, only care about making a fast buck. This goes from the foundation up. Getting celebrity photos is big business and mags pay big prices for that one special picture, to help bolster their sales. The fans desire to have a piece of his or her favorit star addes fuel to the fire, per say, so the cycle never ends. The only way to cure it, is to change the mindset, unfortunately in a town fueled by greed, that is likely not going to happen.
Rob, Taylor, Kristen, and so on and so forth, are normal human beings. Other than occupation they are no different than you and I. Their occupation plays a double-edge sword. They need the publicity to keep their careers going (and it has) and yet that same publicity is also robbing them of the basic freedoms that reg folks get to enjoy. This is why, so many young stars turn to drugs and other bad things, simply because they are very unhappy. They want to just be themselves, but can’t.
An actor’s life is a hard life, and while there are plenty of wunderful moments, there are plenty of frustrating ones too.
In Rob’s case… Considering all that has happened to him, I think he’s done of wonderful job, keeping a level head. I can tell ya right now, that I know he wished he could unleash a line of obsenities, but he has shown great moral character in simply brushing it off and keeping calm. Good work Rob!
I found this link on another website which somebody had posted in the reply section (sorry unable to remember which one) have signed it even though I am from the UK, was so cross and upset for Rob yesterday after watching the video. He was a total gentleman didn’t once lose his temper and was so polite which is more than can be said about the Papz!!! (really wish I had been there would have liked to have given them a piece of my mind they are so bloody rude) at least we have some laws in the UK to prevent this kind of harassment.
I have just read and signed the online petition:
“RESPECT ROBERT PATTINSON”
hosted on the web by PetitionOnline.com, the free online petition service, at:
http://www.PetitionOnline.com/rpct1305/
I personally agree with what this petition says, and I think you might agree, too. If you can spare a moment, please take a look, and consider signing yourself.
Why not we start a petition against X17 ???!!!
Read the article, then the comments, then I caved and watched the video. Poor guy! Makes me so sad for him. Here is what I found disturbing; the advertisements on the website! Then I thought about TMZ and it’s commercials and the ads that are probably on the other sites and in the rags! It’s really bummed me out. The Paps may be scum, but there is a freaking Coke/Pepsi add on the bar next to that video! Sure sign the petitions and I don’t know, pass out flyers at the next Twi-con or better yet the next premiere? But how do you fight corporate America? Make a list of all the companies that condone this behavior and boycott worldwide? Princess Diana was killed in Paris and was with a driver, her boyfriend, AND a body guard. There are parts of our collective society that sucks. This totally ruined my morning. I just pray my fav people are protected and stay safe.
I am so grateful to the Lex. It’s such a safe place. I forget this other stuff is really out there. I’ve been such a sheltered Twi-hard.
See, this is the problem with X17 and all other gossip magazings/websites/etc. “Yet X17 wants the takeaway message to be: If Pattinson can’t handle harassment, he shouldn’t be a celebrity.” WHAT? No one, not even celebrities, deserve to be harrassed when they are trying to live their lives… When someone becomes famous, they sign away their anonymity, not their privacy. It’s attitudes like the above that allow people to be chased around and oogled like animals in a zoo. Have some decency and leave these people alone, be it Rob, Taylor, Kristen, or any other celebrity. Not alone will it allow those who are famous because they love what they do to live their lives comfortably, we would also have fewer fame-whores getting famous for no reason.
i say we make a potishin, to end the stalking, i say we have all the twihards ban together and make this a law, that no star no matter how famus be hounded and foloed that just because they are famous dosent mean they dont have rites, so if anyone knows how to draw up a pitishon, ill be the first to sign, call congress lets make a bill, we will call it the twi bill. lol if you can help me with this email me Laceysmiley@yahoo.com come on twihards lets get into action. we are the biggest group of fans since the beattles, if anyone can do this we can….
its really sad to read about things like this I really feel so bad for Rob I only hope that once all the movies are done although I really do love the twilight saga that he’ll have a lot more peace because he seems like a total sweetheart
We twilight lovers are a very powerful force. Let’s thank and show Rob exactly how we feel for him and go to that government website and make our voices heard for Rob and any other celebrity that has been violated.
The smut dogs are abusing our American right to free speech. That’s how they are getting away with their sleezy antics.
I regret to say that I watched the video. I was sickened by it. To watch Rob politely ask them to stop following him because it’s not safe for him to drive with five cars following him….thank the good lord Rob is intelligent enough to recognize that he could end up like Princess Dianna. (not sure if the title is appropriate, but she’ll always be a princess to me), made me want to cry.
I agree with Volturigirl, let’s stop the madness by boycotting the gossip sites that blantantly make up sensationalized headlines and stories to get us to click on it so that they get paid, and any rag magazine or website that is printing paparazzi
pictures.
I would even go a step further. I’d ask any fan or group of fans to respect his space and leave him alone if they see him out and about. Also if you see the Paparazzi stalking him, try and PEACEFULLY surround him, blocking their shots, like the group of fans did on the WFE shoot. Also if you can, SAFELY help him escape, you should do so, unlike the lame cops that pretty much ignored him.
LET’S SHOW THE PAP’S WHO THE BOSS REALLY IS, AND SURE AS H..L ISN’T THEM.
I feel really bad for Robert and Kristen. The paparazi behaviour is getting unacceptable!!!! However, there are maybe three ways to stop this trashy “media”: 1. By law. 2. By affecting the papaz income and 3. By creating and official site, as other people said. Regarding with the law, there should be a limit for hound, no matter if you are a public person. It is not fair to be condemm to stay at home the rest of your life, only because you are a successful person and laws allows this type of agressive behaviour against you, under de idea that you are a well known person and you are in public space. Everybody deserves respect, and if your are ill-treated in a public space, police and laws should do something. It is sad to see this type of hound and to think that nobody can not do nothing. Actors can´t fight directly against all the papaz, because they can jeopardize their career. ¡Look how easy is to create bad publicity for someone, with a fake story!! Maybe some groups of people, out of the media bussines,-to avoid colateral damages-, can start some type of movement to enforce the law, to protect rights of entertainers, as a part of all human right!! As fans, we can support their work with donations, for example, world wide. The second posibility, as fans, is not to choose magazines that use the service of papz. If one papz can generate a million dollar income only with one picture, that is because magazines use to buy this pictures at that price. And if we buy them, we help to create this abusive commerce. As consumers, we can support or not this type of behavior. Just remember some good examples related with the environmental seals or environmental advices of some products (the dolphins protection for example). As consumers we have the final choice. Finally, if fans can found every day official information about their actors and idols, maybe the temptation to buy o consult papz media, decreases.
This video was even on MSN.com’s main page! I broke down and watched it even though I don’t want to support the losers following celebrities around. The saddest thing is that Rob just pleads with the guy to just leave him be. You can see him getting angry but he composes himself and doesn’t even yell. He is even nice to a fan that comes up to him. You can tell he is just sick of being followed and cornered. Poor Rob.
Sadly, I have to say that I am an even bigger fan of RPatz now. I thought the way that he handled himself last night was way more than admirable. I live in North Carolina and there aren’t too many 24 year old young men who would have handled themselves in the same manner as Rob did. So now, I am not only a fan, but I admire his character as well.
I also have to say that I am officially a fan of this website. Many thanks to not supporting this type of behavior… I would like for everyone to stop calling the paparazzi “scum” though… Scum hasn’t done anything so bad that it deserves to be compared to the paparazzi…
The video everyone is talking about is not the worst I have seen but it certainly made me realize that I don’t need to contribute to the paparazzi’s cause. After I stopped crying, I have written several websites imploring them to remove any so-called-media that is purchased from paparazzi. I have also written several television stations who utilize and report on this type of thing and let them know that as of today I will no longer watch anything on their tv station. Although I don’t live in California, I am also writing your governor. Because other states will follow California’s lead!
I was embarrassed that I watched them because I feel like I contributed to the pap’s cause and this is still bothering me. I still am having an extremely hard time believing that the police did NOTHING to help him out. I am just overwhelmed at how strongly I feel about this. DID WE NOT LEARN ANYTHING by the tragic loss of Princess Diana!!!!
So, take the time to do your own writing. Take the time to stop and think before you pick up the next rag mag. Don’t support their work! It puts our favorite celebrities lives in danger.
Ruth, I absolutely loved the second paragraph of your comment – OK I won’t insult scum by comparing paparazzi to it anymore! LMAO
I saw the video today on Msn’s homepage. If that is called loosing one’s cool, then a blackhead and cancer are the same thing. Idiots….He was cool polite and collected. More than what the bottom feeders deserve. It is pure and simple stalking. Just because someone is an actor does not give the pap the right to follow and harrass. They should be sued and held as criminal stalkers.(plesase don’t buy the pap mags or visit their sites, that is what pays them to bother human beings. I am sorry that the actors in this film are hounded in this way. No one deserves to be followed and have their lives invaded to such a degree. I hope Rob slaps them with a stalker charge. His safety is compromised when he is followed on foot and by automobile. It is harrassment. THe police could have ask the paps to hang back and quit following him.
Does anyone know how much X17 paid for the photos and video. I wouldn’t think they have a big enough budget to pay much. So, all those photos and video that the papz took over hours and hours and hours that day and night, who will the papz sell them to? Are we going to see them spread all over the Enquirer, Star, People, etc. I am sure that the papz when they had Rob cornered wanted to provoke him to get the “money shot” and guess what, they didn’t get it. Anyway I was just wondering where are these creeps going to sell these to make it worth following Rob for the entire day and night. Also, I’m not sure if this has been commented on, but that blond woman who came up to him at night when he was in his car, was not a fan IMHO – she was sent over there by the papz. She said she worked in the industry and wanted to know if he ever did “speaking engagements”, he said no and since she was still prattling on, he asked her for her business card and…guess what she didn’t have any. It was total BS.
I was so angered by X-17′s article and their supposed video proof. They need to learn to leave Rob alone. I made my point quite clear on the comments section of their article (if interested, look for the post under the name of “Somebody who actually cares”) but I doubt what I say will mean anything to these people. Hopefully someone with some kind of moral compass will read it and actually GET IT for once and realize that people frequently in the public eye are human beings too.
Not for nothing but that ‘fan’ that was toward the end shoulda kicked the paps’ ass. If I were blessed w/ the ability to be in that situation I would go nuts on the paps. Shame on the cops for not helping!! So if someone comes up to a Malibu cop and asks for help, they will say no and sit there and watch the harassment happen??? They should loose their badges!!!!! That kind of crap is completely uncalled for. This is getting absurd!!!! He’s gonna go nuts on them one day and then TMZ and all them will make him look like he’s pulling a Brittnay. Well jeeze paps leave him the hell alone, b4 you kill someone. This type of crap makes me want to puke!! This is not how we want to see Rob, begging to be left alone. I think we should (true fans and the celebs) and boycott all paparazzi!!!
I too found this video hard to watch, but an eye-opener. It really gives you an idea of how horrible it must be to be hounded constantly. Rob seems like such a nice person and to see him upset like . . . it’s just not right. I don’t usually watch these, but I did and so, here I am, and can’t something be done? Why can’t the actors get together and hire a lawyer to change the law? Especially after what happened to Diana.
The fact that the police did nothing (assholes) would change hopefully if there was a law in place, right? And the celebrities in Rob’s position have the money to fight this, so why don’t they? Or, if they’re too busy, get someone to organize it. I wish there was something we could do – I agree with not buying the rags . . . tinted windows, maybe? At least then they can’t see in.