Apparently, we
really think Katherine Heigl is annoying. Sarah Ball
devoted a whole piece to the topic in
Newsweek, and our summary, detailing how Heigl's "me, me, me" attitude deep-sixed her sweetheart glow, was the most read Newser story of the weekend. I'm no fan of Heigl's—her rom-com appearances don't even merit a slot on my Netflix queue. But I can't help but bristle at how ready we are to label her a "diva-like shrew"—bitch, basically—and revel in picking her apart, while, once again, letting selfish, diva-esque males off the hook. Which brings us to
Jon Gosselin. Heigl may be a chain-smoking, shrill sympathy-seeker, but Gosselin deserves more of our scorn, and we're just not giving it to him.
Instead, we're devouring , ad nauseum, stories of Jon's—excuse me,
Jonathan's—wandering eye. He
really loves
Hailey Glassman, but he
really cares about
Kate Major, too. Torn between two 20-somethings, what's a father of eight to do but
pal around with Michael Lohan and
shop for $950 shoes?
Where's the anger? The outrage? While Obama two weeks ago again
implored black parents to take responsibility for their children, Jon spent a recent Sunday
playing on a swing set with his girlfriend—and without his kids. If Jon was black, or a woman, he would be vilified. Instead, the media is treating his dalliances with breathless interest (was Major a
"working girl?" asks the
New York Daily News) and treating Jon as the hapless hubbie who broke away from another shrill shrew. Who wouldn't have?
Maybe part of the problem is that we have a hard time vilifying goobs. There are plenty of things about Gosselin that should inspire hatred, but his thinning hair/pierced ear/reliving-my-youth schtick may have somehow given him a free pass—the worst he gets is an eye-roll—in the same way that Heigl's glossy blonde locks make America hate her a little more. But Gosselin isn't just a pretty lame person: He's a pretty lame dad. When does that get taken seriously?
