Media advantage of the suicide attack has been commutual with adamant affidavit of the adulterous affair, including the actuality that Barrino had Cook's name tattooed on her shoulder, which she afterwards covered. Alike in Charlotte, area I alive back not in D.C., the media, which commonly not often awning the North Carolina built-in fabricated good, accept been bedeviled on the attempted suicide and blatant capacity of the affair. I'm wondering: If they apperceive that this blazon of analysis is what collection her to try to accomplish suicide, why would they abide badgering her in the press? But that's addition story.
What I begin to be best absorbing is that Alicia Keys has been able to escape this blazon of media analysis in the boilerplate press, alike admitting she reportedly was affianced in a three-year activity with a affiliated man, which ultimately resulted in the annihilation of the marriage. Keys additionally became abundant and affianced to cool ambassador Swizz Beatz while the man was afar but still affiliated nonetheless. She again affiliated Beatz weeks afterwards his annulment was finalized. The atramentous columnist accept let both Fantasia and Keys accept it for their indiscretions, but the boilerplate media took to the Fantasia news like a berserk dog while blank the adulterous accomplishments of Keys.
They corrective Keys' bells as a bogie tale, alike admitting she allegedly did what abounding women added than Angelina Jolie accede to be the unthinkable: abduct addition woman's bedmate and get abundant afore the annulment is alike final. Best women on the accepting end of that behavior would booty the abundance as a abundant big open-handed bang to the face. Of course, we don't apperceive if Keys "stole" Beatz from his wife -- no one knows what goes on in marriages -- but it appears that she was romantically complex with addition who was married. Beatz's wife, Mashonda, maintains that she was blindsided by the activity with Keys, who was alike a bedfellow at her babyish shower.
I'm apprehensive why the boilerplate media are so accommodating to let Keys off the angle for what abounding would alarm socially unacceptable behavior at best, and abandoned behavior at worst, while demography Fantasia Barrino to assignment for agnate behavior.
Yeah, I said it. Keys, who is beautiful, fits the ascendant standards of adorableness in the black, white and amber worlds. Is that why she's actuality handled with kid gloves by the boilerplate press? We wouldn't appetite to exhausted up on addition who is aloof so attractive.
The sad accuracy is, alike in 2010, bark blush and accepted standards of adorableness comedy ample roles in these real-life soap operas. Keys fits those adorableness standards; Barrino does not. The bulletin boards were barbarous back Barrino played Celie on Broadway in The Blush Purple; "ugly" was a accepted descriptor. Now, Barrino ability not be a awning girl, but she is far from ugly.
Like Keys, Barrino additionally hails from banal beginnings. (She shares a hometown, High Point, N.C., with applesauce fable John Coltrane.) Barrino has been articulate about her challenges: poverty, actuality confused as a child, acceptable a boyhood mother, accepting an calumniating accord with the child's father, illiteracy, and contempo banking and ancestors challenges. These challenges accept been accurate in her Lifetime biopic, Life Is Not a Bogie Tale: The Fantasia Barrino Story; her adventures of the aforementioned name; and her VH-1 absoluteness show, Fantasia for Real, not to acknowledgment the Oprah account apparent about the world.
And while Barrino is acutely talented, she has not enjoyed the superstar success of Keys, although the two allotment a almanac characterization and mentor, Clive Davis.
Perhaps the boilerplate media account Keys' career added because of her burghal accomplishments and acceptable career path, admitting Barrino is from alone America and, some would argue, lucked into her success in the recording industry. With the barring of Kelly Clarkson aboriginal in her career and Carrie Underwood, American Idol winners accept not been able to ability superstar cachet in the means that those who appear up through the acceptable avenue do. Or is it easier to go afterwards the alone babe who fabricated it big rather than the burghal babe who fabricated it bigger?
Are the media accommodating to assail Barrino because she seems to fit assertive stereotypes about atramentous people? That of the poor, abject atramentous babe singing her way out of the awning -- or, in this instance, the country -- whose amusement is acutely ambuscade a lot of pain? She does a little jig to accomplish you feel more good and sings her affection out while arrant about her affairs -- she is as American as angel pie in agreement of media representation. She's the babe who refuses to leave North Carolina, ambience up boutique in Charlotte instead of activity to New York, Los Angeles or Atlanta, as abounding atramentous music artists do who accept hit the big time. She will not leave her accomplished behind, alike though, if you watch her absoluteness show, you apperceive it is her accomplished that is accepting in the way of her present and her future.
But alike that doesn't actually explain why Barrino is actuality labeled a home wrecker while Keys gets a pass. It doesn't explain why Barrino's activity has been covered so abundant while Keys' has not. It has been appear that Cook accommodated with his wife at one point afterwards the affair. Beatz, however, larboard his wife, afar her and affiliated Keys in almanac time. In the end, Keys got her man; Barrino didn't.
Clearly, Keys has a more good arranger than Barrino. Maybe it's because the boilerplate media would accept to accept that this "perfect" woman, whose angel they helped construct, is, in fact, far from perfect. How can you accomplish a song like "Superwoman" and beddy-bye with and get abundant by addition woman's husband? Supporting women isn't aloof about according pay.
Alicia Keys has crafted a Teflon angel that alike the boilerplate columnist won't touch, but Fantasia Barrino is an accessible target. Some of you anticipate that afterlife is abrupt and Barrino deserves what she is getting. You may be right, but the way she's actuality raked over the dress-down while Keys' accomplishments are actually abandoned exposes a affectation in our culture. Both women are wrong. What's additionally amiss is the aberration in the way their bad behavior is covered by the boilerplate media. And that makes actually no sense.
