The real scandal was the rape of Prochazka’s life. In Testaments Betrayed, Milan Kundera argues the need for separation between public and private lives. Kundera describes the story of how Prochazka was “rape” through the exploitation of his private life. Kundera is correct about the “indispensable condition,” which is to respect the difference between the public and privates lives. The “separating curtain” must not be tampered with, and “curtain-rippers are criminals.” The crime of exploitation can be found with celebrities and politics.

Celebrities usually find themselves as ‘victims’ of the invasion of privacy by the press. Television shows like Extra E! and Access Hollywood, gossip magazines like People and tabloids completely invade the private lives of celebrities, often to discredit them, like in the case of Prochazka. When Michael Jackson was undergoing charges of child molestation, the press jumped on him, writing about every little detail of his life and case, to completely humiliate the star. The magazines and newspapers exploited his life so much, that his legendry reputation was forever changed. He was charged with charged with molestation, but the press should’ve been charged for the “rape of his life.”

Most celebrities try at all costs to avoid the press to keep their private lives out of the media, but the press finds ways to invade their lives and publicized it. Some of these invasions by the paparazzi can result in devastating tragedies. Princess Diana was a tragic victim of the paparazzi. Her attempt to avoid a car of news reporters resulted in her sudden death. It is easy for people to judge celebrities because their lives are publicized in mass media. Tiger Woods became one of the most hated men in America, when the reports of his affairs came out. Many men have affairs, but their private lives aren’t mentioned on very television channel and in every magazine, like Tiger’s. There is a ‘personal life’ section if you Wikipedia someone, and tons of articles and websites if you Google them. Fans can find anything they want about their favorite celebrities on the internet. It could be something trivial like their favorite color, but often times, it is something really personal that now the entire world knows because the press doesn’t have the common decency to respect people’s privacy. The Supreme Court said in the penumbra around the first amendment is the right to privacy.

In the game of politics, mudslinging is the prime example of how the invasion of people’s private and past lives become an open book for the scrutiny of all. It takes the focus away from the political views of what should be important to trivial issues from the candidate’s personal lives. As in the mayoral election with Sylvester Turner, the campaigning became an attack on his character and his personal life, rather than his political views. He then lost the election, and any chance of political office. Prochazka role as a leader was also discredited after the exploitation of his private life, which had nothing to do with his role as a leader.

Exploitation and publication of the private lives of celebrities and politicians shows the need for the protection of the separation between one’s public and private lives. Michael Jackson, Princess Diana, Tiger Woods, and Sylvester Tuner are just a few of the many victims to the crimes of the press. Everyone deserves the right to their privacy, and exploitation is a crime. Therefore, the publication of Prochazka’s private conversations was the “rape of his life.”