‘Cheers to those who recognize that ordinary people do deserve some private space.’
The latest buzz is about the viral video of the man hugging a woman at the Coldplay concert in Massachusetts, USA. Their moment, caught on cam and shown on the giant screen, looked innocent and sweet, until the pair realized they were seen by the thousands of concert-goers, prompting the woman to cover her face with her hands and the man to duck out of frame.
The “kiss cam” — a fun game wherein the camera scans the stadium then shows a random couple on the big screen–is part of American culture; those caught by the “kiss cam” are expected to kiss. People are usually delighted to have their 15 minutes of fame on the kiss cam, which is why Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin found the couple’s evasiveness strange. “Either they’re having an affair or they’re just really shy,” he opined to the crowd in the stadium.
What Chris said was an honest joke because seconds later, he expressed regretfully, “Oh s–t, I hope we didn’t do something bad.”
In any case, “Coldplaygate” wasn’t good exposure for the couple. Netizens now know their names. The man was identified as a CEO of a big tech enterprise and the woman was said to be the company’s HR head. The first part of Chris Martin’s remark might turn out to be true since the pair involved were discovered to be married to other spouses.
The incident looked like a scene from a sitcom and Chris’ dialogue was the punchline. The world got hooked on “Coldplaygate.” Perhaps the internet has not had this much fun since seeing two young children “videobomb” their professor-dad’s live interview on BBC World News.
But the families of this “kiss cam” couple must be in great distress. Also, the couple’s careers and lives would forever be changed by this indiscretion.
Issues of right to privacy have emerged. One netizen suggested that the couple should file a case against the cameraman who manned the kiss cam. Marvin Aceron, a lawyer we talked to, disagrees. Marvin said, “The shot was accidental and it was a public event. There is reasonable expectation for the concert goers to be seen and get caught on cam.”
In a similar vein, media who have named the couple in news reports and feature articles are not remiss. “If the couple wanted to hide their identities, they should have worn masks,” Marvin quipped.
As for Chris Martin’s remark, Marvin does not see it as libelous. “That was a joke. Libel requires malice. The statement was made in jest and it’s hard to infer malice.”
Until the next internet or social media surprise comes along, this, uhm, affair is going to occupy our attention and social media feeds for the next couple of days. What is worth pointing out is that major news outlets based in the United States like People, Variety, and NBC, did not name the couple in their reports. (At least in the initial articles these outlets came out with last Friday). By the way, even talk show host Jimmy Fallon talked about Coldplaygate in his comedic spiel but he did not mention the couple’s names.
The reason is that the persons who are directly involved have yet to make a public confirmation – not that they should. This detail is indicative of how the established news outlets cover sensitive stories. Yes, anyone who attends a public event might be fair game. But cheers to those who recognize that ordinary people do deserve some private space.
