Is That a Lorax in your Pocket or Are You Just Happy to See Me?

Wow, could there be any more coverage of Zac Efron and his little condom slip? In case you didn't hear about this - and I've heard about it so I can't imagine how anyone who has a computer or a TV hasn't heard about it - Zac Efron accidently dropped a condom on the red carpet at the Premier of the movie the Lorax.

He was pulling his hand out of his pocket to shake hands with someone and something fell out of his pocket. He quickly reached down to pick it up and put it away. It was a split-second incident that was really nothing but it was caught on film and has been replayed over and over and over - even in slow motion on some sites. Today there was a clip of him on MSNBC 'explaining himself'.

This is an example of two things about this celebrity 'news' culture that drive me nuts. First of all, this is not some crazy aberrant behavior. Many, and I hope most, guys his age use condoms and carry them around with them. This silly focus on this incident makes it seem like he's done something quite remarkable or unacceptable when it's totally normal behavior.

Second, filming and taking pictures of everything and then replaying them over and over on every possible tv channel and internet site turns things from small incidents into big big deals. This was a quick little slip that could happen to anyone and is mildly embarassing, particularly at a premiere for a children's movie. But now this small little slip has been seen by millions of people and poor Zac has to go on TV and talk about it when he's there to work.

To his credit, he handled it well, saying that he thought it was a good thing for people to see - a good message that he has condoms in his pockets. I think it's a great thing. Look all you girls who swoon over Zac Efron, he practices safer sex! Cool guys use condoms!

This is much like the pictures of Miley Cyrus that were all over the net a few weeks ago. She got her boyfriend a penis cake for his birthday as a joke. Her friends took some pictures of her being silly with it. This is no big deal. We all do silly fun stuff like this in our lives. If you had a penis cake at a party wouldn't you take silly pictures of you and your friends with it? Of course you would! I know I would! But these pictures were splashed all over the internet with people talking about how raunchy they were and how opposed to her image as a teen star. Give her a break already! Why is she held to a different standard than the rest of us because she's a celebrity?

With everyone carrying a camera and instant access to the internet in their pocket these days, I think it's pretty much impossible to ensure that nothing embarassing about you ever gets out into the public domain. So maybe it's time to just relax.