What I See with Peter Fiorenza: Battle of the Beckhams is fodder for the masses, but why are we so interested?

There has been a lot going on in the world lately. The machinations of Donald Trump, the fallout from the Bondi massacre and of course, the Royal family scandal centred on the dramatic downfall of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. There’s also the on-off marriage of the Liberal and National parties in Canberra, and closer to home the ongoing e-scooter saga. But, there is no doubt, all of this has been superseded by the battle of the Beckhams. Now, for some reason, I have recently taken an interest in the lives of arguably the world’s most famous football (soccer) player, his former Spice Girls wife and their children. Why? Because, like many of us, I find pleasure in following the lives of the rich and famous. I suppose it’s a bit of escapism. Even so, I have been astonished at the intense media interest surrounding the recent fallout the Beckhams have had with their eldest son Brooklyn. For months now, there has been plenty of speculation about the dramatic split and then Brooklyn went nuclear on social media, with a long post on why he didn’t want anything to do with his family anymore. Including some mention of Victoria Beckham’s dubious dancing with her son at his wedding. Up until then, all involved had remained tight-lipped on why things had gone south in the relationship. Now, the saga has been billed as a major topic on prime time Sunday evening television. It seemed after months of speculation, we were finally being told why one of the UK’s most famous families was fractured. Or, so we thought. Like many, I waited with baited breath, but all we got was a series of interviews with celebrity journalists and influencers giving their take on the split and the drama surrounding it. Now, please? The details were limited and the show was simply made up of conjecture. It’s an industry that continues to grow, the promulgating of half truths and spin. In recent times, the advent of social media has only elevated this type of so-called journalism. For some reason, more and more of us are eating it up — to the point that when we periodically switch to something like SBS we are soberly reintroduced to real news. To be quite honest, I don’t think I’ll ever get back the hour I spent watching that program. Peter Fiorenza hosts Sports Shed Saturday and Fiorenza on Sunday on Radio MAMA. You can also listen to him on Radio Geraldton.