Amy Winehouse Needs Saving...From The Paps
 Thursday, November 6th, 2008  by Connie T.

On Rosie O'Donnell's website once, a reader posted the question, "Do you think we will ever get to hear new music from Amy [Winehouse]?" Rosie's reply was, "I don't think so. Not everyone survives addiction."

I suppose it's projecting to say I could read the sadness in those words. But I could.

Over the last few days, terrible - and we mean terrible - photographs of Amy Winehouse have been popping up everywhere on gossip websites. The photos, taken by paparazzi for agencies like Splash and Bauer Griffin, depict a near-unrecognizable Winehouse with hair unkempt, eyeliner smudged across her face, and an overall out-of-it appearance. But where was Amy going when these pics were snapped? She was not on her way to an LA party or a red carpet awards show. She was going from her home to the clinic, where she is trying to go through rehab.

Of course the paps don't care if she's on the way to the hospital for her chest infection or waiting in line outside a night club; they descend on the frail star like vultures to an injured mouse. And now that Amy's husband, Blake Fielder-Civil has been released from prison and transferred to rehab himself, the frenzy has a fresh chaos similar to the ambulance-chasing of Britney Spears.

This is not funny. It may be presented that way by bloggers or tabloid websites, but in truth this is a real person very close to potentially fatal disaster, and it's frightening to see Amy have to swat and scratch at photogs just to travel to try and get help. Enough is enough. Addiction is a disease...a disease the world could lose a young woman with all the talent in the world to.


Are you an Amy fan - or even just a humanity fan? Tell the agencies that are paying photographers for this what you think of what they're doing. frank@bauergriffin.com, randy@bauergriffin.com, splashblog@splashnews.com.

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