Blind item
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (August 2012) |
A blind item is a
news story, typically in a gossip column, in which the details of the matter are reported while the identities of the people involved are not revealed.[1] The invention of the blind item is credited to William d'Alton Mann (1839–1920), publisher of Town Topics, who often used it for blackmail.[2] Communication privacy management theory relates to the ideas of information privacy that influence this form of communication.[3]
The advent of gossip websites brought about more public debate and speculation about the individual blind item stories, and also about the ethics surrounding the practice.[4] Audiences might use blind item material as a shared topic of conversation with peers, and perhaps even as a conversational entry point to a sensitive topic that is personal to them.[5]
See also
- Circular sourcing
- Defamation
- Innuendo
- Roman à clef
- Rumor
- De-identification
- Anonymization
References
- ^ Bonner, Mehera. "The King of the Hollywood Blind Item Reveals All". Vanities. Retrieved 2018-04-28.
- ^ "Gossiper Silenced". Time. Jan 25, 1932. Archived from the original on March 10, 2007. Retrieved Aug 8, 2008.
- S2CID 59528457.
- ^ Ortner, Heike (2013), Not So Blind Items: Anonymous Celebrity Gossip Exposed (PDF)
- ^ Petersen, Anne Helen (May 2011). The Gossip Industry: Producing and Distributing Star Images, Celebrity Gossip and Entertainment News 1910-2010 (Thesis). The University of Texas at Austin.
 | This journalism-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |