Britney and AP: pre-written obits for the old, why not for the young?

Posted by Jean Yves Chainon on January 23, 2008 at 12:01 PM

It’s common practice to prepare obituaries of personalities long in advance. But news that the Associated Press already wrote an obit for 26-year-old pop star Britney Spears has led to controversy and a renewed debate about the practice.

The Washington Post has about 100 prepared obituaries in its files, while the Los Angeles Times has approximately 400, and the AP has about 1,000 pre-written obituaries in its files.

While public and journalistic opinion seems to accept the practice of pre-written obits, the issue here revolves around the young age of the celebrity.

"It's a complex issue, a complex debate," says Washington Post reporter Adam Bernstein, a respected obituary writer. "It's unclear to what degree somebody really is on the edge. So do you spend the time to put something together when you're wondering whether it will run now or 70 years from now?"

According to others, the youthful-obit effect is tied to the Internet and the audience’s expectation to see news organization provide coverage about celebrities almost instantaneously.

In any case, the AP article reporting on this issues doesn’t make much of a case about the ethical implications of Britney Spears’ pre-written obituary: not habitual perhaps, but not unethical.

Source: Associated Press through San Francisco Chronicle