Despite popular opinion, TMZ is a credible entertainment news outlet. Its founder, Harvey Levin, is an attorney, and as an attorney, he’s well aware of defamation, and a slew of other causes of action related to lying or publishing inaccurate information. So when TMZ exposed Lamar Odom’s alleged drug abuse, I immediately hypothesized the source of the leak, and all signs point to the Kardashians. How else would they know that Khloe Kardashian hired a private investigator who “stood guard” outside Lamar’s rehab facility? This certainly could have come from a reliable “friend,” but TMZ is far too smart to risk legal liability unless it came from the Kardashians themselves.
And now for my larger point. If the Kardashians did in fact leak this, then I’m inundated with unfavorable adjectives that I will leave out of this article. Why would anyone think its okay to publicly expose someone’s drug addiction? Lamar Odom has his own career, his own children, and his own family to worry about, and this revelation does nothing to ensure his recovery. If it’s a PR move to preempt a divorce fallout from the cheating rumors flying around, then it’s nothing short of evil. Perhaps I’m wrong. I realize they all willingly chose to expose their private lives for public gain. But there’s a line in the sand, and if I’m right, this crossed it.