Selena Gomez Chemotherapy-Rehab Story: Answering the Unanswered Questions
Selena Gomez (Associated Press)
In a just-published interview with Billboard, Selena Gomez made a surprising revelation —chiefly, that she underwent chemotherapy to treat lupus, a chronic, autoimmune disease, and checked into rehab in January 2014 to recover not, as was widely reported, to deal with drug issues.
Three questions:
1. If Gomez, as she said, “wanted so badly” to refute reports that her rehab stint was linked to marijuana and prescription drugs, then why didn’t she? In the Billboard interview, the 23-year-old actress-singer implies she wasn’t up for a fight. “I locked myself away until I was confident and comfortable again,” she said.
2. But if Gomez is asserting she was wronged, then once she was ready to reenter the public eye, why didn’t she sue for libel? An email seeking comment from Gomez’s rep on Thursday was not returned.
From a legal standpoint, there are a variety of reasons a celebrity would pass on litigation. One practical one: Libel suits are tough to win. That’s because, per Los Angeles-based attorney Bryan Sullivan, media outlets, especially ones that run on gossip, are “very careful.”
Without looking at the original RadarOnline-Star report that broke the rehab story, Sullivan said he guessed the outlet itself didn’t say Gomez was having drug issues (he’s right — it didn’t), but rather quoted a person who said Gomez was “struggling” (he’s right — it did). For what it’s worth, the report also noted that Gomez’s camp said the stay was due to exhaustion.
“It’s a fine line,” Sullivan said.
There’s another compelling reason for a star to avoid a public-court battle: the public court.
“If you sue someone for defamation,” Sullivan said, “they [the defendant] can open the door to your private life — for any reason.” Medical records, included.
3. What do the media outlets have to say for themselves? First off, there were many outlets that outlined scandalous and occasionally Justin Bieber-related reasons for Gomez’s rehab check-in. (Bustle.com has a good rundown.) RadarOnline and Star, however, were out front. On Thursday, American Media Inc., the parent company of the sister publications, said it backed its stories.
“While we sympathize with Ms. Gomez and her current battle against lupus, we stand 100 percent behind the accuracy of our reporting regarding her treatment at an Arizona rehab facility in January 2014,” a spokesman said. “Like her fans, we wish her the very best in her ongoing recovery.”
