Why Paris Hilton is a story

By Chris Sweigart

Published: June 19, 2007

Tired of hearing about poor little Paris Hilton? Granted, the tale of our hotel heiress made national news every day—almost every hour—last week when she was sent to jail, then released, then sent back. A loud response from the general public was, “Who cares?“ Personally, I could care less if Paris Hilton spends the rest of her life in jail or spends the rest of her life in a mall boutique.
The tale of Paris and her in and out trip behind bars isn’t necessarily the story. What is the story is privilege, power and money. Why does this fragile flower get to spend her first few days of jail in the “medical” wing? That’s not exactly hard time. Why did Paris’ parents get to bypass the long line of visitors to see their child. Parents of other inmates had to wait for hours to see their delinquents. Not the Hiltons. Paris is special.
I don’t care what Paris was convicted of. What I do care about is how the rich and famous seemingly get preferential treatment when it comes to the law. Sure, Paris is expected to serve her full term of 45 days, but she should be treated just like every other prisoner during her stay. Inside, she is not Paris Hilton. She is just another inmate. Anything to the contrary is news and we should be outraged.