Hacking Scandal

The whole country is up in arms about the scandal of National Newspapers hacking people's phone in order to publish exclusive stories.There is currently an Inquiry going on, The Leveson Inquiry, to delve into the responsibilities for this heinous crime.
Whilst I agree that hacking phones is discgraceful and completely dishonest, especially of those in the News through no fault of their own, it is the public outcry that annoys me.
Why would a newspaper hack someone's phone?
Simple.
It is because the public in this country have an unhealthy and salacious interest in the private lives of other people.  It is in our nauture to assuage our jealousy of the wealthy or famous by delighting in their downfall.  We love nothing better than to see someone "brought down a peg or two" by some scandal.
Where the hell do people think they get the right to pay less than £1.50 to fund this gross intrusion into other's lives just so that they can be amused for a few minutes over breakfast whilst the victim's life gets destroyed.
Celebrities make an honest living often because they are skilled at what they do but part of their job is to promote themselves or their product.  Nowhere in the fine print does their conract force them to display all their secrets, fears or experiences.  If you work in a factory or an office your employer has NO right to examine you home life in case they find something amusing to tell everyone and hence embarrass you so why should it be any different for Celebrities?
The lowest of the low, though, is the intrusion into the lives of victims who have been thrust into the limelight because their lifes have been turned upside down by a crime or event that they could not avoid.  These are ordinary people who do not want to be in this position but have no defence against the vultures who pick their lives apart and feed the scraps to the starving audience. 
Just think of the poor, wrongly accused, landlord of Joanna Yeats.  His life was torn apart and allegations of all sorts were concocted about things he was supposed to have done.  The newspapers flew off the shelves and the man on the street became en expert on the details of his depraved life.  This was an Innocent man!  There was no evidence against him yet he was exposed to a "Trial by Newspaper" with a jury of 20 million all proclaiming his guilt.

So who is really to blame for the filth that gets parading every day on the news stands of Britain?
If the public didn't lap it all up and chew it over in the pub or at work then the journalists would not bother to print it.

So come down off your high horses all you indignant newspaper readers and STOP paying the wages of the journalists and then they wouldn't be able to practice these awful crimes.  They do it for YOU!