opinion news

Brad Pitt 'supports' Sony even after destructive Angelina emails

Brad Pitt in 'Moneyball'
Brad Pitt made some notable remarks on Monday night about the Sony hack in the wake of much anger over the way Amy Pascal and Scott Rudin discussed Angelina Jolie and Obama in leaked emails.

Hundreds of correspondences appeared on various news sites in full this past week which highlighted various dealings at the studio and negotiations between producers. Everyone from Steven Spielberg to Jennifer Lawrence was discussed but Pitt's comments on Monday night struck a chord.

Following Aaron Sorkin's scathing comments about the media's interpretation of 'newsworthy' material he was immediately put down by several bloggers and publishers including Forbes Magazine. However, that backlash didn't stop others from speaking out in support of Sony despite the unflattering conversations that have now become public knowledge.

With the support of Seth Rogen, James Franco and Oprah, Brad Pitt forms part of a fragile alliance, but also a growing list of public figures eager to put some perspective on the hack and illustrate why it's wrong to judge and reveal everything that's been stolen.

Brad Pitt interview with Yahoo:

"I was just saying that I don’t see a difference in News Corp hacking phone calls and hacking e-mails. I don't think we should be able to participate…I think someone's conversation, whether in e-mail or in person, should be private. We shouldn't be participating and these sites that are disseminating them should stop. They won't."

There are many reasons why publishers should not be copying stolen information from leaked Sony files, but a majority of news outlets don't share this view. The ethical debate about what is and isn't newsworthy will continue, but the fact that Pitt has made his opinions heard suggests that even though Angelina Jolie was subject of a highly inappropriate conversation, there is an understanding that these emails shouldn't be entirely taken at face value or be in the public domain.

It's not been a good week for journalism. Will others follow Pitt's example? So far Hollywood figures are keeping dead quiet about their views on the hack. More needs to be done to support Sony employees who have done nothing wrong, and they don't deserve to become victims of other people's criminal acts.

film industry network members