Balloon Boy
Many of you probably heard about the tragic boy that got drifted away in a homemade helium balloon. You may have also heard that this was a hoax. The boy was not in fact floating through the skies of Colorado, but safely home in the attic. They also had their two other kids lie for them. The parents of this boy had crafted this story for attention. “The motive for the fabricated story was to make the Heene family more marketable for future media interest” (Dobuzinskis 1).
What does this say about America? Why do some people go to such lengths for publicity? This also poses the question of how accurate everyday news is. Does every hoax get caught, or do some go about unnoticed?
Tell what you think to all three questions posed.
And for more information about the balloon boy hoax visit:
http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE59M5J720091023
November 2nd, 2009 at 5:37 PM
Yay, first comment. This story is deeply disturbing. I saw the interview when the little boy said that he had been in the attic the whole time. The parents make me sick. Anyone who uses their children to get famous is obviously not very happy with the life they are living. It can also go for parents who put their kids in pagents and have them acting when they are 2. They want publicity and to be famous and to have money so badly that they put people they should love in possible danger. I’m not saying that they do not love their children, because they probably do very much, but they lose sight in what is important. My mom had the choice to put me in comercials when I was a baby. It could have made me famous, given us money, and promised me a future, but I’m glad she didn’t do it. People need to realize that all they should really ever need is the bare necissesities and love.
November 4th, 2009 at 5:37 PM
I dont know how, I dont know who, and I certianly dont know why ANYONE would do this. A ballon kid?? Really now?? That is desparte for attittion right there! Did they really think it would be a good idea for publicity? I mean, who wants to be famous for helping a good cause when you can fake a story about your kid stuck in a hulium ballon? (sarcasem). Donate half your cash to cancer/AIDS,diabetes reserch if you want the GOOD kind of publicity (if that even exiests)
November 4th, 2009 at 5:51 PM
I agree with both Anna and Rosie. People have choices in life. I find it sickening when parents put little 3 year olds or even younger in pagents, commercials, etc. Most of the time when parent’s do that, they just want money. They are just thinking about themselves. They don’t even think about the kid. As the kid grows up it won’t have a normal life. The parents don’t realize that. Honestly, before you put a kid into something like that, think about how that will affect them, not just how much money you will make during the shindig.(I don’t know why I used that word. It is quite random)
November 9th, 2009 at 8:25 PM
I think that in this particular case that yes it was wrong of the parents to tell their child to pretend to hide in there attic and pretend to be in a balloon, I also believe that putting young kids in pagents could be considered wrong, but I think that maybe putting a child in a commercial for a few extra bucks is not that big of a deal. Dependent on the age of the child I don’t think that it will effect a child all that much if they are in a commercial as a kid. If my parents were offered up the opertunity I wouldn’t have a problem with it. Now like I said earlier, this case was tottaly different and was strictly used for attention. Children in commercials, I think should be up to the parents until the child can actually speak or make educated decisions, because, you can argue all you like, but there is always a time when you have absolutely no idea what is going on around you as a child.
November 13th, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Its very sad that someone would fall to such a low, that you would try and trick the public. I still dont get how this was suposed to get the parents a tv show, but they were very desperate. If you watch the video of the interview after the incident, the kid gives away what they were trying to do. When the kid says they were trying to get a show the father clenches up and his face gets red. Then after the dad trys to play dumb and brushes away what his kid said. Why would they put this kid through this, when they are probably going to end up and jail, and the kid wont have any parents to be there. I hope that those parents are very happy with themselves