Katie Couric's Notebook: Lindsay Lohan

By: Katie Couric
Topics: Katie Couric's Notebook

Video:
Notebook: Lohan's Cry For Help

We've been hearing a lot about Lindsday Lohan lately -- but when watching the media saturation about her, remember: this is a young woman with a very serious problem: addiction.

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by ericmichael1 July 29, 2007 3:04 PM EDT: I do not have compassion for those with problems.

But I have great compassion for those who admit they have a problem and take the steps needed to correct it.

I believe in tough love. If you really have love for another person, you will help them to heal by showing them that they are culpable for their actions, not enable their addiction by misplaced compassion.

However, I am quite sick and tired of the constant media frenzy whenever a celebrity fails. It's motive is not to help them, but to gain viewers. And there is no dignity or professionalism to it at all.

Yet misplaced compassion is just as bad for the maligned person as the media frenzy is. It helps them to minimize their personal culpability and to perpetuate the denial.

And that is not showing love to them, either.

Eric; Reply to this comment


by kjap14 July 28, 2007 2:58 AM EDT: Katie,

I must say that I do not agree with your thoughts on Lindsay. I am a person who has had a very tough life and I have no compassion for people who have been blessed or given a chance to have a great life and blow it.

I feel we all have had something in our lives happen to us that could cause us to make the wrong choices but it all comes down to us and who we want to be.

I do not feel bad for her. I do not care that she has pressures of being a big star. She is the one who decided to travel down this road and she has had many chances to straighten her life out. Their is no reason why she could not be a better role model. But instead she decided to follow in so many famous footsteps.

There are no excuses Katie. She did this to herself. No one pushed her into it. As far as I am concerned she needs to feel, hear and see what her actions do to the children who look up to her and to the ones she loves. She has not hit the ground hard enough in my book. So no I will not have compassion for a girl who has everything she could ask for. And yes I may not know what goes on in her personal life but I can tell you from personal experience that there is no excuse for behavior like hers.

We are only as good as the people we surround ourselves with. You can not help someone who does not wish to be helped and she needs to learn to not take her life for granted and her gifts. If this means learning the hard way then so be it!; Reply to this comment


by ericmichael1 July 27, 2007 11:07 PM EDT: But I believe we each have our own personal story of love lost.

So the tale seems complete after all.; Reply to this comment


by why_not_nar July 27, 2007 2:57 AM EDT: Katie,
I share your concern and compassion. Addiction is a disease. But it is a disease that can be treated.
I hope that Lindsay receives the treatment that she needs.; Reply to this comment


by petersemkiw July 27, 2007 2:30 AM EDT: Dear Katie,

I remember seeing that wonderful film "The Parent Trap" in which I first saw Lindsay Lohan, in her talented & gifted performance. She played both roles of the English & American twin daughters with technical & artistic excellence,& I was really impressed with her acting talents at such a young age.

Despite her many accomplishments & films since then, it is sad that today Lindsay is having trouble with serious DUI charges & ongoing alcohol addiction problems, as are a number of celebrities lately. But again, no one is above the law, & they are responsible for their dangerous actions legally. It is not easy to be a film star,& they face many pressures in the film world,& often with their families, & often with their peers & friends, which can predispose many of them into the easily available outlet of alcohol addiction.

All of these pressures and problems can be magnified and enlarged by the ever present media and paparazzi, which often only makes things even worse when compassion and understanding is what is sorely needed. We tend to forget that "This is NOT entertainment", or tabloid fodder for the masses.
These preforming artists are suffering in these difficult situations and they need our support, compassion, & prayers as they try to cope with their problems,not constant gawking or tabloid invasions of their privacy.

Lindsay Lohan is a great acting talent, & I hope she has a speedy recovery & return to her acting career,

Peter; Reply to this comment


by kathyfargo July 27, 2007 2:02 AM EDT: I heard your comment on the radio today about Lidsay L. At that moment I had to thank God that someone realized that she needs support from the public, and not the abuse that she gets from the media, and people who like to make jokes about the consequences that she has laid out before herself. I myself, a mother of two great kids have gone to rehab once and have been sober and clean for 3+ years. There are a lot of people in this world with one addiction or another and I would agree that most people that are poking fun, either have an underlying problem that they are in denial of, or are scared to face their own problems so would rather point their finger at someone else. I don't know much about Lindsay but her being a suffering Alcoholic and Addict... she is in my thoughts and prayers and I hope she can find the peace that I have found in my life through sobriety. Thank you Katie for supporting someone who is suffering from a very potentially deadly disease.; Reply to this comment


by ericmichael1 July 26, 2007 11:57 PM EDT: Katie,

I think it is all sad, a tragedy out of Shakespeare.

A nation that fought the most powerful empire in the world and won its independence, that developed a form of government that is the standard for the rest of the world to follow, that won a World War against the most vicious dictatorships the world has ever known, is decaying and dying of its own success.

Richer than any other nation in the world, with the most advanced technology ever known to man, and we are a lost generation. We have abandoned our values, abandoned our families and abandoned society for pleasure seeking, addiction and fleeting thrills.

All we need is a story of love lost to complete this epic tragedy.

Eric; Reply to this comment


by ken1dall July 26, 2007 9:41 PM EDT: I love these celebrities in trouble stories. The best part is they are all a bunch of lefties throwing their money and support at Democrat candidates. This country needs more help from Hollywood!!!; Reply to this comment


by skeezix06 July 26, 2007 9:00 PM EDT: Who cares about Lindsay?

If you want to do a story on alcoholism then do it about someone other than a celebrity. Why not do a story about the mental effects of war on returning soldiers; include some statistics and facts to give the story credibility.

If we want a story about a celebrity, we can always turn to Entertainment Tonight or one of the many, many other shows which are centered on who's doing what, when, where, and with whom.

We have been celebritied out the old wazoo till most of us are sick and tired of them being pushed in our face on the evening news which they don't belong on anyway unless they've died sometime between yesterday and now.; Reply to this comment