The BBC has broken the news that a model has accused Kanye West of choking her in a London hotel. If true, this is not merely a sordid tabloid squabble. It is a grim vignette of an age where fame erodes the last vestiges of decency.
One thinks of the Roman emperors, their appetites unchecked, their rages unpunished. Mr West, a genius of sound and self-promotion, has long traded on the notion that the rules apply to others. Now we see the logical conclusion: a man who believes his creativity excuses his cruelty.
The Victorian era, for all its prudish hypocrisy, understood that reputation was a fragile thing. Today we have only the hollow echo of scandal, a clickbait chorus that reinforces the very celebrity it pretends to judge. The model’s allegation, if substantiated, reveals a culture that grants impunity to the talented and the wealthy.
We should not be surprised. We should be ashamed.
