Nicole Kidman testified today in Australia about being hounded by paparazzi in her homeland and especially about one, specific harrowing event where she feared that she was about to be in a car accident. From the Australian Herald Sun, her testimony:
'"I was frightened and I was worried, I was worried about a car accident," she said.
'Her driver, John Manning, sounded "pretty panicked" as he told her about Mr Fawcett's "crazy" driving.
'"I was really frightened and I was in tears, and distressed," she said.
'Kidman said she no longer drove herself because she did not "feel equipped to handle being pursued" by photographers.'
Meanwhile, Britney Spears has begun dealing with the media mob by continuing to slowly drive her car through the crowd -- and two paparazzi have already had their feet run over by her tires. One paparazzi says this isn't her fault, that the paps are getting too close to the car and not moving away in time.
The inquest into Princess Diana's death continues, and while there were predictions then of an increase in paparazzi-induced fatalities, it didn't happen. Times have changed, though, and I predict that celebrities are getting more frazzled and fearful as pararazzi continue to become more brazen and forceful.
My prediction: celebrities are going to start pushing back, like Britney.
And, given the rest of Nicole Kidman's testimony -- bugs found where she was honeymooning with Kevin Urban, for example -- looks like lines are being crossed that should be respected.
No one has much sympathy for the star, and nothing has been done since Diana to stop this mess. Britney's slow-moving, foot-smashing car may be just the beginning of celebrities trying to define a privacy line for themselves. At least, that's what I'm seeing.