George Clooney bashes The Daily Mail’s Druze article in a new open letter

wenn21064925

On Monday, The Daily Mail published a lengthy article in which they claimed Amal Alamuddin’s mother didn’t care for George Clooney because she wanted her daughter to marry someone from their Druze faith. The Mail claimed that Amal’s mom believes in insular Druze-only marriages and child-rearing and that since there’s no conversion method for Druze, George could never be worthy. I covered the story yesterday, as did many other blogs and outlets this week. And now George Clooney claims that the entire article is fabricated and that his would-be mother-in-law is not Druze:

I want to speak to the irresponsibility of Monday’s Daily Mail report. I seldom respond to tabloids, unless it involves someone else and their safety or well being. The Daily Mail has printed a completely fabricated story about my fiancée’s mother opposing our marriage for religious reasons. It says Amal’s mother has been telling “half of Beirut” that she’s against the wedding. It says they joke about traditions in the Druze religion that end up with the death of the bride.

Let me repeat that: the death of the bride.

First of all, none of the story is factually true. Amal’s mother is not Druze. She has not been to Beirut since Amal and I have been dating, and she is in no way against the marriage — but none of that is the issue. I’m, of course, used to the Daily Mail making up stories — they do it several times a week — and I don’t care. If they fabricate stories of Amal being pregnant, or that the marriage will take place on the set of Downton Abbey, or that I’m running for office, or any number of idiotic stories that they sit at their computers and invent, I don’t care.

But this lie involves larger issues. The irresponsibility, in this day and age, to exploit religious differences where none exist, is at the very least negligent and more appropriately dangerous. We have family members all over the world, and the idea that someone would inflame any part of that world for the sole reason of selling papers should be criminal.

I’m the son of a newsman; I accept the idea that freedom of speech can be an inconvenience to my private life from time to time, but this story, like so many others, is picked up by hundreds of other outlets citing the Daily Mail as their source, including Boston.com, New York Daily News, Gulf News, Emirates 24/7 and so on.

The Daily Mail, more than any other organization that calls itself news, has proved time and time again that facts make no difference in the articles they make up. And when they put my family and my friends in harm’s way, they cross far beyond just a laughable tabloid and into the arena of inciting violence. They must be so very proud.

[From USA Today]

Okay. I think George has every right to be angry and he has every right to correct the record and call out The Daily Mail for making up stories. So, this is completely justified. Full-stop.

If I wanted to parse – and I’ve gone back and forth on this – I could. Easily. I could find an angle, because while I think George is completely justified in writing what he wrote, I think this statement is a tinder box full of religious and freedom of speech controversies. But so was the original DM article that started everything, so blah. Let George’s words speak for themselves.

wenn21455386

Photos courtesy of WENN.

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

212 Responses to “George Clooney bashes The Daily Mail’s Druze article in a new open letter”

Comments are Closed

We close comments on older posts to fight comment spam.

  1. GiGi says:

    The thing I find interesting is that her mother isn’t even Druze. I often think that, while these stories are mostly made up, there is at least a kernel of truth to form the fabrication around. Not the case, here, apparently.

    • Faye says:

      I agree. I found that interesting.

      Forgot to say in a separate post that while he certainly has a right to speak out about lies that are published about him, his comments were over the top. “Putting his family and friends in harm’s way?” “Inciting violence?” How?

      • Amber3 says:

        Clooney’s just a sanctimonious SOB

      • epiphany says:

        Clooney is a drama queen – oops, king. Everything that involves him always requires superlatives, “the most” “the best” “outrageous”, “criminal”. We thought you ‘cherished’ your privacy. Quit using your engagement for PR, and maybe they’ll leave you alone.
        Wish somebody in his life had the stones to remind him he’s just a mediocre actor who got lucky.

      • Hannah says:

        Couldn’t disagree more with you people. I couldn’t give a crap about clooney but this article is very dangerous. To make up something like this to write about the death of the bride or castration of the groom is much more dramatic than anything clooney wrote. It is daily mail at it’s very worst.

      • epiphany says:

        @Hannah – none of us questioned the potential danger of this article, or the Daily Fail’s irresponsibility in publishing it. We’re criticizing Clooney’s hypocrisy. He can’t claim on one hand to ‘cherish’ his privacy, then use his engagement for non-stop PR, then complain when media outlets – even trashy ones – print articles like this. He could have kept all of this out of the press, married quietly, and announced it after the fact. He wants the attention, he just wants it on his terms, and showbiz doesn’t work that way.

      • LadySlippers says:

        •ephiphany•

        I actually disagree with you. If Clooney hadn’t written this open letter, none of us would have known how factually incorrect the DM was *or* the religious fall-out that could dominoe elsewhere.

        I applaud him here.

      • homegrrrl says:

        I don’t think he’s being “dramatic” to respond to a fabrication that claims a religious sect of Islam will murder a bride or castrate a groom. This type of “gossip” incites hatred which is the harbinger of violence. I read it and felt violated too, as I usually read tabloids before bed to get a dose of ridiculous to counter my hard scrabble reality. I commend GC for defending his soon to be bride, family, and the world culture to which he belongs. While I can sort through the silly, I appreciate a factual reply when silly becomes dangerous.

      • epiphany says:

        Missing the point. If he had kept this seemingly oh-so-important relationship private, instead if using it for whatever PR game he has waiting in the bullpen, this latest barrage of stories wouldn’t be written. Instead, we’re subjected to the excruciating minutiae of their” love story”. Amazing how other celebs seem to be getting married, getting pregnant, giving birth – and no one knows until after the fact. Everything about George is contrived, including his response to that DM story.

      • Tiffany :) says:

        epiphany, you think that if he was engaged and didn’t make a statement about it at all, that the press still wouldn’t know about it and speculate about it? I disagree.

    • Nick says:

      The article mentions that Amal was laughing that Clooney could have his d*ck cut off and that people are killed for not marrying (a?) Druze if they are one themself. Its an irresponsible article and just perpetuates that religious violence is the norm. I really do not like Clooney or this relationship but I agree with him 100%. These newspapers have to bear some responsibility for the articles they publish.

      • Stef Leppard says:

        @nick
        I agree, I don’t even like him and I think he had every right to call them out. They have the freedom to print this fabricated story and he has the freedom to put them in their place.

      • Karma says:

        If GC hadn’t made this relationship a PR stunt then there wouldn’t be so many crazy stories being written. He opened the door to all this sh-t.

      • Elle Kaye says:

        Sadly, a Druze father and brother did in fact beat and castrate the husband of their daughter/sister because he has not Druze. This happened last July in a Lebanese village. People do horrible things to each other in the name of religion in this world.

      • LadySlippers says:

        •Nick• •Stef Leppard•

        Stirring up racial or religious hatred (hatred of any kind) should be called out. Clooney was correct and I agree with both of you.

        •Elle Kaye•

        It’s sad and very true. 😢

        ❤️ Hopefully one day the world will be filled with love, compassion, and tolerance for our fellow human beings (as well as the planet as a whole). ❤️

      • Chameleon says:

        I am astonished that people here think that newspapers were allowed to print factually incorrect stories purposefully. It is slander and it IS A CRIME. Unfortunately newspapers and journalists and tabloids never seem to get punished seriously for this kind of crime.

      • No Way says:

        Although this is a British tabloid, and I am not as familiar with the laws in the UK in the US slander is mostly a Civil case not Criminal. Although a handful of states have criminal defamation laws, they are rarely applicable to a public figure such as Clooney. He would have a hard time pursuing a criminal case at least in the US even though they are speaking about his fiancé as she has become a public figure too. From looking at the Daily Mail’s stories it appears in Britain it must be difficult to prove slander of a public figure too as they have a lot of crazy stories about celebrities and never heard of anyone going to jail either.

      • MW says:

        Here is something I copied from when Brad and Angie sued and won their “News of the Word” libel suit: “English libel law allows a plaintiff to sue if they can claim published statements defamed their reputation, without having to show damage was suffered. Defendants have to prove the statement is true, rather than the plaintiff needing to show it’s false”.
        It also said NOTW tried to say they were acting in good faith, printing the story about Brad and Angie’s alleged breakup (which was not true) but the Court did not believe NOTW.

    • Em' says:

      But George Clooney has never been precious about his private life. He does not share excessively but he doesn’t snap at paps or complain about it in interviews. He has always said, and still does in his open letter, that he understands it’s part of the deal

    • Malak says:

      So her mother is a Sunni or Shia, or Ismaeli? GC didn’t say. I think if she’s Catholic, GC would probably have said it. Whatever the mother’s religion is, it doesn’t prove she hasn’t said that her daughter could do better, and if she did, so what. GC’s reputation is not exactly a secret.

  2. Truly says:

    I thought Cloonzy didn’t read about himself.

    Oops .. gave himself away here 😉

    • Kiddo says:

      He may not have read it firsthand. The article was about the inlaws. Any number of people might have brought it to his attention.

      • Gayle says:

        George mentioned many other DM articles/topics. I too believe he reads his own press.

      • Francis says:

        Of course he read it. He and his lady have been using the paper for good PR, since the start, IMO.

    • mystified says:

      +1

    • Erinn says:

      Mother-in-law-to-be might have read it. She could have been upset over the whole thing, because if I was her, and it was fabricated, I would be.

      • jinni says:

        Sure but that still doesn’t explain how he knows about the Downton Abbey story or the stories about his alleged political aspirations. He may not read about himself directly, but I’m sure he has people on his team that are aware of every news article about him and keep him abreast of the rumors and stories.

      • Luca26 says:

        Even if he hasn’t read a story his publicist would be called about it for a response or he may be asked about it by reporters. In fact half the time celebs care called to comment on a story before it even is published.

      • Francis says:

        Of course he reads it,,he’s a egomaniac.

    • Arock says:

      Greater point=missed.
      Regardless of how he came to the article, it was a well thought out, appropriate response. DM can write all the drivel it wants and claim “sources” when it comes to celebrities but the content of this story is irresponsible in the larger context- religious conflict, martial rights, etc. it was ment to be an interst piece but is really just insulting and inflammatory.

      • Jayna says:

        Exactly, and the point is it is picked up as legitimate and gets run in all places and discussed as if true. I am always amazed in these last years how TV shows now will discuss articles like this as if “fact” thus creating a life of its own. I have seen on the news something repeated that had no journalistic credibility coming from publications that would usually never have been quoted unless there was legitimate proof, not the usual “sources” from The Enquirer, Daily Fail, etc.

      • LadySlippers says:

        •Arock•

        Agree.

        Good points.

      • LAK says:

        Obviously, there is no way for you to know this unless you live in Britain, but the DM’s online website isn’t representative AT ALL of what the DM is.

        It’s salacious and gossipy with a dollop of news thrown in. And they’ve worked very hard to be that way online which in turn has made them the top celeb site [or close to the top] in the world.

        Their print edition has little celeb gossip and or salacious reporting, except the femail section which appears once a week. it’s focus is news and serious issues. The news team is respected and frequently wins awards within the media industry over other papers.

        It’s a shame that most of the news angle has been reduced/removed from the online site to make space for more and more celeb content.

        i also noticed that they cull their stories from other celeb websites or tabloids such that something that appears in people or US weekly or the Enquirer or on a blog like popsugar/*CB or the internet in general makes it’s way onto the site.

        *CB was once referenced in a story about Brandi on the DM.

      • Ayre says:

        There is definitely a difference between The Mail Online and the print edition of the Daily Mail, with the latter being much less celebrity-oriented. But the print version is still conservative, xenophobic, racist, and inflammatory. They print “newsworthy” stories that are designed to do the same things the celeb gossip content is: rile people up so they keep reading.

      • Ayre says:

        I’m also more than a little sick of how every woman in a DM online article is “showing off” her legs or “revealing” her body. It’s sexist in the most offensive way. Not all of us are concerned with how much or how little of her body a woman is “revealing.”

        The print edition does the same thing with Muslims. The UK is currently in the grip of some harsh anti-Muslim sentiment, and the Daily Mail is fanning this fire. Clooney is making a very valid point here. He’s a bit of a blowhard, but the Daily Mail was out of line.

  3. Abbott says:

    He’s good at acknowledging the problem, throwing down the gauntlet, yet reigning it in so as not to sound like a whiny celeb.

    ‘I accept the idea that freedom of speech can be an inconvenience to my private life from time to time…’ Slow clap for you, CloonTang.

    • TheOriginalKitten says:

      Yeah I agree with you. I used to really like George-was never a fan of his dating game-but I respected him.
      That statement was a glimpse of the old Clooney, before it turned into The Amal & George Show.

      • Nick says:

        Clooney gets “it”. He is one of the more aware celebs in the game today. Hate him for his dating habits but the man gets “it”.

      • kri says:

        I don’t know what to make of GC’s personal life or this engagement thing, but none of my biz, really beyond just celeb gossip stuff. As for his statement, I think it was well-written. When he talked about it being irresponsible and untrue, I thought he was eloquent w/out sounding whiny. The man has good game, and still uses it.The DM is crazy and should always be taken with an entire salt shaker.

      • Francis says:

        George also wrote a letter to the press about the Steve Wynn fight. Letters are his way.

    • Tanguerita says:

      While it’s true and well-written, I can’t shake off the feeling that Clooney has been lately engaging with the press way more often than ever before. it feels like he cares too much about what people think and that this marriage is the result of this caring.

      • TheOriginalKitten says:

        ITA 100%

      • Francis says:

        So then maybe the Tina Fey joke heard and seen around the World, DID bother him? 🙂 hahaha

      • Suze says:

        I agree with this – yes, he is “in the right” but he’s just a tad too outraged.

        Oh, well, let George have his righteous moment.

      • Francis says:

        Yes. George’s engagement came after he (his dating history) was turned into a Worldwide joke, at an Award show and the world understood and laughed at him.

      • don't kill me i'm french says:

        +1

  4. Faye says:

    Interesting. It’s funny because in a discussion with another poster yesterday, I said I thought this was total BS and her response was that no, if that was the case Amal’s firm would sue. I guess we were both right in a way because George responded.

    He’s really changes his publicity game, hasn’t he? Maybe I’m wrong but I still think it was silly of him to respond. He should stay above it all. I doubt that anybody with sense took the story seriously, and even if they did, it’s not like anybody was being accused of a crime. When he engages with these tabloids he gets down on their level. Just IMO.

    • Lori says:

      maybe the mother in law asked him too. The article does make her look bad.

    • Abbott says:

      There was talk in the article about killing the bride and castrating the groom. I don’t really blame him for telling the DM to knock it off. The story was picking up steam.

      • Faye says:

        But those were far-out comments made about hypothetical Druze people. Nobody was saying Amal’s mother was going to do that. And given that I think even the DM published pics of Amal’s and George’s mother shopping arm-in-arm, they weren’t trying to say she was about to take a hit out on her kids.

        That story wasn’t picking up steam with anybody with an ounce of sense. Yes he has the right to refute a lie, but it was still an overreaction IMO.

      • sonalaceae (Nighty) says:

        The story wasn’t picking up steam perhaps in the US or Uk, but what about other countries and even the islamic countries. Sometimes, we have to remember that people with different religions have a different perspective of things, and since this was being republished in islamic papers it could actually backlash… We have to stop thinking we, western world are the centre of the universe and believe that everyone thinks like us… when there’s been proof enough that it isn’t so… It included a bad joke, that perpetuates certain aspects of that particular religion, and they might actually get offended,
        I don’t think he was being self-centered, as some have commented here, he was in fact being quite aware of cultural differences and how things might be perceived…

      • Faye says:

        @sonalaceae (Nighty), I don’t really understand the point you’re trying to make. So let’s say it was published in papers in Islamic countries, and people there were offended. Not nice, but how is that “inciting violence?” Unless you think those people are going to start rioting and committing violence because of a stupid article about Clooney. In which case, aren’t *you* just perpetrating a stereotype here?

        Also, neither of my parents or my husband are American, I work with people from many countries, and I travel internationally frequently. So your assertion that I think the U.S. is the center of the universe is not only offensive, but totally off the mark.

      • Elle Kaye says:

        @sonalaceae (Nighty), but the story the Mail writes about did happen…a man was castrated by a woman’s family for not being Druze and marrying her. He states they wanted to send a message. His name is Ahmad met Rudayna Melaab, and he was 19 at the time (it happened last year)

        Now I’m not saying Amal family joked about it, but Clooney cannot deny that it did happen.

      • claire says:

        @Faye: That’s the conclusion they wanted people to reach though. They wrote a story that her mother is very religious and concerned and against the marriage. Then they told of extreme things that other very religious people in that religion did when against marriages. That’s absolutely what they were implying.

      • Vizia says:

        I suspect he isn’t concerned about the people with “an ounce of sense”.

      • Leen says:

        Faye, Lebanom is extremely sensitive to any factionalism and talk of religion. Plus the Druze in Syria and other places are becoming a threatened minority. I can understand why people would be freaking out that with the George cloobey article would be ohhh look at the Druze, they are medieval, they kill their brides, castrate the non-Druze men, etc. believe me when I say this, but the Middle East does not need any more talk about this and that sect..

      • sonalaceae (Nighty) says:

        @Elle and Faye Ok, maybe I wasn’t clear enough when writing. Remember a cartoon a few years ago making fun of Maome, for us it was just a “joke”. Their reaction was calling out “jihad” to the western world. Now imagine, that this section, the Druze look at this article and think of it as making fun of their beliefs and actions… It can backlash on western countries, especially England. Any article that talks about religion (it doesn’t matter whether the facts are real or not, if they actually do that to brides and grooms) has to be very well tought of and I doubt the DM “journalists” have that capacity. So, yes, it can incite to violence, anger and hatred towards the western. Many things we perceive as harmless, may not be perceived by others that way… We can never now how they are going to respond to it.. If even I was disgusted about how they joked on that religion and I’m not religious at all, imagine them…

      • sonalaceae (Nighty) says:

        Oh, I didn’t read Leen’s comment, sorry…She’s right, it can incite to violence against the Druze…

    • Samtha says:

      I agree. A simple statement from his publicist shooting down the story and pointing out that his mother-in-law to-be isn’t Druze would have sufficed. This just draws more attention to the whole thing.

      • claire says:

        I liked that he didn’t just treat the story as fluff with a simple statement. He specifically called them out for trivializing for page hits a very serious topic of violence against women.

      • LadySlippers says:

        •Claire•

        Yes! I loved his response, it was succinct and on pointe.

  5. Jules says:

    Who believed that bullcrap anyways?

    • TheOriginalKitten says:

      Exactly. Nobody believed it and more importantly, I don’t think people care about Clooney’s wedding as much as he thinks they do.

      • sonalaceae (Nighty) says:

        @Jules and @TOK Actually, there are people who believe everything they read in these type of “newspapers” like the Daily Mail. Many people are extremely gullible and if it’s written on the DM, then it must be true. Thinking nobody believed the story is quite naive of you girls. I could give you examples of stories that would make you laugh so much, because they show people’s incapacity to understand basic, but really basic things, let alone distinguish truth from lies..

      • GoodNamesAllTaken says:

        That’s what I was thinking. George, this isn’t the center of our universe.

        I do think it was irresponsible to say all that stuff about the Druze religion. Not sure it was life threatening, but probably an unfair portrait. It certainly gave me a terrible impression, to the extent I believed it.

      • TheOriginalKitten says:

        I don’t doubt that there’s a faction of the population that will believe anything but I’m not sure why George is concerned about them. Besides the fact that I don’t think they represent the majority, I also don’t think that those people could be convinced otherwise. In other words, I doubt Clooney disputing the story will really change their minds.

        And let me be clear: I don’t fault him at all for issuing a statement, but I’m not convinced that the story is as impactful on society as Clooney thinks it is.

        I could be wrong… Just my perception.

      • LadySlippers says:

        •Nightshade•

        Yes!

        There are a lot of people that take papers, even gossips rags, as the gospel truth. I think it was important that he corrected the important points and stated he could care less about the rest.

  6. Lori says:

    While I’m tired of the George and Amal gong show already, he does have every right to be pissed at this article.

    • TheOriginalKitten says:

      Can I hit the gong? I wanna hit the f*cking gong on these two.

      • Faye says:

        Amen. To quote Bad Willow, when it comes to these two, “Booooorrrred now.” I hope they get married soon and drive off into the sunset.

      • Izzy says:

        Can we hit the bong instead? Let’s hit the bong. It’ll be much more pleasant, for us at least, and we’ll be too busy laughing to be bored by them

      • Taylor says:

        Count me in. I’ll bring the twinkies

      • AG-UK says:

        Me too. I didn’t even read the story I am tired of them both. Go away get married and be done.

    • DameEdna says:

      You only need to read the comments in The Mail to realize that, yes indeed, many people take what’s written as gospel.

  7. Zippi says:

    That story did look as complete B.S. at first glance.

  8. Sixer says:

    I couldn’t really give a stuff for George or Amal or their wedding or whether it’s true love or a business deal. Or how many knots George ties himself into as he tries to explain it.

    But I do give a stuff that the Fail’s Islamophobia is even making its way into celebrity gossip stories. Druze is its own religion. Yes, it’s part of the Abrahamic tradition, but it’s its own religion with shared roots, just as Islam, Christianity and Judaism have shared roots.

    I’m quite sure there’s enough to legitimately bitch about with this celebrity couple, from the superficial nonsense about clothes and wedding venues to the more serious stuff about compatibility and political standpoints. We don’t need to be trashing a faith to do it.

    So this one is different. And I agree with George.

  9. Lahdidahbaby says:

    Yeah, I’m with you, Kaiser. Maybe there’s a bit of self-importance behind Clooney’s response, but on balance I think he’s not wrong. Okay, I think he’s right, if a bit sanctimonious and overstating the seriousness of the article’s potential impact. We all know the DM is full of it. Their pieces are largely fiction (and riddled with grammatical and spelling errors, which is another sort of embarrassment, if they had any shame, which they clearly do not). I still tend to check them out every single day at some point, because although I take the finer points of every article with a grain of salt, I like the pictures and also I find that there is often the odd revelation in their pages, including in their stories of crime in the news, because they don’t hold back from printing the purchased rumors or scurrilous tips that turn out to be true. I’m so ashamed of myself. Hold me.) Anyway, I guess Clooney’s more or less r-r-r-right. That was painful to say.

    • No Way says:

      He is right in being upset, but the problem with his response is he seems to not understand he is feeding the tiger not getting rid of the problem. Especially, when sometimes you play the publicity game and other times you claim I am a private person. The engagement seems way too much like a PR stunt, People photos, details of him popping the question, staged photos on safaris, (sorry to all the saps out there who don’t think they are staged, but no one gets that close and looks that good when you have that much money unless you want them to.) He denied being with her in September, and he is marrying her in April. You aren’t projecting a lot of credibility here. If you really want the gossip to be limited you don’t use your relationship for PR. They just start making up stranger stories to get a response from Clooney, and guess what it worked, and he made the Daily Mail more money on the story.

      Also new flash to Clooney the son of a newsman, (He needs a new tagline by the way) this part of the Daily Mail isn’t news. It is old time gossip columns, Hedda Hopper and Liz Smith that has been around for a long time. It just seems like Clooney is stuck in old time Hollywood in a new millennium, and his reactions and timing is way off.

      I think gossip columns even to this day start with a kernel of truth, which in this story probably was the fact that someone in her family was concerned probably about the cultural differences between Amal and George, which if you ask me is perfectly normal. I married a second generation US/Lebanese man who was Catholic , and his family was a bit concerned at first, Mine that have been in the US for generations didn’t care. So I don’t think this is weird at all. Then they start creating a story from this tidbit, this is why they get it right sometimes.

      • Francis says:

        +1000
        George is going to learn that he has created a monster of his own doing. The press won’t be tamed , although I think he had every right to call the Daily Mail out on their story, but he has also opened a hornets nest and If they ever get a real scandal(videos,pictures,etc) on him, or her , it will be bad.

  10. feebee says:

    A very Clooney response and fair enough. But George – “The Daily Mail, more than any other organization that calls itself news, has proved time and time again that facts make no difference in the articles they make up”…. Have you not heard of Fox News?

    • TheOriginalKitten says:

      LOL…Daily Mail has stiff competition there 😉

    • LadySlippers says:

      •feebee•

      I giggled and thought the same thing when I read that line! Ha!!!

      And I just recently offended a friend when I called out Fox News as being less than true. Heck, it’s even listed as a ‘entertainment’ rather than ‘news’. Lol

    • astra says:

      Oh please, let’s not single out Fox News when ALL of the news channels are either propaganda or outright lies. Believing that one news channel is somehow more fair and objective than another is almost as ridiculous as believing that one political party is better than the other. It’s all a control mechanism and a way to keep people distracted and at each others throats.

      • feebee says:

        Imma gonna have to stop you there. I didn’t grow up with Fox News (it was okay in small doses. My father fell prey to it later on), I came here without a political label, didn’t need one, pretty centrist, took it on an issue by issue basis. I was labelled pretty shortly after socialization here as a flaming liberal. Upon further discussion…. Fox f–king News. No, they are not the same as the networks. CNN, MSNBC whatever, yeah they’re all niche but please don’t sully all news organizations by telling me they are the same as Fox News. I have to draw the line.

      • Meri says:

        @feebee actually MSNBC is on par with Fox News these days. CNN is moving towards the middle but MSNBC lost all credibility with me when they went after Mitt Romney’s baby grandson. Former President Bill Clinton even said “Boy, it really has become our [liberal] version of Fox.” So yeah, MSNBC=Fox News these days.
        I think pundits on either channel just rile people up too much anymore these days for ratings.

      • astra says:

        Sorry, got to agree with Meri. I don’t even have TV so I don’t watch any of it, but when I was in a hotel recently, I did flip the channels and MSNBC was so blatantly biased that it made Fox News look unbiased and objective in comparison! Just because one is more conservative leaning doesn’t make it worse than the more progressive one that is doing exactly the same thing. That’s a personal view likely influenced by one’s own ideology (not saying you specifically, feebee, just in general). But I do wonder, why do you care how others label you? I have been labeled everything under the sun, things that contradict each other and none of it is accurate! People are just weird and no matter what they’ll have an (usually incorrect) opinion.

      • Sixer says:

        Thanks for these comments, guys. They made me go on a research mission! This is interesting to me because here, in the UK, it’s against the law for news broadcasters to be partial. All TV news must demonstrate balance. Only print journalism can have bias. I wouldn’t say they necessarily succeed all the time – but they do have to demonstrate the effort.

        Anyway, I went to have a look and I found this Pundifact thing, which reports Fox was truthful 18% of the time, MSNBC 31% of the time and CNN 60% of the time. I am truly staggered. (I’m sure this thing wouldn’t stand up to proper statistical analysis but it’s a flavour, right?)

        http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/

  11. Belle Epoch says:

    I don’t really get how the article put anyone “in harm’s way.” Is he referring to the “jokes” about the death of the bride? In some cultures, brides really are killed by their own fathers if they marry the wrong guy.

    Where did I read that story about a Druze woman who married a non-Druze husband and they cut off his you-know-what? Apparently Advil’s family was joking about that, too.

    I’m seeing some MAJOR cultural differences here. The mother may not be Druze, but Advil appears to have a family that is. Does anyone think George’s statement will have much of an effect?

  12. Mimi says:

    george is being his same old self righteous self. he’s overdoing the issue like he always does.

    a simple, direct denial would have sufficed. but no, he’s got to play hero, the great condemner of evil doers

    blah!!!

    • Taylor says:

      Agreed

    • Samtha says:

      You’ve nailed it. Something bothered me about the statement but I couldn’t put my finger on it. It’s his self-righteousness.

    • kibbles says:

      Yep, you nailed it. He seems like the type of guy who thinks he’s smarter than he actually is and loves to lecture people. He’s incredibly self-righteous.

    • Francis says:

      Surprised he didn’t make comparisons to Princess Diana, he’s done that in the past.
      I’m actually enjoying watching his drama Queen ways. It’s quite entertaining.
      Two years from now he’ll be screaming about divorce Rumors.

  13. Jade says:

    I like the statement, he sounds mature and coherent. He knows what the press will cover and doesn’t sound condescending or ‘complaint’ about the pitfalls of fame. He accepts that gossip comes with his position and I do think he knows he needs the press, but I find that speaking out specifically about this was fair. So yea, I’m with him on this.

  14. mystified says:

    Maybe Amal’s mother doesn’t like him for the same reason I don’t: he is a self important snob, whose looks and talent have always been overrated.

    • marjalane says:

      I agree- I was just reminded of this last night while watching, Nat Geo’s “The 90’s”. How he inserted himself into Princess Diana’s death by making his numerous statements about how all celebrities were in such danger, and things had to change to ensure his future safety. I remember at the time thinking how, “Me, me, me”, all the celebrities were in chiming in on it.

      The same celebrities that would curl up their toes and die if the attention ever stopped.

      • We Are All Made of Stars says:

        What does the paparazzi having zero boundaries with public figures have to do with whether or not they like or need their attention for their careers? And yes, if somebody died at the hands of the paparazzi and I was a public figure who could very well picture the relationship between the famous and the tabloids escalating to the point where I would possibly meet with a similar fate, I would be pissed too. Not to mention that half the world was pissed at Princess Di’s death. It wasn’t just him.

      • lisa2 says:

        I think Diana’s death was the first time he did the “I’m speaking for celebrity thing”..

        what bothered me about it at the end was how he switched and stopped complaining when the paps got pissed at him and they refused to take pictures of him period. When he walked the RC they would put down their cameras. When that happened at his premiers IIRC he then made a backtracking statement that he was separating the photographers that take pics at premiers from the stalker paps.

        They started talking his picture again and to my knowledge he has not said much about that since.

  15. Jaderu says:

    I hate it when celebs make statements on tabloid stories. Don’t engage George…Don’t engage.
    He has a right to defend himself and his fiance, but if you don’t say anything the story goes away and people forget and a new story starts the next morning. He’s just drawing more attention to the story…whether it’s true or not. He’s been around the block enough to know this. Why is he so concerned lately with his public image?

    • Francis says:

      That’s what I’m wondering? Suddenly he’s on a huge PR defensive. Even the engagement news seemed like defense, the way he had to put all the ladies in his past down to promote his engagement.

  16. NewWester says:

    Granted I don’t see George and Amul getting married this year. Why the focus on Amul’ s religion? Religion and having children is a private matter that you would think George and Amul would have discussed already.
    This whole engagement just seems very strange and over the top. Something is off

  17. Stella says:

    He makes sense. But I find the “new ” George Clooney puzzling. He normally let things go, couldn’t give a fig what others write or think of him, rarely responded. First an 360 and he got engaged to someone he met minutes ago it seems after saying he would never ever ever marry (it’s ok to change one’s mind, but GC really sang the “NEVER EVER” tune in this regard) and now all the wedding news and him responding. It just seems like GC is not the carefree, above-it all celeb that I thought he was. He always seemed super-confident and lately, GC seems to care SO MUCH how he is perceived. It’s just an odd 360.

    • Christin says:

      The other rumor specifics he included are funny. Someone has clearly filled him in on the various stories. Or he’s been checking them out himself.

    • Gayle says:

      “GC seems to care SO MUCH how he is perceived.” I think he always cared too much about his image.
      IMO, his self-confidence was a facade and now the facade has cracked.

  18. Amber3 says:

    Being married to Clooney will be the death of Amal. No religious connection needed.

  19. Roberta says:

    I think anyone who knows anything about the UK press knows the Daily Mail is a POS.

    • We Are All Made of Stars says:

      That would be a gross understatement.

    • sonalaceae (Nighty) says:

      Yeah, but foreigners may not know that DM is a POS, and that’s the problem… I know a lot of Br. newspapers but I’m not fully aware about how serious some are…

      • minime says:

        I’m a foreigner and a read DM…just for the fun of it. Specifically in the case of DM (I guess that with other newspapers might be different), I think it’s impossible to read it and take it as a serious newspaper. Sure, some people will do (look at that comment section!!!), still I would risk to say that those people are not only gullible but also not very critical or smart.

        Still, I agree with Clooney on this one and I’m far from being a fan, either of his work or of his public persona. What they wrote was greatly offensive not only for her family but for an all religious group. No one needs more islamophobia being sold on cheap media.

      • LadySlippers says:

        •Nightshade•

        I’ve been painfully trying to learn which is news in the UK and which is just ‘news’. 😉 It doesn’t help they have a news-ish middle ground too! Lol

        •minime•

        The DM is kinda my guilty pleasure but I am very choosy about the articles I read. The pics they have are divine though….

        *sigh*

        😊

  20. Cora says:

    Part of the problem, George, is that your family and friends, as well as Amal’s family and friends, keep selling these stories to the DM. Where’s your lecture for them? I’m looking at you Aunt Starla Clooney.

    Also, did Clooney deny running for office in that letter? Interesting!

    • Francis says:

      She’s back in the a Daily Mail today, dressed like a preteen, staring at the cameras, loving the attention.

      • Hannah says:

        I always see you make some nasty comment about her. What did she do that made you feel so negative about her? And why do you call her Advil?

      • Belle Epoch says:

        The “Advil” started a few Celebitchy articles back when someone typed her name and it auto-corrected to Advil.

        Personally I don’t enjoy this woman because she is being sold as a “high-powered human rights lawyer” when in fact she is the opposite. She works for some very shady characters in the Middle East (king if Bahrain = human rights abuses), plus she defended Assange in his rape and molestation case. She also has been outspoken about being anti-Israel.

        Also she is being presented as a “highly successful professional woman” but she doesn’t appear to DO anything. Her family has money. Someone said she gave up her practice. I’m disappointed she did not turn out to be a more substantial professional woman.

        The photos give the impression that she is really eating up all this attention. There is no mention of her friends, so it’s impossible to place her in any context. She is 37 and seems to dress like a tween. I’m just not seeing anything to admire – on the contrary.

      • Francis says:

        No I was the first to call her Advil. I starred it here in Celebitchy. That s my nickname for her, because she and George’s syrupy news was giving me a headache one day and zI felt like reaching for the Advil. I’ve called her Advil for weeks. 🙂

      • Belle Epoch says:

        Francis – I stand corrected! Sorry, did not mean to rob you of your glory. So who mentioned the auto-correct? Oh well – Advil it is!

      • Francis says:

        Basically……..A few days ago someone asked if. I was sI aware that her name was being auto corrected in my comments as Advil, I then explained it was not auto correct , Advil was my nickname for her and I chose to call her Advil. ( that’s the gist of it. 🙂
        Anyway this is going to be fun to watch.
        Did George write a letter about the Steve Wynn fight also?

  21. browniecakes says:

    Good for him. Rumors that hurt you are one thing, lies that hurt someone you love are another. He stood up for his girl and her family. I like that.

  22. dt says:

    The casual “joke” about religious violence was and is revolting.

    • Ayre says:

      Completely agree. I don’t understand why some people are still gleefully overlooking his point in their rush to put down a complete stranger. “Oh ha, ha, she’s horrible, it’s all a publicity stunt…” Yeah, she’s been “famous” for about two seconds. Isn’t there someone else you can go hate on? I’m sure Waity Middleton has room for a few more.

  23. racer says:

    He overreacted in the sense that he over estimated how many people actually care. By responding he’s insinuating that people aren’t intelligent enough to research religion and will take an article from a rag at face value.

    So glad I never fawned over him as an actor or found him attractive. He is a very small man.

    • kibbles says:

      +1 Never understood why women fawned over him. There are so many more attractive men in Hollywood and in daily life. He does not deserve this level of attention.

    • Francis says:

      +1000 racer

  24. starfan says:

    I’m glad he spoke out. Daily Fail is absolutely disgusting.

  25. Francis says:

    OK, he responded.
    This is getting interesting. So what have they written that is true?
    Is there a September wedding really planned or is that tabloid fodder too?
    Has a date been set for the wedding.
    This is going to be fun to watch. 🙂
    Today DMail has Advil is walking around the Lake and she is dressed a bit juvenile again. When does this lawyer work?

  26. Dana m says:

    OT: Fashion- I love her biker jacket. Can anyone ID it?

  27. Fan says:

    In some way, it is true that Amal could do better. We don’t need her mother to say that. But if they like each others, why not. I just have a little advice for George. Don’t alienate your own people because someday you might need them at your side.

    • Kim1 says:

      Who are his”own people”?
      I have no problem with him speaking up and defending his future MIL .Amal chose to be with him, her family didn’t .The Daily Mail made up a story about that woman.That is wrong.Yesterday The View and The Talk covered this BS story yesterday. The hosts were very critical of Amal’s mother based on a lie.

      • LadySlippers says:

        •Kim1•

        More people need to know the DM story *did* pick up traction in the US and resulted in several incorrect assumptions about another human being. It’s very difficult to correct those bad assumptions which is why Clooney needed to speak up and say something.

  28. Francis says:

    I thought he would quietly let his lawyers handle it. The articles were removed and they could have issued a statement. I’m surprised George went to the mat , but maybe he felt the need to clear up the story.
    His anger is understandable,,but sometimes it’s best to let the lawyers deal with it and release a statement. These two are both becoming too self important. It’s as if he thinks we are watching a President marry someone.

    • Lizzie K says:

      I agree with this, Francis. If there truly is any danger of religious violence as a result of this story, the very last thing George Clooney should have done is issue a public statement. It just increased the exposure of the story by a factor of 1000 or more. Let the lawyers get the Mail to retract with a public statement that the entire story was baseless, and it dies a quieter death. Now more people will be wondering exactly what are the religious differences between Clooney and the fiancee, what will that mean for any children, etc., etc.

  29. Ice Queen says:

    I keep thinking that that story was told just so that George would release a statement and remind everyone that he’s an intelligent cavalier, one who has friends and family, one who is a son and a son in law and a fiance, one who believes in freedom of speech and rights of religion, etc… Kinda strikes me as someone who wants to pull the attention even more to himself, to shape his persona even more… something’s going on.

    • Christin says:

      That possibility has crossed my mind as well. He could have made the same point in a more concise way via his publicist. Is he trying to reset the story? A lot of comments suggest people aren’t taking this grand romance (and him) very seriously.

    • Anne says:

      I used to be a Clooney fan (I still kind of am) but I agree that there’s a self-righteous tone that comes through when he expresses his opinion that’s a bit off-putting. Also, I have the impression that his investment in his public image is just too extreme. I find that off-putting, too. He just reeks of pretense and artificiality to me now. Something’s changed.

  30. Liz says:

    I don’t blame him for responding, Most intelligent people know the DM writes a lot of BS,however, even those believe there is some grain of truth in the story. The violence referenced in the DM article was unnecessary. They took it a step too far.

  31. Altariel says:

    The best thing, is if ALL news/celebrity/gossip outlets utterly ignore him and his upcoming nuptials. Spare us the daily reports about him and Amal. And for heaven’s sake, don’t make up stuff, because it makes him open his trap. He’s not that important. He was a good-looking guy, made it big on a TV show, got all sanctimonious from time to time, made movies, and made his brand by hanging out with famous co-stars and by proclaiming he would never marry. And still dated a string of beauties. Did these ladies think they would change his mind? Or were they arrangements? Doesn’t matter, bc guess what ladies…he met his equal, and you were never it!!! Isn’t he fabulous?? He’s sooo special the media can’t leave him alone.

    Now it’s made him even more self-important than he was before. He could just marry her and fade into family-life obscurity. But fat chance of that happening. Maybe I’m being too harsh on George…I could almost like the guy if he was somewhat humble. And kept quiet.

    • kibbles says:

      +1 I wish the hype surrounding Clooney would just fade away. If the newspapers and tabloids started ignoring him, he and Amal would be ringing up reporters at People to follow them around on another vacay. I agree that the Daily Mail crossed the line but his letter is so sanctimonious and it just goes to show that he does follow up on the daily gossip about his life. I am not surprised. This probably influenced his decision to change PR tactics from 2-year contract girlfriends to a wife.

      • Anne says:

        “This probably influenced his decision to change PR tactics from 2-year contract girlfriends to a wife.”

        That’s how I feel about him now and it just seems so transparent. I used to think he was a great movie star – great charm, great presence, great sense of humor – now I think he’s just a tired guy consumed by his own public image. It all falls flat for me. I wonder if anybody cares.

      • Francis says:

        +1000

    • Christin says:

      Well said.

      They could have kept this much more private if they wanted. The media should just ignore them completely and see what happens. He’ll likely be begging for attention, even if it means trotting out his equal in a grown-up sized onesie.

    • Francis says:

      +10000

      He’s becoming unbearable. OK George we get, you are marrying a lawyer lady yadayadayda.
      Did he say if the September date was true while he was clearing up other things? 🙂

    • ickythump says:

      He’s played the game a long time – he should know that if his PR are continuously putting out stories about his new relationship with his “equal” etc and how everything in the garden is rosy the tabloids are going to start digging around, making mischief and looking for a story, its the way of the beast. If the story is a lie he can sue the DM – leave it to your lawyers George, go away and get married if thats what you really want and if its the real deal you can live happily ever after. If its not it will come back and bite you on the a$$ and you’ll only have yourself to blame. And it is quite funny that he knows all the stories about him – do you think he reads Celebitchy??

  32. wow says:

    Yessss, Clooney, get in their @ss.
    This is why I find it funny that the DM can create a story and there will be those who believe it, andthen repeat it as if it is a fact.

    The DM stay trying it. I can understand why Georgie made a statement.

  33. Manjit says:

    Good for Mr Clooney. I wish more people would call out this right-wing rag for the fiction it prints under the guise of “News”. Despicable newspaper and website full of racial and religious hatred. It makes me ashamed to be British.

  34. The Original Mia says:

    It’s called the Daily Fail for a reason. There was no reason to call out this article. Stay above the fray, George. Most people did not believe the story in the first place. It did open up a lovely discussion yesterday about the Druze and the Lebanese that was enlightening, though.

    • Kim1 says:

      I disagree most people believed the story.Most people I know don’t know Daily Mail is a tabloid.They have also never heard it called Daily Fail.They may be common knowledge in Great Britain but not everywhere. My local ABC station mentioned the story.They didn’t refer to it as a tabloid story. If Star Magazine or National Enquirer had posted the story I don’t believe our local affiliate would have discussed.Years ago when Brad and Angie sued a tabloid they didn’t sue until media sites like CNN and CBS Sunday morning picked up story.
      Also I see Daily Mail apologized for the story.

      • Francis says:

        Because the awful Daily Mail is actually considered a real newspaper, they win Newspaper and Press awards from real news organizations in the UK, even though it’s called a tabloid. It’s a mix of real news but in entertainment they are really tabloid.

      • LadySlippers says:

        Totally agree •Kim1•.

        Most non-Americans don’t know or understand that Fox News is also just another tabloid ‘news’ corporation. Once viewed in the proper context, people can re-evaluate their opinions on both Fox ‘News’ and the DM.

      • sonalaceae (Nighty) says:

        I never heard about the Daily Mail being called the Daily Fail until I started reading it here on CB about a year ago… presuming everyone knows that, is kinda naive.

      • Jesse4 says:

        Kim1 Thank you! Most people don’t know. Plus, if you go the the original article posted yesterday on here it was quoted as fact and everyone was pretty much treating it as such.

  35. aqua says:

    Well , It looks like George won this round because the story has been taken down with an issue of apology to Amal and her family and the Daily mail is issuing an investigation into the story.

  36. Sumodo1 says:

    You know, if this wedding is happening in September, invitations have to go out immediately. Until the invitations go out, George has wiggle room to cancel. If religious backlash hasn’t given him cold feet, I believe the wedding will take place.

  37. Tessa says:

    Suddenly he’s gone up in my estimation

  38. Francis says:

    It’s a farce and It will end in tears and divorce in two years or less. George has no staying power. IMO.

  39. Jayna says:

    Good for George. And all the people who sit there and respond to such silly articles like the mother is against it, when she was the first one who released a statement at how happy she was, and then everyone said she’s a fame ho for doing so, so excited her daughter is marrying him. Then they run to the next article posting they believe she is against the marriage. Just because you don’t like someone it seems many choose to believe every hack article and responding every time as if true and never use common sense on the ones that seem ludicrous.

    And the Daily Fail is a hack, a tabloid, even though they call themselves a so-called news organization. The grammatical errors throughout articles are horrifying and laughable. No legitimate newspaper or news publication would ever continue to put up with such unprofessionalism. People comment all the time in the comments section of articles how inflammatory headlines are and misleading, how there are so many misspellings in the body of their articles, facts that are blatantly wrong or contradict each other. I like checking it out, but I have always been appalled by the sloppiness of a site that doesn’t seem to care. I can’t imagine who they employ to have so many misspellings throughout. In one article words were missing in some sentences. One article had the wrong person identified in part of the title, and no matter how many readers corrected them, they never changed the title knowing they would draw views with the title they had.

  40. lowercaselois says:

    If George wants to respond to the Daily Mail then let him. Actually, this must be the first time since he announced his engagement. But IMO, the only one who really cares about George, is George. I know I read these sites for entertainment, to escape the real news. With Hamas and Isreal bombing each other, ISIS in Iraq and the US still fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan, I really don’t care about whether Amal or her mother are Druze or what her mother thinks. I think George maybe a little self absorbed that he is that important in the real news world, especially the Middle East. Oh yes, now back to my job in a law firm, the real world.

  41. Goga says:

    Personally, I find it rather sweet that he stood up for his girl.

  42. Mia4S says:

    Update: apparently the Daily Fail has pulled the article and apologized.

    I have no doubt they had a “source”, the problem is tabloids don’t care even a little bit about credibility anymore so they just use anyone and outright lie (no checks, just, will they sue?). I feels like I could have my best friend call/email the Daily Fail or Radar saying “Mia4S is marrying Michael Fassbender next week”! They technically have a “source”, so they will run it.

    Once upon a time they worked disgruntled employees and underpaid hotel staff. The Internet made everyone lazy!

  43. Nicole says:

    Ok, I like him more now.

  44. Jayna says:

    The bigger news is the photo of Amal shopping in Italy yesterday and her ensemble. I really want to discuss that flowered jumpsuit and hat and shoes, but mostly her big, ugly necklace that did nothing for the outfit. It’s like a kid’s necklace and huge. And her flowered jumpsuit was not flattering really. She is quirky and I kept thinking what did George think of that outfit when she left the house.

    • Christin says:

      I saw that ensemble and truly believe it may be on the same level (see what I did there) as the adult sized hello kitty outfit, thanks to that necklace (with no offense to the person depicted on it).

      She really does look like a little girl who grabs various pieces and decides it’s a great casual outfit. Wonder if she thinks she’s going to be a trendsetter?

      • Jayna says:

        I know. I remember someone saying something she had on once looked like Hello Kitty, and when I saw that horrible necklace I thought of that. It’s tacky and immature looking and ugly. I agree about the whole ensemble, just awful.

  45. itsetsyou says:

    One thing caught my attention: he says that stories about him running for a political office aren’t true. I don’t buy that. I believe everything else he said in the statement, but not that.

    • Francis says:

      But IMO, this woman is really not a good politico wife for a new running no experience US candidate, and look what the DMail caused with just that one article, by the time the opposing candidate against George are done with George’s playboy ways and His fiancée s client list of alleged rapists and leaker off US Militaty secrets, Clooney the candidate would be on constant defensive mode. I just don’t believe that Advil helps in in any way if he were to run for a political office. She’s not even a citizen and has never lived in US for a great amount of time.
      It might even take her years to get a Green card , because they investigate everything,every aspect of a persons life before that card is handed over, wether the person is married to a US citizen or not.

  46. Gonzalez says:

    I don’t give a goddamn about Clooney’s private, if legal, lifestyle. I don’t care if he’s a hypocritical attention-seeking man-whore. I don’t care if the entire Clooney clan and soon-to-be relatives are frothing-at-the-mouth media sluts that hold non-celebrities in contempt.

    George Clooney’s PR habits have no bearing on my safety. His opinions are a fart in the wind. They don’t shape my world view. They don’t inform my political decisions. They don’t manipulate my emotions or threaten my livelihood when I am dealing with REAL-WORLD relationships and occurrences. If I never read anything EVER again about George Clooney, not a bloody damned thing would change in the world as I know it.

    WHAT I DO care about is irresponsible journalism, BECAUSE IT DOES EFFECT ME, in all those seemingly little ways above.

    **** the Daily Mail and all their ilk.

  47. jasmine says:

    why does her name bother me? too many “m’s” and “L’s” or something…too close too Aladdin?

  48. whoozy says:

    How exciting, George to the rescue of the poor frail women. The most important human rights lawyer who tirelessly defends Muslim women who are routinely persecuted..oh wait she doesn’t do that..and her mom who the cloon machine claimed had Diane Sawyer power, well she certainly would wilt from a silly tabloid story. You are to believe only what he, oh I mean People, sez. And aren’t we lucky his dad wasn’t a doctor? He’d be correcting JAMA and performing appendectomy s on adoring fans.

  49. Emily C. says:

    “The Daily Mail, more than any other organization that calls itself news, has proved time and time again that facts make no difference in the articles they make up.”

    Truth. And it’s more than irritating that the gossip world turns a blind eye to this fact. Flippin’ STAR is more reliable. The Daily Mail is The Weekly World News, without being funny, imaginative, or interesting in any way. If the Daily Mail said the sky was blue, I’d do some research to make sure the sky hadn’t turned green.

  50. Hannah says:

    Oh George, you’re just angry with yourself.

  51. EscapedConvent says:

    Whatever else you may think of George Clooney, he’s a smart guy & he wrote a very good letter.

    • LadySlippers says:

      •EsCon•

      Totally agree.

    • Francis says:

      All of his letters are probably gone over with a fine tooth comb by legal handlers and edited also.
      He wrote a angry letter to press about Steve Wynn recently. George is a letter writer when he gets angry. I think he did go to University for a quick bit for Journalism? But..never finished.
      I don’t think anyone disputes that he is smart.
      It’s the other aspects of his colliding personalities. the Playboy,drinker,Vegas hangout guy who dates wrestlers and starlets, to the……..well on and on.

  52. Maria of MD says:

    ‘Sure is a lot of Clooney hate here. I respect him for speaking out the way he does and for the causes he supports. Whatever his personal life, which is his personal life and whatever arrangements he has had with previous female companions, I have heard nothing where he has treated people in lesser positions badly and that says a lot about him.

    • Gypsy says:

      Maria, it seems we have similar moral standards, he has treated people well and has always spoken well of others or he’d just remain silent….good man! I don’t need a Tabloid to tell me that.
      His personal life is his and his God’s business, I promise you this George, I won’t peep into your bedroom as long as you don’t in mine.

  53. siri says:

    Sorry, but I can’t take Clooney serious anymore. Not that I ever did, really, but even less so now. He so badly wants that image change, but he also noticed how people responded to this whole PR drama about his engagement. He DOES read stories about himself, and is well-informed about the latest gossip. If he would have handled this particular issue with a statement from his PR team-ok. He also should not forget who actually feeds all these stories to the press. But no, he has to put water on almost dry mills. The last sentence of his statement says it all: “They must be so very proud.” It’s childish, not mature, and in my opinion, he’s just afraid that his well-thought-through deal might be blown off by the other party, getting uncomfortable with it.

    • Francis says:

      He wrote a letter about the false nature of some of the aspects of the Steve Wynn – George Clooney fight in Vegas. This is how he responds to false stories. He goes to the mat and fights back with letters.
      So did he clarify if the September wedding date were true?

      P.S. I now do believe that that Tina Fey joke during the world televised award show did bother him at the time. That went worldwide and the world was in on the joke, the world understood the joke and laughed that night at George.

  54. Gypsy says:

    I totally agree with George Clooney, he’s always impressed me as a smart person.

    Anybody who has been on this earth for a little time knows that these “celebrity-reporting sites” are making stuff up, at least 70% of the reporting is made up stories and guesses, the other 30% is celebrities leaking their own “look good” stories, and so smart people know that even pictures are manipulate to tell a “tale”, broaden the photo to talk about the person being fat, make it fuzzy to say it was a hidden camera in a dope den….Quite frankly if I worked there and knowing the wit(lessness) of my readers I would do the same.

    • boredblond says:

      The fact that everyone knows the tactics of this rag negates the story and thus the need for sanctimonious outrage. Muslim women are mistreated often and his response, and Hollywood’s pc fear of recognizing this, does nothing for any real victims. He could’ve contacted the paper, but preferred to make it global (it wasn’t) to insure every gossip blog picked it up. The story wounds his ego, and he likes to play brave rescuer. Nothing more.

  55. Tang says:

    I don’t blame him for speaking out about this, I would have done the same.

  56. Cody says:

    Well George there is a lesson about all this crazy publicity. When you marry Amal, you are marrying her whole Mishpucha (Yiddish for Family). Good luck with all of that.

  57. Hissyfit says:

    Eh. If he didn’t want the media to talk about his fiancée (and any of member of her life) and dissect his love life then he should stop parading her and shoving this PR engagement to everyone’s throat! It’s that simple.

  58. Josefa says:

    I never like George, but I agree with Kaiser here. He has every right to be mad. Even if no one believed that crap to begin with, having those kind of rumors flying around your wife’s family sure isn’t nice. In his place, I would’ve done the same thing. The tabloids do take it too far sometimes. Remember when Star (?) started spreading rumors about Brangie’s kids having Down syndrome? Yeah. The crap they make up is, at least, morally questionable.

  59. Dari says:

    While I say good for him for speaking up, and while the online version of Dm is a rag, the fact is this can be a reality, he has to accept that this is now his reality. Actions done for Honor have been around for a long time, I don’t think a response to an article is the solution. DM says this came from a trusted source, whoever it is must be sweating bullets, and now DM has the person on the hook, so what’s next.

    I would love to see this come to court, I would love to find out who the leak is.

    • lisa2 says:

      That won’t happen in the US. and I don’t see him suing. I wish the laws were more tough. I wish that if you said something about someone like this you have to have solid evidence and not “a source told me”.

  60. Chris says:

    Team Clooney on this one. I’m sick of “freedom of the press’ being used as an excuse to cause unwarranted harm.

  61. Miss M says:

    Fair response. I wonder why he didn’t reply to those comments that were demeaning to his exes…
    I better stop here, I don’t want to go there…

    • JaneS says:

      Lol, because they were not worthy of a defence in his warped little brain. Strippers and lowly mortals are ok to attack. A top shot lawyer though…. now her honour needs defending.

      Sorry old George, your PR game is way too obvious for some of us.

  62. Ollyholly says:

    I was afraid to comment on this yesterday, because honestly the responses were verging on racist and prejudice for a lot of that thread. I am Lebanese Druze, and I found that whole DM article really disturbing. They were literally making up a story and applying hatred to a group of people for NO REASON, and people just sort of went along with it without even thinking, “huh, I wonder if this is super freaking racist??”

    Because, yes, it is. And I felt personally upset by it.

    Gross to anyone who defends the Daily Mail in this. Just plain gross.

    • No Way says:

      The online Daily Mail has many articles that are racist, misogynistic and anti-Semitic, sorry it offended you personally. I read it occasionally for laughs as the gossip can be funny sometimes, but invariably I get angry at some horrid statement so I stop. However, I don’t like the way Clooney handled this. I honestly think if he felt as he claimed, he should have filed a civil suit. Instead he so obviously, tried counter PR with the staged mother shots which didn’t work, and then his letter. Which really got more publicity on the story and him his much needed hero badge. Aside from some of the people on here who are fans, astute people are going to see through it, and really so few people read or believed the article contrary to what was said on here. The readership is just not that high, even if half the people believed it – it is only a small amount of people. Now many more people have heard of it, and some people who think Clooney is all publicity think he is lying. Just gave the story more legs, and I think he knows that or should at least.

  63. Amy says:

    I think Clooney reacted this way because they were going after Amal’s mom who is not a public figure and doesn’t deserve to have false stories written about her, especially stories about her portraying her to be part of a religion known for castration/death of a bride. I think anyone would be upset to have such false stories written about them. Getting married at Highclere Castle (Downton Abbey house), running for office, that’s all pretty innocuous. Being labeled as part of a polarizing religious group–that’s different and I can see why that is upsetting. Clooney expects the silly stories about him and Amal. If Amal hasn’t gotten used to it already, she will have to due to Clooney’s profile. However Amal’s family is not fair game in my opinion. Not everyone wants to be the Middletons.

    And I have a feeling this really upset Amal and her mom. Otherwise Clooney would not have said anything.

    • Suze says:

      Oh, he would have said something. Letter writing and public outrage are his thing.

    • Francis says:

      Advil was out in her latest juvenile Claire’s looking outfit grinning from ear to ear. She’s loving the attention.
      I think as with the Steve Wynn letter George wrote, this is really All about the promotion of George! He had every right to be angry, but he seems to be mostly promoting George.
      Imo

  64. Funny Bone says:

    I think it’s all a publicity stunt. Other celebs don’t think-a-thon a engagement. Nobody else does the ring/preach. Bling pulpit .sparkle sermon

  65. Funny Bone says:

    Why is his engagement a think-a- thon. Other celebs don’t bling and sermon. That’s why I think this is publicity.

  66. siri says:

    Just a question I have by now: Clooney states that Amal’s mother is not Druze. Just why are papers like The Arab Daily News, among others, reporting she/her family is??

    http://thearabdailynews.com/2014/04/27/lebanese-lawyer-amal-alamuddin-reportedly-engaged-george-clooney/

    https://now.mmedia.me/lb/en/reportsfeatures/545333-amal-alamuddin-from-druze-family-of-sheikhs

    http://www.thenational.ae/world/middle-east/lebanon-in-frenzy-over-clooney-alamuddin-engagement

    Personally, I don’t care what religion someone is following, it’s none of my business- but why are they seemingly denying their background?

    • kittykay says:

      Thanks for the links.There is a lot of weird stuff surrounding this whole engagement. Maybe Amal is as confused as everyone about who she is.

      The girls got some strange relations!