here's the thing...LL is a celebrity and knows what she's getting into in terms of the photogs following her around, the general intrusiveness and loss of privacy. the other people on the 'field trips' didn't sign on for that, and shouldn't be subjected to it. i think the rehab facility needs to take that into consideration when planning outings, and maybe they have. maybe they put it to a vote with the other rehabbers and they said, 'sure, let's go...i don't mind if i show up in tabloid photo w/LL'. if that's the case (and i suspect it is) then no harm, no foul. if it isn't, if the other rehabbers have no say, well then town & country is totally wack!

I totally agree with methinks. I voted 'no' in the poll, but not so much b/c of needing privacy thing, but b/c of the others around her. How would you like your face splashed on the cover of People just b/c you're in the same group therapy session as Lilo??

It's interesting, E had video footage of the rafting trip, and the fellow rafters tried to hide LL and then flicked off the camera.

I feel she should be given the space because everyone, even if they are a celebrity, should be allowed the best possible chance at rehab and addiction recovery and that cannot be possible if people are following you around waiting for you to fail.

I have sympathy for LiLo's problems, but none for the being-chased-by-the-photogs part.

If you don't want them to take your picture, don't have your publicist tell people where you're going. If you're going to an exclusive/upscale rehab center, make the management sign a nondisclosure agreement before you agree to pay them $10K/day to treat you. Arrive under an alias, wearing a disguise (shouldn't be too hard for an actor, after all).

Also, it helps if you're not famous and/or hot. The paparazzi never follow me anywhere. (*sniff*)

If you leave the confines of rehab with fellow rehabbers on an outing put together by the rehab, you're not really "leaving the confines of rehab." "Rehab" just left the confines of the rehab facility.

Now, if they all went and had a big lunch at the mall, that's one thing. But a rafting trip? Paps would have to drive there, go through the woods or get their own little boat to take the pictures. That's stepping over the line. And it didn't look like she was walking dogs down a Beverly Hills neighborhood street. Again, it looked like a gravel path off in the country somewhere. Again, why is someone stationed there taking a picture? Sleazy in my book. But here I am looking at the pictures adding a visitor click to the website just adding to the frenzy so I really shouldn't say anything.

I voted yes, but I must say that the question made me think. Ultimately, it comes down to this. While Lindsay and her fellow rehabbers have no expectations of privacy and they ought to know what will happen, it would be ethically right for the paparazzi to leave them alone. It would be nice. It would be respectful of her difficulties. And I don't expect the paparazzi to consider any of that meaningful. While Celebritology is part of it, Liz is not the source. She is reporting on the celeb news, just gathering existing stories. It is the celeb magazines and the photographers that need an ethical wake-up call.

I'm going to have to agree with byoolin on this. Why was it disclosed where she was going? If she wanted privacy, she could have just as easily gone incognito, its not like papz automatically hang out in Utah. I hope LiLo gets her act together, but I really don't think she's taking any of this seriously.

Was it mandatory for Lindsay to go on the rafting trip? Couldn't Lindsay do something on grounds of the facility where her privacy could be protected? Lindsay is not like the other rehabbers. She has the paps trailing her every moves waiting to her relapse. She may need "special treatment" because her situation is different from the others there.

PS: It would be helpful if her publicist or Mom would stop leaking info about her future career plans. e.g. desire to record an album. I heard that this morning.

byoolin,
if you're famous (and you are, remember that whole quote of the week thing?) does that mean you aren't hot since you're not being tailed by papz? because in my mind, you're hot. don't burst the bubble.

Hmmm. Lilo and paps... where's ebola when you need it.

Look, if you get a pic of her in rehab, how will you know if she was even there? She's definitely a "blink and you'll miss it" kind of rehabber.

I doubt that the rehab facility or Lohan's publicist told anyone that she was there. A discharged patient leaked it, I believe. And, yes, the hiking and rafting is part of the rehab; it's a group outing to do something therapeutic. It's not the same as going to the mall or going to some club in Vegas. As for cancelling the outing because of her fame, the whole idea in recovery is to stop thinking that the world revolves around YOU. Everyone else is supposed to miss out on something therapeutic because SHE is a celebrity? When a little decency from these rabid photographers might enable everyone to benefit? Ridiculous. The whole point is that -- yes, she is *exactly* like the other rehabbers; she is someone who needs to focus on one priority, just like everyone else there. Being treated as different or special -- while she's IN rehab yet! -- doesn't give her the grounding she needs, and it distracts everyone else there.

What's with the long-windedness today? Sheesh. If I wanted to read a book, it wouldn't be about Lindsay Lohan.

The issue here isn't just about LiLo/rehab - it's the state of paparazzi in general.

They seem to be getting more and more aggressive in recent years. Wasn't there that one who took the pics of a topless Jennifer Aniston using telephotos from a public street?

Sure, the photog was on a public street, but it wasn't like she was hanging out - she was behind a fence in her own home. How is that ethical?

Any semblance of privacy that these people try to create for themselves doesn't seem to stand. And there's no respect either - how about those pictures of the late Princess Diana on a Nautilus machine in the gym?

So sure, LiLo is leaving the confines of rehab - but these things look like part of her treatment. Just because she's not behind solid walls doesn't mean she's fair game.

This girl - and many of the others like her - have some of the problems they do because they are CONSTANTLY under the public eye and have their every mistake photographed and put on the Internet.

Glass Houses. Stones. It's not like any one of us have never done something stupid and/or regrettable. Leave her alone, let her do something to try and fix her life. Maybe if she HAD some privacy to get her sh*t together she could.

Interesting about how even the poll is running...

just have to throw a random question out there:

Liz,

did you watch the hills last night? Are you addicted yet? (although last night's episode wasn't exactly rife with what we've come to expect as the typical-hills-drama... but...)

I would have more sympathy if the celeb was involved in trauma, grieving or generally self aware enough to be 'in a bad way'. This woman is doing what we all wish we could do - take a break from life and enjoy a vacation. Simply put, I understand substance abuse is extremely hard, but this woman has never once demonstrated that she considers consequences or rules to apply to her. I find it very hard to believe she has somehow dramatically found wisdom or humility or even common sense. About as probable as when Paris found 'spirituality and God'.

I feel bad for the other rehab patients because her 'star power' is more likely to be disruptive to their process than anything else.

For a lot of other celebs, it might make sense to give them some privacy. But, this is LiLo. She probably calls the paps herself when she is going out. Seriously...

methinks, I'd forgotten that I was a quote of the week guy! And I'm definitely hot. (I'm sure Liz will back me up on that, sight unseen.)

It must be just that I am so *incredibly* humble that the papz forget I am there. I am the very epitome of a star who travels incognito.

That must be it. It seems so obvious now that you point it out. Expect an autographed 8x10 of me in the mail any day now.

I'm torn about the sanctity of rehab, but for me it all comes down to one thing - if you don't want the paps hounding you, become an accountant. We are rarely photographed and no one critiques our life choices daily (except the snotty chick in the next cube, who at least keeps it to herself).

The days of acting, singing and dancing in blissful obscurity ended about 100 years ago and all young people choosing this life need to understand that (which gets me started on whether or not I think LL chose this life for herself, or if her hideous parents choved her into it...but that's another post...)

just here to help, byoolin. just here to help.

Either Lilo and Brit crave the attention, or they are just stupid, because plenty of celebs seem to handle the photographers quite well, without having car wrecks etc. so it must be possible either by hiring the right people or buying the occasional cup of coffee/gift bags for them.

This is a really interesting discussion today and I've been checking back on the poll often because it's running so close.

Let me ask you this. What if I told you that Cirque -- Lilo's rehab -- has:

"100,000 square feet in the multi-story Studio which is surrounded by over twelve private acres. The acreage and gated entrance is an ideal setting for individuals seeking a private treatment center. The Studio was originally constructed as a television production facility where both television and feature films have been produced. It has a 17,000 square foot sound stage Studio Drug Rehab which now features the nation's finest multi-media indoor ropes and challenge course, enhancing the overall effectiveness of the Cirque Lodge 12-step experience."

Do we still feel the same way about respecting the sanctity of her rafting trip?

I didn't click the link of Lilo's dog walking because it's plain boring. Who cares about that? It's not a privacy issue, it's an issue of mysterium tremendum et fascinans. Pictures of rehabbing celebs should play to our most morbid of curiosities.

The Olsen Twin vomitting in the bushes: Gold.
Amy Winehouse shooting up behind the rehab center: Silver.
Britney romping in the bushes: Bronze.
Lilo dog-walking: papier-mache.

sorry to be thick, but i'm not sure i get your point, liz. the rehab center says it's ideal for people seeking privacy. are you saying that LL and the center sought out the photogs while rafting or just doesn't mind the extra publicity?

I'm with methinks on this... if it's private property, then the photographers could have been run off the property. If LiLo et al are out in the wild, as it were, then they're on their own.

That said, the papparazzi are, in the oh-so-eloquent words of Liev Schrieber, pretty "f*cking disgusting."

On the other hand, they're only taking pictures because those pictures sell. And those pictures sell because we (and by 'we', I mean 'other people,' of course) buy (by the boatload, apparently) the magazines and tabloids those pictures appear in.

I have seen the enemy, and he is us (well, somebody else, really - we are only here for the snarkery).

Lohan's fellow rehabbers deserve privacy, no matter how relentless media are about an actor in rehab.

As of this moment, I am boycotting all things Lohan, just as have all things Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton. I deserve something better. We all do. Is the media listening?

Lindsay set up a photo shoot with OK! magazine while in rehab. I don't believe she takes it seriously.