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Judging the Private Lives of Public Officials

University of Washington

This article discusses the moral importance of privacy and its place in the lives of public officials. It examines the tension between the legitimate claims of citizens and overseers to scrutinize the private lives of public figures and the rights of officials to privacy. It argues that these legitimate reasons break down in practice almost all barriers to scrutiny due to the weaknesses of the limits and the incentives of American politics and the modern media. The article explores the consequences of a world where public officials possess no private lives. These unsavory consequences exemplify the dangers of denying any boundaries between private and public. The article concludes that citizens need to redefine the boundaries of private and public life and suggests standards by which citizens can judge the private lives of public officials.

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