Celebrity, Paparazzi Tussle; Celebrity Arrested

Following what appeared to be an escalation of the conflict between celebrities and paparazzi, singer Kanye West and his bodyguard were arrested Thursday after they became enraged at a still cameraman and a videographer for the TMZ website at Los Angeles airport and allegedly smashed their cameras, one reportedly worth $10,000. (The Los Angeles Times reported today that TMZ has assigned a cameraman to the airport seven days a week.) West and the bodyguard were charged with "felony vandalism," and were bailed out later in the day. Video of the incident, posted on the TMZ site, shows the bodyguard, whose face is not shown, shouting to the videographer to turn off his camera and West later joining in the shouting. The video ends as the bodyguard places his hand over the camera's lens. News photographers were also unable to film West as he was released from jail on bond later in the day. A member of his entourage held an umbrella in front of his face.

12/09/2008