George Clooney Health Records Reveal Hemorrhoids, Incontinence -- The Ultimate Celebrity Snub?

One of the top news stories covering the leak of actor George Clooney's medical records is a fake report from the humor news site Pugbus.net (Postcards from the Pug Bus). I've never heard of them. You?

Here are the Google News results for "clooney health records."

The image above is a little blurry, but you'll see that the third entry is for the article "George Clooney Health Records Reveal Hemorrhoids, Incontinence."

Here's a screengrab of the Pug Bus article:

And, an article excerpt:

"'Persistent hemorrhoids, acute situational incontinence, chronic erectile dysfunction, projectile flatulence, pubic boils-there's more to George Clooney than meets the eye or ear,' said Cheryl Boozer, a nutritionist at Palisades Medical Center in North Bergen, New Jersey, where Mr. Clooney, 46, and a female companion were treated following a motorcycle-car accident on September 21."

While I can fully appreciate offensive, bawdy humor as well as elliptical, over-the-top humor, this article is just not that funny. Its premise is too obvious and the article, on the whole, lacks creativity.

It tries too hard to address point-by-point the real facts of Clooney's medical record leak and the hospital's response to the privacy breach. If you want to do over-the-top, give me something more fantastical than a gross-out list of dubious, embarrassing maladies.

Moving on. Since when has incontinence become one of the ultimate snubs for celebrities? Remember the incessant teasing that Jenny McCarthy and Fergie faced when photos were released documenting their bladder control mishaps in public places (Howard Stern show in 2005 for McCarthy and on stage at a concert for Fergie in 2006)? I get it, but not really.

Looking for serious analysis of the breach in George Clooney's medical privacy? Check out health journalist Craig Stoltz's blog posting from today: George Clooney's Medical Records: Don't Blame the Technology