4/3/2009

in

Their actions seem to speak louder than words.

Sharon Ng

By now, most people have heard or read about LeAnn Rimes's alleged extramarital affair with her married "Northern Lights" co-star Eddie Cibrian.  
  
According to the March 18 issue of Us Weekly magazine, Rimes, 26, had an affair with Cibrian, 35. The magazine claimed that the proof is in a video where the two are shown meeting up for dinner at Mosun and Club M in Laguna Beach, Calif., on March 7. The magazine also claimed that the two reserved a room at the Malibu Beach Inn on March 14.  
  
Rimes is married to dancer Dean Sheremet, and Cibrian is married to model Brandi Glanville, with whom he has two children.  
  
The magazine ran this "exclusive" story with intimate details of the affair. Rimes was featured on the cover. One bullet under the headline, "Caught in an Affair," suggested that Rimes regrets having married too young.  
  
Rimes was 19 when she married dancer Dean Sheremet, who was 21 at the time. They have been married for seven years and have no children. Last summer, they threw a "seven-year itch" party for 30 of their closest friends in Napa Valley. At the time, Rimes assured fans that she was happily married. Now, it seems the party was a bad omen.  
  
On March 18, UsMagazine.com reported that Rimes admitted on her website that she was going through a "difficult time" with Sheremet. While she neither confirmed nor denied the alleged affair, she wrote, "I would like to assure all of you that this is a place for you to hear things directly from me and as you all know, not everything in our lives is always black and white." She signed off by urging fans to "have faith."  
  
On March 21, UsMagazine.com reported that a woman who identified herself as Dean Sheremet's "cousin Pebbles" called a Michigan radio show and revealed that Sheremet is gay. Underneath the first paragraph of that story, there was a link with photos of stars who wed too young.  
  
Throughout all this coverage, I couldn't help but notice the way Us Weekly embellished or only focused on certain aspects of this story. In my opinion, the March 18 issue did not need to emphasize the fact there is a video with LeAnn Rimes making out and holding hands with and sucking on the finger of Eddie Cibrian. I know Us Weekly is a tabloid, but how are those details relevant? An affair is an affair. Whether or not Rimes and Cibrian actually had a tryst in a motel room does not make a difference.  
  
Us Weekly also quietly proposed several possible causes for the affair. Rimes's alleged "agony over marrying too young" along with the link of stars who wed too young all suggest that her age at the time of her wedding was a factor in the reported affair. It's a shame that she might have been unfaithful but if this story hadn't surfaced, no one would be accusing her of marrying too young. By making such an accusation, Us Weekly seems to justify her actions. The accusation that her husband is gay also seems to serve as justification. As if news that his wife might have cheated on him wasn't devastating enough, Us Weekly felt the need to degrade Sheremet by printing cousin Pebbles's claim that he "doesn't care" that Rimes allegedly strayed.  
  
The last thing about this affair story is how little I've heard about Eddie Cibrian. I know he's a married father of two and that he denied an affair, but he seems to carry no blame. In fact, Fox News reported on March 25 that a marital infidelity dating agency offered Rimes a free lifetime membership. Where is Cibrian's offer?  
  
I don't know how Rimes and Cibrian are going to deal with the damages but considering they both made the mature decision to marry, they should make the mature decision to take responsibility for their actions.