The Price of Power: Media Madness and the Scrutiny of Political Spouses

The issue becomes ethically fraught when the focus turns to the minor children of politicians. Though nearly everyone agrees that children should be off-limits, the public and media often fail to adhere to this standard. A teenager’s party, a young adult’s controversial tweet, or struggles with mental health or substance abuse are instantly magnified. These private struggles are unjustly exploited and interpreted by opponents not as the normal challenges of youth, but as evidence of the politician's parental failures or underlying character flaws, effectively using the children as political collateral.