Whitney Houston Death Cover: Who Leaked The Photo? Why?

February 24, 2012 by Hollywoodite

At some point during the private family memorial for Whitney Houston, at the Whigham Funeral Home in Newark, NJ February 18, someone took a photo of the singer’s corpse in the casket and sold it to National Enquirer who promptly put the photo on the cover.

That cover has since gone viral with outlets re-posting the death photo censored or uncensored depending on the point they were making (most people were repulsed and cropped or blurred the photo while others posted as-is, since it’s unobstructed at eye-level on newsstands anyway).

But the existence of the photo of the body leads to several questions: who took and sold the photo of Houston’s body to National Enquirer? What were their motives (money)? What is the tabloid’s excuse for publishing the cover?

Well, there’s a little information shedding some light on the scandal although not all questions are answered.

The owner of the funeral home spoke briefly to the Los Angeles Times, denying that her place of business (she or the home’s staff) took or leaked the photo.  ”I’m going to answer you as the publicist told me to answer you: We have no comment. But it was not the funeral home,” Carolyn Whigham told the newspaper, despite admitting to the UK’s Daily Mail that Houston’s family asked that she not comment at all. “Whitney was a personal friend to me and my family. We would not do that. I am very angry, very upset, just like the family, just like the fans.”

The LA Times adds that it ”seems doubtful” the family leaked the photo, following efforts to keep press away from the invite-only, private viewing in a room prepared to receive guests for the service.

National Enquirer has responded blithely to the criticism. “I thought it was beautiful,” publisher Mary Beth Wright told Fox News.