Usually when you see the word ex in front of bodyguard it’s a negative story. Well this one is no exception; Britney Spears ex-bodyguard Fernando Flores becomes the latest bodyguard to consider writing a tell-all book about his former client. Like many other bodyguards who have decided to go down this dark road of no return, Flores decides to empty the Spears laundry bag on the table of public opinion for all to see. I won’t deny that there may be a lucrative payday in front of him. But without a doubt, his inconsideration for the EP business will cast a negative impact on the industry as a whole, and will surely prevent him from ever working as a protective agent on this scale again. To read the full article click on the following link: http://www.nme.com/news/britney-spears/61496
Currently working for a celebrity, I can attest that trust is very difficult to acquire these days, Vince. As you say, we can’t operate without it but are constantly kept out of the loop because of the fear of leaks and indiscretions. So I do feel that everyone in the industry acting unprofessionally is shooting each of us in the foot…
Back to my previous and somewhat generalizing statements, not everyone in the celeb protection is an untrained and/or unethical dummy in a suit, of course. We have obvious examples of the exact opposite on this very site. But clients that are out of touch or in crisis are just sitting ducks for unscupulous companies and personnel in the “protective” (of their own interests) business.
A security systems professional told me recently that, “in the end, I gotta do what’s right for the client”, and sadly, this attitude almost took me aback by how rare it is around me.
I’d be tempted to propose that a class on ethics be part of every EP training course (knife throwing may sound sexier, I’m afraid), but most guys I run into working for celebs have never even heard of EP training… Hell, some don’t even have the proper state licenses!
One thing that is an underlining problem about this is that another celebrity will see what this sorry ass guy is doing to bring the industry down and not want to share pertinent information with their Specialist(s)and wind up putting themselves in even more danger. I don’t know about anyone else, but it’s hard enough to find constant work as it is without non-professional behavior like this. At all costs, the “FIRST AND CONSTANT” care of Specialists is to see that the safety of the client is TILED and that their privacy is maintained.
Very well put, Hucky. Having worked for celebrities I now relish my own anonymity and do what I can to afford my clients every little bit of normalcy in their lives. We’re in a position of trust that should be violated in no circumstance, excluding the one you alluded to (potentially having to cooperate with a criminal investigation).
I hope whatever big payday he was expecting is worth it, because it is career suicide to discuss your employers’ personal habits. It is a classless and unprofessional thing to do.
If your client is doing something illegally and you have a problem with that, then you need to make a decision for yourself as to whether or not you want to work with those circumstances.
In addition to being in poor taste, the bodyguard who shares personal details about an individual is also potentially increasing opportunities for threats to that client.
The more information the public has about a clients personal life and tastes–the more of a target that person could potentially become.
It is enough that celebrities are often held hostage in their lives by the general public. They are entitled to some privacy, just like everybody else.
As a bodyguard, you are relied upon to do a specific job and paid extremely well to do this work, and if I’m being truthful here, part of the reason for the high paycheck is the understanding that you will keep your mouth shut.
Earning more money from books or news stories by spilling sordid details about your employers private life is greedy, and breaks the trust factor that is so necessary in this line of work. Indiscretion reflects poorly on all of us.
Peter, they’re called “celebuguards” in some circles… lol
I agree with you, but celebs are not the ones at fault: they live in la-la land, mostly detached from reality and surrounded by enablers.
VERY few people, of any trade, working for celebs are actual, vetted professionals (in my experience). The handlers just go on reputation or word of mouth without making any checks. So EP companies getting the contracts are (often) aggressive self-marketers with inflated creds manning their ops with cheap rookies. Just like their bodyguards are (often) ex-roadies or bouncers with no training and questionable backgrounds.
And we’ve seen recently that even politicians on a national campaign trail can be kinda lax in their hiring practices…
The high-risk or corporate details are another scene entirely, which explains the absence of tell-all books and scandals. Well, for the most part. 😉
It’s rather disheartening to hear so-called bodyguards state that they would not put their own safety on the line for a client, by the way (I thought that was what “body-guard” entailed). Not surprisingly, the same guys happily chase a buck by selling celeb intel one way or another.
They should stop calling these guys “bodyguards”. The official name, with all respect, for such a task/job is “handholding” or “babysitting”. – I work myself for more then 22 years in Hostile environments as close protection officer, CPO/PPO/TL. Guys like that never crossed my path in Chicken street or outside the Green zone. They stay there where they belong..at home.
In the end it’s not the celebrity BG who is the bad guy, it’s the celebrity itself, or their agent who is “renting” the security officer without checking any reference or background. The celebrity should make the first move and hire a professional like a lot of them slowly do…those who don’t, get punished. – To all the good celebrity BG’s, outthere: keep it up and watch you ass. – Maybe one day we meet and share inside stories together. But never in the open.
Yes, those clowns make it very difficult for the rest of us to be taken seriously (by clients or the public in general).
I’ve worked a few of those LA celeb details, though, and those are such revolving doors (personnel AND companies) that a great number of guys out there can claim to have been a given big name’s bodyguard. Sometimes they just worked the gate at the estate (and never saw anything else than the principal’s vehicles) or they supported the operation for a day or two.
This to say that the title is fairly meaningless and can unfortunately describe a number of low paid rookies with no reputation to lose and an ax to grind. Unfortunately again, the public doesn’t know any better and the various media outlets grab at anything they can to create a story so that clients and the rest of us end up taking the image hit.
Unreal. The lack of professionalism is staggering when it comes to client confidentiality. Iam new to the ep field and it makes it that much harder for myself with people like this.
Just another inconsiderate prick!