If You are Going to be the Focus of Scandal or Have a Public Meltdown, Now Would Be The Time to Do It
There's one talking point in America, one subject of interest on planet Earth, the coronavirus. It would make one hell of a heat shield if you were enveloped in scandal right now. There is a not a misdeed, criminal investigation, criminal trial or downward spiral that could knock the coronavirus from it's throne as the top news story in the world.
It makes sense that the disease is the king of the news cycle. This story hits us all where it counts most, it's strikes the fear bone. Fear has always been a weaponized emotion in print and on television but the use of fear has never been more prevalent in the media than it is now.
Back in the day there was always one piece on the evening news that went; "The over the counter drug in your medicine cabinet right now that can kill you and your family, more at 11." They'd hook you with the tease and you had to stick around to see if you and your family were safe. That trick is still widely used today but it's part of a wide array of scare tactics used to move the needle.
Today, every TV/digital/print headline, promo or segue is designed to unnerve you and coerce you into clicking in to see if your family is safe. Until this medical problem has a medical solution you will see every gimmick in the news playbook. We all feel so clever when we recognize clickbait but the truth is, everything we consume is clickbait.
There's no good time for your secrets or dirty deeds to be unearthed but there are convenient times for it to happen. Even the biggest wrongdoing by the most famous of persons would slide under the radar right now avoiding the usual public scrutiny. It's not a good time for a scandal, it's a convenient one. It's possible we are all missing something big right now.