To Hell With The Media!

Chapter One: Michael Jackson was no doubt one of the greatest performers to walk this earth and he seemingly had everything that money could buy. His list of friends was impressive. He had a huge ranch complete with an amusement park and whenever he opened his mouth to sing, that song was almost guaranteed a number one slot in the music charts.

One thing though that his money seemingly could not buy, was happiness for the media hounded the life out of him. They were un-relentless that every day, the tabloids came up with new headlines designed to ridicule and embarrass him. Wacko Jacko so one newspaper headline ran. Another had Sicko Jacko. The media felt they had just cause to ridicule him because he was not like the rest of us. He did not conform.
So what that he had facial surgery, wore a face mask or had a chimp for a pet when the rest of us had dogs and cats. That was his preference.

How Jackson got through the day especially when his financial and sexual problems kicked in, I don’t know. The tabloids ridiculed him, tore him to shreds, did susu on him and much more. Stories were made up from ‘friends close to Jackson’ if not, from ‘family members’ or ‘sources close to Jackson.’

Hogwash I say. I doubt any of his family or indeed his friends were spilling the beans to the media. If anything, spurred on by the desire to sell sensational stories to a public that was willing to lap up everything that was printed, the media just made up stories on him.

Chapter Two. Does anybody remember an English footballer called John Fashanu who used to play for Wimbledon FC during the 80s and 90s? Well, Fashanu was a target of the English tabloid press. But there was a problem. They couldn’t find any dirt on him. Frustrated they started making up stories but the real coup came when they found out that his younger brother, also a footballer was gay.
That was it. The tabloids went into over drive that any story related to Justin always started off along these lines: Gay Justin Fashanu, brother of football star John Fashanu...” That was the way they got at John and for good eight years or so, anything that Justin did, the next day in the tabloid headlines were the key words -'Gay’ and ‘brother of John Fashanu’, yet the story had nothing to do with John.

Chapter Three: Closer to home, former Vice-President Gilbert Bukenya was crucified by a tabloid. For weeks on end, the tabloid published endless storied on how Bukenya was alleged to have snatched somebody’s wife and went on to ‘expose’ details of their sexual dalliances.

The tabloid claimed to know how many times the VP romped amongst other details. The source of their information was from ‘friends close to the VP’, ’family members of Bukenya’ and ‘people in the know.’

While I do know Bukenya, I hardly think he is the type who still has the teenage boy antics of kiss and tell. Like he said, ‘there is a Mafia out there’ and after what I have been through, I am inclined to believe him. Coincidentally none of the other papers had any reports on his dalliances.

Chapter Four: Let’s not forget that I was one of the pioneers of Have you heard. Have you Heard then, did have boundaries and still has. Children were not written about out and we did evaluate peoples’ position in society and the work place before we when ahead with a story. We didn’t dwell on the negativity again and again and again. However, it can be argued that ‘people who live in glass houses should not throw stones’. I did live in a glass house so why am I now throwing stones?

Right now, there is a chap who could be described as a ‘hot potato’. Chap is a hot potato courtesy of a tabloid who, have seen it fit to publish a story about him almost every month for the past four years or so.

Chap is rather miffed at his status. A friend once told him that he is ‘a brand’ and as a brand he has to expect a battering in the media. May be whenever a story is written about Chap, their sales go up? Hmm, that is food for thought. Perhaps an extra sh10m is added to their coffers every time they publish a story on him?
Another told Chap, that because of his ‘celebrity status’ he is fodder for the media. Chap a celebrity? Hardly! A quick definition of celebrity is: Somebody who is famous during his or her own lifetime. I wouldn’t describe Chap as famous but rather somebody who is known.

Chap has not done anything tangible that will be remembered years after his demise. All he is, is a writer who was once a newspaper editor and a television producer. He has not published a book, nor does he live in a huge mansion, drive a fancy car or have a fat bank account. He is just your regular type of chap who has a normal run of the mill job, who sometimes after work likes to hangout in with friends, go to Club Silk until the wee hours and sometimes like everybody, else push the boat out a little. Is there any harm in that?

Well according the tabloid, there is. They have issues with Chap going out and drinking beer, that he has been branded ‘a booze war hero’ amongst many other not so kind things. Just like everybody else out there, Chap does go out and just like everybody else he has broken the rules and stayed out late.

But no, Chap is not allowed to do that for some weeks ago and in a full page story (wow, a full page story!) on Chap they wrote this: “When every responsible parent is dropping their kids off at school Chap is just getting in home from the bar.”

The worst thing about that statement was the writer’s decision to drag children into the sordid details.

Wait a minute, do I see similarities between the Chapter Two story on John Fashanu? I think I do. Did they decide to cast their sordid net wider in an attempt that their readers will look at Chap as some irresponsible parent who is in the bar as early as 8:00am instead of dropping off his kids off at school Yikes!

Well for the people who do know Chap well enough, his daughters and family at least they know where he is at 8:00am.

Chap is not the first person nor will he be the last to land in some financial difficulty. Things happen to all of us that sometimes they turn sour. It happens. And when the tabloid found out, it was music to their ears. The headlines were big and bold and since then, every story written about Chap starts of as follows: “Chap, the city booze war hero whose picture was put in the papers by a financial institution...” Oh yes, how they have milked that episode!

Not content, they went below the belt when they wrote that “... because of his ‘marriage had broken up’, his mother-in-law got high blood pressure that she died.” Chap read that sentence again and again trying to make sense of it and to-date, he thinks it was written and designed to have an element of malice, ridicule and spite. Oh yes, the people who do know the truth were supportive enough and yes tabloid, Chap did get some abuse from some two ladies whilst he was shopping in Nakumatt. Is that what you were hoping for?

Chap would be lying if that full page story and others that have been written about him did not hurt. They hurt a lot just like they must have hurt Jackson, Fashanu and Bukenya.

When that full page story was written, It was a tough call to leave the house because as soon as he did, there was the finger pointing. There were the whispers, the smirks and the vilifying ‘smiles’. But life has to go on.

Chap does not think he will get any grace from them. But if they do move on and decide to pitch camp on somebody else, this is how you handle it. Don’t lock yourself at home and mope. Don’t show rage. Keep a stiff upper lip and maintain your dignity.

As long as your ‘real’ friends know the truth, that is all that matters.