Borkowski Weekly Media Trends 04-03-22
Pam & Tommy - Anderson strikes back | The effervescent Matt Hancock
Our Weekly Media Trends continue to feel insignificant against the unfolding tragedy in Ukraine. So we've written a couple of Trends that don't relate to Putin's war that we hope you enjoy.
Pamela strikes back
The TV series Pam & Tommy, which documents the theft of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee's sex tape, was released on Hulu earlier this year to much fanfare. The glossy, nostalgic production featuring big names Lily James and Sebastian Stan fuelled much hype. Until commentators pointed out that Pamela is a survivor of abuse, abuse that the show glamorises and capitalises off. Next, Pamela herself spoke out against it, saying that she had not allowed the show to be made.
This reaction fuelled debate online and off – a discussion we've seen repeatedly: Should celebrities have to sacrifice their privacy for fame? Do fans, the public, have a right to celebrity's private lives? Of course, the lines are blurred, but in this instance, where the question resembles 'Does the public have the right to someone's trauma, even if they are a celebrity?', the answer feels more certainly 'no'.
Then, it feels satisfying to hear the news that Pamela Anderson is releasing a documentary with Netflix, which will 'feature the pop culture icon setting the record straight as she looks back on her professional path and her personal journey'. It's a successful one-up if only for the partnership with Netflix – which towers over Hulu in size and reputation.
It feels wrong that a victim of abuse would have to relive the trauma in a public way to get to this point. But if it weren't for the sandal around Pam & Tommy, a documentary about Pamela's life likely wouldn't have been commissioned, let alone resonated with large swathes of today's audiences. So as it stands, she now has the opportunity to tell her story whilst the world is listening and conclude her legacy on her own terms – a privilege many celebrities won't get to enjoy.
Matt Hancock’s Return
We're approximately three months into Matt Hancock's great comeback plan, and there are no signs it's losing momentum.
In December, Mark Borkowski penned an article concluding the sky's the limit for the disgraced MP (he still holds his West Suffolk seat), despite a litany of controversies that culminated with a blurry image of Hancock smooching his colleague Gina Coladangelo in June leaked to the public. He resigned after flagrantly breaking lockdown rules that he set as Health Secretary.
Now he's back making headlines after a clip of Hancock went viral, declaring his love for Gina Coladangelo on Diary of a CEO podcast. It's a calculated piece of theatre intending to pull on our heartstrings and imply he had no agency over his actions. Don't blame Hancock; blame love - his affair was 'out of his control.'
It's undoubtedly a bold strategy, not helped by the memes produced after the interview. Sadly for Hancock, he's never going to live this down. He can keep up these interviews, but he'll continue to be a meme unless he can start acting as a competent politician (maybe that's impossible).
Then, of course, he can always become the meme. It might be the nuclear option and requires a highly skilled comms team to overcome his lack of charm, charisma and excessive hubris, but it's achievable. Ultimately, Matt Hancock's publicity drive guarantees one thing - he's not going anywhere.