OPINION:
Close to a half million press mentions in 48 hours. That’s how much sway Monica Lewinsky still has on the news media.
Stories, commentary, speculation and rumor mongering essentially exploded after Vanity Fair revealed it would feature an insta-memoir and essay by Miss Lewinsky, which she penned after more than a decade of mulling over her relationship with former President Bill Clinton.
Oh, such a canny publication. With a sense of timing and showbiz, the magazine flung a few flaming, strategic paragraphs at journalists in advance, then published the complete opus on Thursday.
Ka-boom. An old school media frenzy followed, along with 418,000 assorted stories from the global press, according to a Google News count. And the count continues to go up.
This was normal in days of yore; newshounds clattered down alleys, rifled through depositions and made pronouncements. And it continues. There is still a “Monica Media” at the ready. The former White House intern - now an attractive and reasonably well-spoken 40-year-old - continues to mesmerize the press, even one giddy with self-importance and sophisticated new delivery platforms. Everyone has something to say.
Miss Lewinsky herself should consider writing a few op-eds, or at least become a well-paid consultant in crisis management. Meanwhile, a minuscule sampling of Monica-centric headlines:
“Monica Lewinsky gives the Internet something to do all day (USA Today); “Monica Lewinsky should shut up and go away (New York Post); “Stop slut-shaming Monica (Daily Beast); “Stop judging Monica Lewinsky (CNN); “Minoca Lewinsky: righteous good girl (New York Magazine), “The branding of Monica Lewinsky” (Hamilton Ontario Spectator); “Regrets? She’s had a few (Reuters); “Lewinsky speaking up for all people trashed online (Businessweek); “Lewinsky’s hard-won perspective (Politico); “Monica returns a month before Hillary’s book drops (U.S. News & World Report); “Don’t over-analyze the reemergence of Monica (Los Angeles Times); and “Monica Lewinsky feels your pain (Salon).
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