Stormy Daniels has been in the news this week for drama surrounding complicated legal matters. The adult film star could make the news again when she arrives in the nation’s capital on Monday for another reason.
“A Storm is coming back to Washington, D.C for one night only,” noted a new announcement from the Cloakroom, a downtown club located midway between the White House and the U.S. Capitol which features exotic dancing as well as cabaret and burlesque acts.
“Stormy had so much fun and the crowd loved her, so she is coming back one more time,” the club said, adding that ticket prices for “two heart-stopping performances” begin at $50.
Ms. Daniels — whose real name is Stephanie Clifford — has had influence elsewhere both in popular culture and the news media.
Last month, TidalWave Productions, which publishes biographical comic books, released a new title: “Political Power: Stormy Daniels,” detailing her impact in the political arena following a claim that she had a relationship with President Trump years ago.
“Witness her journey from scrappy opportunist to unlikely feminist icon in the newest issue of Political Power,” the publisher said.
“Non-fiction stories are sometimes more entertaining than stories involving capes and tights,” said company founder Darren G. Davis. “In this case the news far surpasses traditional comic books.”
Ms. Daniels, who turned down multiple invitations to attend the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner — also made numerous appearances on talk shows and CBS’ “60 Minutes” this year, and attracted so much news coverage that even analysts took notice.
At one point before the midterm elections a headline at RushLimbaugh.com quipped that the news media was actually turning into the Weather Channel — with Stormy news, 24/7.
Some observers warned about the dangers of such coverage.
“Stormy Daniels is crowding out Democrats’ 2018 message. Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer are trying to run on issues, but nobody can hear them,” summarized Vox senior correspondent Matthew Yglesias.
One analyst also cited liberal bias in the coverage of Ms. Daniels.
“The news media’s obviously insatiable appetite for scandal news surrounding Republican President Donald Trump is sharply at odds with their aversion to covering such stories about Democratic President Bill Clinton two decades ago,” wrote Rich Noyes, senior editor of NewsBusters.org, who compared coverage of by CBS, ABC and NBC, then and now.
There is, Mr. Noyes said, a “brazen double standard” at work.
Between them, the three networks broadcast 23 reports about allegations of sexual impropriety involving Mr. Trump, totaling 40 minutes of airtime, most of it centered on Ms. Daniels.
Mr. Noyes cited Paula Jones and her allegations that then-Gov. Bill Clinton had sexually harassed her in a hotel room in 1991. At the time, CBS and NBC totally ignored her story while ABC gave those charges just 16 seconds. The networks ignored the case until Ms. Jones later filed a civil suit, the analyst said.
• Jennifer Harper can be reached at jharper@washingtontimes.com.
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