The Trouble with Tiger

In the aftermath of Tiger Woods' bizarre car accident and amidst reports of infidelity, the pro-golfer's star scandal is unlikely to disappear anytime soon. The barrage of media reports on Tiger's private life in less than a week is staggering, as Woods tries to navigate his new position as a tabloid staple.

In this short amount of time, Tiger has received criticism for his handling of the scandal, which has led me to wonder, what is effective celebrity crisis management? Is it silence, waiting for the media frenzy to hopefully run its course? Is it public confession of transgressive behavior...and through what medium--via tweet, PR rep, print or televised interview? Do you sit down with Oprah, Barbara, or Diane? Shed tears? Show any type of remorse or guilt? There are many options for atonement and celebrities have utilized them all, for better or for worse. Indeed, measuring the efficacy of the crisis management seems to correlate with the authenticity by which it is presented. Let's take a few examples:

1.) David Letterman
Letterman's admission of affairs with female employees on his late night talk show was the perfect atmosphere for the public to learn of his behavior because of its lighter tone. Audiences were able to identify with his narrative and thus, Letterman completely side swept any type of indictment to become simply, the victim of extortion and blackmail. The early bird catches the worm in this case...admit your deed before someone else does.

2.) Kanye West
I don't think Kanye could have predicted how huge the public fallout would be after he made a stink when angelic Taylor Swift won a MTV Video Music Award. His public apology on Jay Leno's new talk show was initially conventional until Leno shockingly reached for the jugular and prompted Kanye to speak on how his deceased mother would have reacted to his behavior. Regardless of whether West knew that Leno would ask him such a question, it clearly made an impact on him. Kanye's pause of the century made him sound sincere in his apology. I even felt kind of bad for the guy!



3.) Rihanna
Domestic abuse is always a tough crisis to maneuver publicly. As the media and public constructed her in both a positive and negative light due to her relationship with Chris Brown, Rihanna for the most part sat in silence as the gossip mill continued to run. Her public confession through a special interview with Diane Sawyer was both simple and straight-to-the point. While some criticized the timing of the interview--right before her new album's release--the conversation's candid and mature quality seemed to quell the thirst for more information on the story.

4.) Jon and Kate
Reality TV celebrities Jon and Kate have spent the last year in the thick of public scrutiny as their marriage, family, and television show, crumbled to a screeching halt upon accusations of Jon's infidelity. Both Jon and Kate's multiple confessions through multiple delivery channels (tabloid magazine exclusives, daytime television talk shows, and even their own TLC program) was ultimately too rehearsed and constructed for anyone to gain empathy for either party.

Now back to Tiger. In his second website posting, Woods comments that:

Although I am a well-known person and have made my career as a professional athlete, I have been dismayed to realize the full extent of what tabloid scrutiny really means.

It is interesting that Woods does not define himself in this context as a celebrity or even famous, but rather as a "well-known person." It is true that in his many years of international stardom, insights into his personal life have been generally benign, his image well-contained by both his minders and Tiger himself, who is known for privileging his privacy. One might ascertain that if we define contemporary celebrity by tabloid media image circulation, he never reached that level until the current debacle. Therefore, he literally doesn't know how to deal with such intense and invasive conversation about the rupture within his domestic life. What Tiger doesn't realize is that in the 21st century, celebrity gossip is not about morality. Though some may be indicting him under the guise of his departure from role-model status, this media circus is really about entertainment. In many ways, the shattering of Tiger's empire was a ticking time bomb waiting to explode. The tabloid frenzy about his adultery is less about the actual act and more about unearthing some semblance of the "truth" of Tiger, something that has escaped the public since his foray into superstardom. So don't take it personal, Tiger. What really matters is how well you play the game. In the end, it's all a performance. And we are all waiting for the final act!