The art of public relations is using exposure, advertising, marketing and opportunity to tell a story; the story should lead to a call to action; or some desired result with consumers. Social media has allowed every celebrity with a smartphone or computer to be their own public relations practitioner telling stories via Twitter and Instagram that will influence the general public. Social media allows your favorite celebrity or reality star direct access to your “influence” and many of them are taking advantage of the ability to play on your intelligence.
Following are two examples, one high level, one low level of our top PR tactic contenders, using social media to drum up false hype to keep their audience engaged.
Moniece and Milan from “Love & Hip Hop Hollywood”
The “Love & Hip Hop” franchise itself is probably one of the top contenders of this brand of PR hype that’s used to get people excited in order to get ratings that later fall flat. From porn videos to abortion clinic scenes to social media wars, there doesn’t seem to be a valley too low for the “Love & Hip Hop” franchise to take on.
In the last season, Milan’s partner came out of the closet and admitted to his ex-girlfriend and family that he wasn’t straight and had been hiding a male lover. The series was complete with tears and dramatic interpretations of Christopher’s lover battling with the fact that he had been living a lie. Christopher went on and on about how Miles’ needed to choose between men or women. Fast-forward five months later and some provocative pictures of Milan surfaced with his cast mate, Moniece. Rumors swirled that Christopher has started dating females and the two of them appear poised to be the latest celebrity power couple. After the public’s attention has been thoroughly captured, Christopher posts this message on his Instagram.
“#Powercouple or nah! The answer is nah … Me and Momo is [sic] not dating. Although we have a hella flirtatious relationship. And she keeps telling me how she can make me straight with how good her P*#@ is lol … we are not f—ing, but she has made me reconsider the possibility of dating a woman. Since I never have.”
Excuse us Milan Christopher?! Are we supposes to believe that your flirtatious behavior with Moniece was accidental and not designed to start rumors? Aside from that, did we forget that last season Moniece was engaged to Rich Dollaz from “LHHNY?” Stop the madness!
Kim Kardashian West and Kanye West vs. Wiz Khalifah and Amber Rose
The second example belongs to perhaps the biggest offenders of the PR hype scandal on the planet; the Kardashians. Everyone knows that the Kardashians have earned a billion-dollar fortune off hype and appearance. This is not to subtract from a shrewd business sense that accompanies the pomp and circumstance, but the foundation of the Kardashian fortune is built on the public’s obsession with all things Kim Kardashian.
Most recently, Kanye West (a Kardashian by marriage) attacked fellow rapper Wiz Khalifa on Twitter after Kalifah questioned the name of Kanye’s album. Much like the diagnosis after Kim’s nude spread in Paper magazine, the Internet was broken as Kanye went on an ego-driven rant attacking Wiz’s child with Kanye’s ex, Amber Rose, along with Rose herself. Less than 24 hours later, a provocative picture of Kim and Amber Rose is posted from both Kim and Amber’s pages with equally suggestive captions.
In the words of Wendy Williams, “I smell a rat.” After the picture surfaced, reports surfaced that it was taken at Kris Kardashian’s home. Are we surprised? What the public should know is that every move made by most celebrities, especially the kind that are adept at manipulating social media, is calculated and premeditated to attain a desired result. Your attention!
We hope you weren’t bamboozled by these overly inflated stories, but in case you were, don’t feel bad, they were created just for you. Chime in and let us know what other PR scams you see online.
