When the publicity monster eats you: Jon & Kate +8
They say they all publicity is good publicity. And I’m here to tell you whoever “They” are is dead wrong.
All you have to do to take a look at the pending divorce of Jon and Kate Gosselin, the realty stars of Jon & Kate + 8. (In case you’ve been living on a island with no media, the couple embarked on a reality show to chronicle their lives as they raise two sets of multiples: twins and sextuplets.)
As a parent of twins, I know life with multiples can be a challenge. I can only imagine how eight kids could wreak havoc on any couple. Yet, it was their choice, as was their choice to jump into a reality TV show to help pay for everything they wanted for their family. (Plus all the perks! Kate got lipo; Jon got a hair transplant; and let’s not talk about all the amazing trips they got for free!)
What Jon & Kate weren’t prepared for was the publicity that followed. Perhaps they didn’t expect their show to really be as popular as it became. But once it started heading in that direction, they soaked in the media spotlight until the glare started hurting. And that publicity made it more difficult for them – for any couple for that matter – to survive.
When the fame first came, they grabbed it, creating a business around raising their family. And that business included book deals, speaking engagements and the like.
But the business of raising a family is not the same as the business of a TV show. And I think, somehow, the lines blurred.
What they needed was a someone to manage their publicity. Sure, they show had their own PR person, but when the tabloids began their news/gossip, and the mainstream media followed suit, they need their own public relations pro at their side.
And they needed some preparation. For all Kate’s ‘keep them on a schedule’ personality (which by the way is necessary when you have multiples), she forgot to prepare herself, and her family, for the fame. It means having a strategic publicity plan and knowing when to say no to interviews.
Now, with the divorce pending, I wonder, will they get help? Counseling, yes and perhaps a PR watchdog to help keep them a little further from the spotlight so they can heal.
You are SO right on the money here. This is a perfect example of “your biggest strengths are your biggest weaknesses.” The same thing that got them all of this money and perks is also killing them right now.
That’s the problem with success and publicity — publicity can build you up but when it turns, the whole thing can go south in a hurry, especially if no one is managing it. If they had had a good PR person who was on top of this from the get-go, maybe things would look a little different right now.
I’m amazed at how unprepared people are for the spotlight. Fame is like going bungee jumping – it’s looks so attractive until you’re stuck in the middle of it. Then, it becomes repulsive. You can’t wait to get off.
Just like Susan Boyd who rocketed to stardom overnight, someone should’ve prepared Kate+9 (she treated Jon like her 9th child) about the fame, the criticism and eventually, the return to nothingness as people focus on the next big thing.
What a psychological rollercoaster. Divorce/separation is never fun. My prayers are with the parents and children as they go through this life change.
Hey, have you seen this news article?
New details about Michael Jackson’s Death Emerge
I was wondering if you were going to blog about this…