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When Stars Go Bad


sheentiger.JPGEarlier this week I was flipping through local radio stations on the way to work and caught a snippet of conversation on the syndicated morning show Johnjay & Rich. The hosts were talking about Tiger Woods’ announcement that he’ll begin his post-sex-scandal golf comeback at The Masters in April. Specifically, they were kicking around quotes from Tiger about his own uncertainty regarding how fans would respond when he tees up again.

At that point, one of the guys (I confess I’m not sure which) said something really interesting about a possible response: that fans might welcome Tiger back with open arms and applause.

He pointed to the Charlie Sheen situation. Here’s an actor who’s been accused of putting a knife to his wife’s throat—an act of violence more reprehensible than the sexual shenanigans Tiger allegedly got into. But have those allegations had any effect on the popularity of Sheen’s CBS show, Two and a Half Men? Not one bit, if the show’s sky-high ratings are any indication. As lurid accusations and allegations regarding Sheen’s violent behavior show up in the news, on gossip sites and on tabloid covers, it seems to have had zero impact on his career or his show’s popularity.

That observation raised all kinds of questions in my mind. If Two and a Half Men is still the country’s top-rated sitcom, does that mean people just don’t care about Sheen’s actions? Is there a different set of public standards for someone like Sheen, compared to an icon and (now disgraced) role model like Tiger? Why do some stars seem to get penalized in the public eye—Chris Brown’s dramatically fading record sales in the wake of his attack on Rihanna offers another recent example—while others, like Sheen, seem to get a free pass?

Perhaps most importantly, what does it say about our culture that sometimes we greet a star’s alleged misdeeds with a collective yawn … and then check to see what time his show is on?