Spring Break
Sex sells, so do scandals
Editorial
Daily Vidette Editorial Board
Issue date: 5/2/08 Section: Viewpoint
While the gossip and buzz on the Eliot Spitzer scandal seems to be dying down since the story broke, there are some that do not want the story to be forgotten that quickly.
Penguin Group imprint Portfolio will be soon putting out a book on Eliot Spitzer's career "from start to finish" according to cnn.com.
Not only will a book be published on Spitzer, but there will also be a collaboration between editor-at-large of Fortune magazine and filmmaker Alex Gibney to also produce a documentary on the the former New York governor.
Although this is an improvement over the publicity that Ashley Dupree, also known as "Kristen," the prostitute who had sexual relations with Spitzer, was receiving, it still perpetuates the buzz the American public has over a sex scandal.
In fact, the person who will be producing this book was the same person who produced the book "The Smartest Guys in the Room," the book on the Enron scandal in 2003.
In general, it seems that the only books the general public will sit up and take notice of are those which satisfy the curiosity most people have of scandalous affairs.
True, it seems that this book will focus on Spitzer's career rather than just the sex scandal, but would it have still been published if there was no scandal?
While so many political analysts claim that Spitzer was a powerful politician whose bright future was ruined, the fact remains that most people outside of New York probably did not know who he was, up until a few months ago.
How strange it is that people involved in scandals always seem to be capable of accomplishing great things until some type of downfall.
Still, beyond this curiosity of politicians and scandals, we also must ask, where is the literary value in this book?
The topic is only relevant for a short time, which is probably why the book is being published so soon after Spitzer's resignation. So, if there is a rush to get a book about a recent scandal on the shelves of Borders and Barnes and Noble, then perhaps it is really just a means to make a quick buck off a scandal that will soon fizzle.
Unfortunately, it seems that this might be the only way to get most people to read. Driving curiosity on how and why such a potentially great politician came to his downfall is, perhaps, some people's only motive to pull away from the television and pick up a book.
However, the publication of this book still sends the message that not only do superficial topics sell and appeal to most people, but also if an author is willing to write about someone famous, or if someone famous is willing to write a book about themselves, their literature will most likely sell like hotcakes.
It is unfortunate that anyone involved in a scandal can write a book or have a book written about them, while real authors are passed over for what seems to be lacking in substance.
Is this the end of good books as we know it?
Penguin Group imprint Portfolio will be soon putting out a book on Eliot Spitzer's career "from start to finish" according to cnn.com.
Not only will a book be published on Spitzer, but there will also be a collaboration between editor-at-large of Fortune magazine and filmmaker Alex Gibney to also produce a documentary on the the former New York governor.
Although this is an improvement over the publicity that Ashley Dupree, also known as "Kristen," the prostitute who had sexual relations with Spitzer, was receiving, it still perpetuates the buzz the American public has over a sex scandal.
In fact, the person who will be producing this book was the same person who produced the book "The Smartest Guys in the Room," the book on the Enron scandal in 2003.
In general, it seems that the only books the general public will sit up and take notice of are those which satisfy the curiosity most people have of scandalous affairs.
True, it seems that this book will focus on Spitzer's career rather than just the sex scandal, but would it have still been published if there was no scandal?
While so many political analysts claim that Spitzer was a powerful politician whose bright future was ruined, the fact remains that most people outside of New York probably did not know who he was, up until a few months ago.
How strange it is that people involved in scandals always seem to be capable of accomplishing great things until some type of downfall.
Still, beyond this curiosity of politicians and scandals, we also must ask, where is the literary value in this book?
The topic is only relevant for a short time, which is probably why the book is being published so soon after Spitzer's resignation. So, if there is a rush to get a book about a recent scandal on the shelves of Borders and Barnes and Noble, then perhaps it is really just a means to make a quick buck off a scandal that will soon fizzle.
Unfortunately, it seems that this might be the only way to get most people to read. Driving curiosity on how and why such a potentially great politician came to his downfall is, perhaps, some people's only motive to pull away from the television and pick up a book.
However, the publication of this book still sends the message that not only do superficial topics sell and appeal to most people, but also if an author is willing to write about someone famous, or if someone famous is willing to write a book about themselves, their literature will most likely sell like hotcakes.
It is unfortunate that anyone involved in a scandal can write a book or have a book written about them, while real authors are passed over for what seems to be lacking in substance.
Is this the end of good books as we know it?
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