Tila Tequila and Shawne Merriman
Celebrities used to be restrained by their PR firms who delicately leaked statements to the press and the eyes of public opinion were glued to mainstream media which were controlled by these spin gurus. But since social media (Twitter in particular) has been grasped by celebrities, they now have an unedited megaphone from which to spew their intelligence or lack thereof.
Social media has also given rise to personalities who have become celebs through these channels such as “Tila Tequila” who before MySpace would have had to rely on nightclub exploits covered by the tabloids to eventually become as popular as she is now and still would probably never reach the audience she currently speaks to.
This past weekend news broke that Shawne Merriman, a popular football player for the San Diego Chargers, was involved in a physical altercation with his girlfriend, Tila Tequila. Without delving into the details which are widely available online, what I’ve found most fascinating is how this has played out in our current state of digesting news. Mainstream media outlets such as CNN and the LA Times used to be the first to deliver news through a staff of investigative journalists but now these same journalists are following the same twitter feeds that anyone can subscribe to for statements directly from the celebrities themselves (or their web savvy PR consultants). Mr. Merriman may want to temper his tweets as he’s going up against one of the most savvy social media personalities of all-time in Tila Tequila. She’s risen to popularity by manipulating online audiences and media to meet her objectives which I assume are fame and minor fortune.
As you and the media continue to watch how this drama unfolds, be assured that it will be the first of many that are now played out as a live stream in your Twitter feed which is now the place to turn for breaking and ongoing news, especially from celebrities.
