Real life stories or Exhibitionism part II

Photographer: David Nuttall

One of my earlier posts was about modelling and exhibitionism. Unbearable Lightness has also posted on this topic thus adding more food for thought (and check out the very latest post too, that is also on exhibitionism). Yet exhibitionism qua exhibitionism continues to be most intriguing. The more I read about it the more I am convinced that to view it negatively is inapproriate, we need to look at how it manifests itself and for what purpose, in other words, here it comes again, we need to see it in context.

Blogs themselves can apparently foster exhibitionism (in my view positive because it is meant to facilitate communication) - the blogging style is such that one is allowed to share parts of one's life (and some view this as exhibitionism, I have certainly been accused of indulging in it simply because I write a blog). The degree of veracity in such sharing is very subjective, contextually appropriate, I would say. Personally if I refer to others I try to keep their identities hidden, unless they are happy to be identified. Occasionally I get it wrong and some people ask me to remove their names. Or they go through the whole blog post and then write in their own journal, with fake anger,  that THEY were the source of inspiration, look what they have to put up with - thus drawing everyone's attention to it, is this not an inverted form of exhibitionism?
The blog as a genre occupies a place between the essay and the journal. One writes for oneself but also for a reader, real or imagined. In fact, one always writes for a reader, as soon as one's writing is structured. Only the free flowing  handwritten stream of consciousness type of journals are intimate notebooks with personal thoughts, drawings and so on. In psychotherapy, clients are encouraged to keep a journal for themselves, not to be shared with anyone, not even with the therapist. Personally I find it a little daunting, I much prefer to communicate with someone and imagine myself speaking to this person when I write, the free flowing style does not suit me.
That said, today I would like to consider yet another type of exhibitionism, one which is often derided and yet has become a thriving industry. I mean the 'real life story', the print counterpart of the Jerry Springer show or even Oprah, not to mention Big Brother.
I recently bumped into an old friend, someone whom I had not seen in years. He used to work as an editor for one of Murdoch's newspapers back in the 1990s, subsequently lost his job, and freelanced. He now has a massive contact list and no longer writes for anyone but trains journalists and is enjoying it because, lucky him, he keeps on  being invited to do short intensive courses in sunny climes. When I met him he was on his way to Malaysia. We had lunch at a posh restaurant and I managed to get a bit drunk in the middle of the day -tut, tut.
The paper he used to work for back then was not exactly a broadsheet. I used to tease this English Lit Oxford grad for the absurd headlines, only realising after some time that to come up with those you need a great deal of imagination and a good command of the English language. So it helps to have poured over Chaucer. I used to be very judgmental of the so called 'gutter press', now I find it entertaining and when I go to my local Chinese takeaway I unashamedly go through the Daily Star while waiting. Stories about celebrities having sex romps abound, footballers in particular seem to be easily lured into 'kiss and tell' with hookers - and their fans love reading about it, with all the sordid details. Stories about politicians involved in sex scandals also abound - exposing extramarital sex  is still  one of the best ways  to discredit a politician. Remember Paddy 'Pantsdown' Ashdown, anyone? Or Profumo and Christine Keeler?
But there are also stories about ordinary people which everyone wants to read about. Someone won a huge amount of money at the lottery and squandered it all or did not find happiness i.e wife left and various other disasters -  the average reader wants nothing but to feel quite superior in the knowledge that "money does not bring happiness". Someone was reunited with a long lost childhood sweetheart after various tribulations. Someone may have undergone a really scary experience with the stalker from hell - the  replays of Fatal Attraction I have gone through while browsing such stories are countless, that was a movie that somehow firmly embedded itself in the viewers' psyche and keeps on being referenced (I loved Glen Close, not so keen on Michael Douglas though, he never did it for me).  These are stories which  appear in weekly magazines, the kind you find when waiting at the doctor'or at the dentist's or your local takeaway, 'real life' stories which will entertain you for a short while. Sometimes the stories are illustrated with pictures of models (and the caption clearly says so; I modelled for one of them, not exactly my best modelling job).

Photographer: David Nuttall

My friend is an adept at writing stories, any story, he always knows the angle and what sells best. The main thing is: it has to be SENSATIONAL. Selling stories to the press, he told me, has become a full blown and rather lucrative business, with groups of journalists, whose job is exclusively to write such stories, setting up consultancies. They research stories or get stories from  anyone who might come forward with something potentially interesting, write them to target specific publications, money is exchanged and readers can enjoy these real life stories and be gratified by them.  They advertise heavily on the internet and in the magazines themselves soliciting further stories about cheating, disasters, family secrets, crime etc etc. A couple of known websites where castings are advertised for entertainers also have a section entitled "Magazines", full of ads for stories.

Of course the stories have to resonate with the readership. They need to be told in a certain way.  As a general rule there has to be something that catches the reader's attention and makes him or her, especially her (most of these publications are women's weeklies not of the Vogue or Tatler variety where the gossip is strictly about "those who matter" and much more sophisticated), want to read on.  Cheating and betrayal, stalking and sexual harassment always do well but the characters have to be highly dramatised, there has to be a threat to your life, possibly a rape or an attempted rape, that kind of thing. If it  is about stalking  the stalker should be motivated by passion and lust, someone who stalks you because you owe them money does not make the story sufficiently attractive to the  readership - female readers want some hint of romance, stories of people in debt and of thuggish debt collectors are really not what they want to know about.  What if your story is not that sensational? why, you can  make it sensational,  by adding certain touches - not exactly lying, just being economical with the truth. The professional journalist will do it all for you.
Is the money paid good, I asked. My friend smiled. It depends on who is involved and how well you can negotiate, he said. Celebs, politicians, millionaires will get you straight into the Sun or News of the World, lesser mortals might get you into a weekly. But does it have to be true? Hmm, what is truth? Let's say it has to be outrageously unbelievable and yet have a foundation of truth. It's the way you recount the events that matters. What about libel? There are ways of getting around that. If you are naming and shaming, the other party will also be interviewed for verification but most publications have very good lawyers. The contract you sign with them makes you liable rather than them. Besides people do not often pursue a lawsuit because it could be far too expensive.  In the case of celebs they do sue but the publication is prepared for that and there is usually an out of court settlement. It is a big bucks industry.

Photographer: Marcello Pozzetti

But who sells these stories and why? Anyone. Money is an incentive of course, people get paid for baring their souls. Then the pleasure of having your fifteen minutes, with your picture in the mag - often a photoshoot with a makeover thrown in is organised, that in itself could be a payment if the story is too cheap - to be worthy of being paid some money for the story your cheating boyfriend should at the very least have performed a couple of stunts i.e tried to sleep with your mum and your dog  possibly at the same time, otherwise it is going to be an utterly boring read.  The degree of sensationalism will determine the fee.
Interesting. Come to think, I told him, as our lunch was coming to a close and I could feel the effect of the fine wine we drank, I know of a model and a photographer, in fact several models and a photographer, there is lust, stalking, attempted rape...  How much do you reckon that will get me?
Watch out for my Exhibitionism part III. It will be in one of my next posts.
(All photos modelled by Alex B.)