Dousing in cold water

New York, near Times Square, at a newsstand.

"Hey, Don, give me a newspaper."

Antony Logan, who worked at a securities exchange nearby, fished out a Franklin bill and casually picked up the latest issue of The Wall Street Journal. For someone like him, this newspaper was a constant in his life.

As he extended the money, he noticed that the newsstand owner, Don, who usually greeted him warmly, was engrossed in a newspaper, avidly reading. Don didn't even bother to take the money.

"Don, aren't you in the business anymore?"

Anthony craned his neck in puzzlement and saw the bold headline of the Los Angeles Morning Post. "You're not a star-chaser at your age, are you?"

The Los Angeles Morning Post was a newspaper known for its focus on Hollywood celebrities, star news, and whereabouts, catering to the fervor of countless young men and women.

"Sorry about that." Don finally noticed the arrival of his regular customer, Antony. He set the newspaper aside, which he hadn't finished reading, handed over the change, and then picked up the paper again. "Today's edition of the Los Angeles Morning Post is a bit different. I usually don't care about trivial celebrity matters, but these reports are genuinely interesting. I'm just not sure if they're true or false. If they are true, I'll share them with my little daughter to dissuade her from idolizing these stars. Look at this Tom Cruise, he's forty-something and still doing such..."

Upon hearing the name Tom Cruise and considering the recent entertainment section of the newspapers being filled with praises for his new movie "Miscreant", Anthony's curiosity was piqued. "Give me another copy of the morning paper," he said, passing over the change.

...

"Is Tom Cruise Truly Two-Faced? The Truth Behind His Divorces Reveals Hidden Secrets..."

Hmm, the headline itself was intriguing enough to entice one to read further. It seemed the UC News Department in the future had quite a liking for the sensationalist reports of Hollywood tabloids.

When it came to grabbing attention, what wouldn't they dare to say?

What? The content lacks evidence. Why would I need evidence? I've reported it, sue me if you want.

For these small media outlets, as long as the money was sufficient, fabricating and exaggerating were their basic techniques.

As for violating someone's privacy or reputation, you could take them to court, but it would be difficult to win. Even if you did win, the report would already be out, and the damage would be done. What could you do about it?

Moreover, they weren't fools. After the headline, the first sentence of the article would invariably read: "According to informed sources..."

And if you asked who these informed sources were, sorry, privacy, confidential.

What could you do? Just suck up the losses.

In the afternoon, Ron Meyer, the Executive Vice President of Film Distribution at Universal Pictures, sat beneath the awning on his backyard lawn, flipping open the Los Angeles Morning Post. When he saw the prominent headline on the front page, he felt an inexplicable sense of relief.

Turning to the entertainment sections of other tabloids, he found each one smearing Tom.

Such as how he joined a religious group that propagated ideas entirely antithetical to society and disrespectful to women; how he divorced several wives without having children, apparently due to some issues with Tom's... well, private parts, largely all speculations and rumours. Then there were allegations of domestic abuse, a bad temper, and assaulting paparazzi...

Flipping through a few reputable newspapers, like Los Angeles Times and New York Daily News, there were no ambiguous, evidence-lacking smears. The focus was on his religious beliefs, which was clearly Tom's most significant vulnerability.

As for the film critics, their attitudes had also undergone a significant shift.

It wasn't that "Miscreant" was bad, but suddenly there was a hushed tone, a lack of praise.

After all, they had been singing its praises just a few days ago, and now they were turning the tables. Silence was the most potent weapon, and it was one of their goals to dampen the film's heat.

Some critics, who weren't effectively managed by PR, even started mocking the multitude of film critics across the country. They couldn't possibly all be bribed. Even if Paramount wanted to, it wouldn't be feasible.

For example, in the latest issue of The New Yorker, the recommended rating for "Miscreant" was merely one star. The reason given was that the values conveyed by the film were nauseating and harmful to young people. They criticized the act of promoting such a film, calling it despicable.

Even watching a movie has turned into preaching.

It seemed like the whole world loved setting the tone like this—take "The Wandering Earth" and "Wolf Warrior 2", for instance. If you praised them, you were labeled a "Little Pink", a nauseating fanboy.

Were these people all in sync, globally? It was terrifying.

Seeing the progress of his plan advancing so swiftly, Ron's mood improved considerably.

Basking in the sunny weather, he dialed Adam Sunderland's number.

"Adam, keep contacting those vampires. Get them to intensify their efforts."

"As long as the money's good, their work ethic is reliable."

"Money isn't an issue. I'll apply for additional funding. But listen, Adam, although we're competitors now, it doesn't mean there won't be opportunities for collaboration in the future. And remember, with Paramount, you guys need to know your limits. Don't overdo it."

"Understood."

Of course, Adam understood what he should and shouldn't do.

He just wanted to achieve his goal, he didn't actually want to ruin Tom. Haven't all the reports about him been tabloids? They're always ambiguous.

Once this period passed and "Miscreant" achieved its projected earnings, his job would be secured, and his boss would be content. These issues would naturally fade away.

Manipulating buzz and such, weren't they all manufactured by people?

And a massive leak of such damning information wouldn't have escaped the attention of Paramount Pictures.

Because of this, Sherry Lansing immediately called a meeting of the top executives.

"The audience reception of the film, the current occupancy rates, and the projected box office earnings all exceed our expectations," said Andrew David, the head of the publicity department, getting straight to the point. "However, our lead actor, Tom, has encountered significant trouble. The numerous negative reports in the newspapers could easily bring about unfavorable consequences for the film."

After Andrew's statement, the conference room fell into a brief silence.

If no one was behind this, they wouldn't believe it either.

Tom had been associated with Scientology for so many years, at least 18, and as for the divorces, that was a thing of two years ago. Yet now, all these reports were suddenly flooding in. To believe that there was no one orchestrating this behind the scenes, one would have to be naive.

However, sometimes the audience didn't care about how long ago these events occurred. Nobody could deny that this was a clever strategy.

If not handled well, it could indeed affect the audience's anticipation for "Miscreant". Marketing examples of people boycotting a movie due to a certain individual were quite common.

Everyone present was astute; how could they not recognize this tactic?

But, what could be done?

After all, these accusations, some were true, some were false, and some were a mix of both. Should they go through each one by one and explain them away?