Madonna Generates Controversy with MLK Photos | Crisis Communications
Madonna is in the news again! There was a time in the mid-80s and into the 90s when that was a weekly truism. But pop stars way over 50 have a much harder time generating headlines. Madonna has done it again by co-mingling her album cover images with photos of Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King, Jr. She’s been accused of insensitivity at best and racism at worst. In her defense, Madonna claims she is simply uploading art created by her supporters to her Instagram account.
Madonna might not have ever been the greatest voice or the greatest singer, but she is a true talent in manufacturing brand Madonna. Madonna isn’t articulate in the traditional media interview/sound bite sense, but she has always been brilliant at courting just the right amount of controversy to get people talking about her. And if you are a pop star, the very first thing you have to figure out is how to be popular/interesting enough to get people to pay attention to you. Madonna has been doing that in four separate decades, and I think we may see her for another four decades.
No, this current brouhaha won’t damage Madonna’s brand, because mild controversy IS Madonna’s brand.
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If you need help managing your brand reputation during a crisis, please call me at +1.212.764.4955. TJ Walker. I help people prepare for media interviews and how to get through a media crisis with their reputations intact.