Several years ago, I was taking photos at a Delaware business networking event when I was politely but firmly told not to take a picture of an individual in the room.There was no explanation, but I would I figured it involved a domestic situation.
Earlier in my career, I shared a hotel elevator with a man who was out of town and accompanied by a woman who was not his wife. He looked down at the floor. I did the same.
Fast forward to last week and the latest Internet sensation when a "kiss cam" at a Coldplay concert in Boston captured two people in an curious embrace made for the Internet. Panic came shortly thereafter. Unless you went off the grid this weekend (a good idea), you probably saw the image and video.
It turned out the duo was the married CEO of a tech company and the corporation’s HR director. It was not a good look. By the weekend, the CEO had resigned, and a flood of speculation, disguised as news, emerged.
An untold number of memes appeared, many amusing, with perhaps the best coming from the Philly Phanatic.
The incident also sparked a discussion about privacy issues and the impact on the families of both parties. Most had little sympathy for a corporate duo "caught up in the moment."
Photographers weighed in, noting that a public event means you pretty much lose your right to avoid being on a "kiss cam,” but also expressing concerns about the online world.
Amy Colbourn, a former Delaware advertising executive who now works out west, conducted some research and came up with some eye-popping statistics, including the initial TikTok video garnering 34 million page views.
That, in turn, triggered thousands of news stories and served as a reminder of the power of the digital universe.
In the end, the duo were the winners of a bad lottery. But this is America, the land of second, third, and fourth chances.
Coldplay will sell a few more tickets for its concert tour while giving a heads up to their fans. Today, USA Today, which did not shy away from highlighting the episode, told us it was time to move on for the sake of health and wellness.
Four days in, my guess is that this story is still being written. - Doug Rainey, chief content officer.
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd,
racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another
person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone
or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism
that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on
each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness
accounts, the history behind an article.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.