Good afternoon,

As you know, I try to steer away from topical matter, and today steers dangerously close so please bear with me. You know what though – let’s start with a medieval queen! They’re always good. How about Theophanu, who ruled the Roman empire in one way or another for nearly three decades and seemed to have a good lifestyle:

The Benedictine chronicler Alpert of Metz describes Theophanu as being an unpleasant and talkative woman. Theophanu was also criticized for her decadence, which manifested in her bathing once a day and introducing luxurious garments and jewelry into Germany. She is credited with introducing the fork to Western Europe - chronographers mention the astonishment she caused when she "used a golden double prong to bring food to her mouth" instead of using her hands as was the norm."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theophanu

Lots of interesting articles about how tabloid news gets made this week. Here are two of them.

Loved this article on how Angelina Jolie controls media narratives:

Jolie had savvy and understood the power of the image. Instead of addressing the scandal head-on, she simply changed the conversation to human rights, the suffering of refugees, the need for education for young girls. And she did so in a distinctly old-fashioned way: in press photos, in speeches that had nothing to do with her own love life, in trips to areas of the world stricken by tragedy. She stymied the publicity by dressing her children in the same clothes for multiple days, thus driving down the price of photos. She ran a perfect publicity game by seeming like she wasn’t playing one at all.

https://www.buzzfeed.com/annehelenpetersen/brangelina-is-dead-long-live-angelina?utm_term=.xxgA4EYGK#.sa2KWzRb1

This article on the paparazzi has lots of things I sort-of knew, that it’s still interesting to see written down:

There is an unspoken deal between Swift and paparazzi, and her bodyguards make it clear. If we act professionally and listen to their instructions, then she will give it up and everyone gets what they want. We get nice pictures, and she looks great in the magazines. She takes an entirely different approach to paparazzi than most celebrities do. It's all about business for her. Every time she steps outside is a new opportunity for her to look good in the magazines. Certain celebrities, like Taylor, not only accept that paparazzi are a part of the business, but they actually go out of their way to use us as a tool for publicity.

http://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/q-and-a/a60015/paparazzo-explains-staged-celebrity-photos/

HAPPY FRIDAY,

Alex.