I know some of you are still sending in your votes on our latest poll, but I think I can spot a trend in the voting. With 97 percent of the precincts counted, I am going to declare the paparazzi and their partners in crime - the tabloids - as the clear “winner.”
The question this week was: “Who do you think has the most to gain from Britney’s continuing troubles?”
I hope none of you were confused by omitting her last name. I didn’t think I needed to say Britney Spears. I believe that she has earned one-name status in our pop culture.
The reason I chose this question - I know a lot of you initially rolled your eyes when you saw yet another poll that involved this particular pop train wreck - is that I sensed a shift in public attitudes. After last week’s breakdown, I believed that sympathy had moved back in her camp, and that people were ready to point an accusatory finger at someone (your choice of finger).
And I was right. It was the largest turnout in the short history of this blog’s polls, and the paparazzi/tabloids received 47 percent of the vote, although Britney’s useless ex-husband, Kevin Federline, was no slacker (for once in his life), bringing in a respectable 36 percent.
They were followed, in descending order, by late-night comics (8 percent), mainstream media (6 percent) and Dr. Phil (4 percent).
Given the timing of the poll, I assumed that Dr. Phil would have done better, given his shameless performance at the hospital where Britney was staying. But the good doctor’s spin doctors worked overtime to make it seem as if he was a great humanitarium and not some sleazy TV guy trying to generate publicity for his show.
You are a forgiving group.
