Snowball effect at work in Bill Cosby's sudden fall

On Wednesday, the cable network TV Land pulled reruns of "The [Bill Cosby] Show" from the air, a development that echoed decisions by NBC to drop a sitcom starring Mr. Cosby and Netflix's announcement that it would postpone the release of his new comedy special. Even if there is dispe...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inInternational herald tribune
Main Author Nyhan, Brendan
Format Newspaper Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Paris New York Times Company 22.11.2014
EditionInternational edition
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:On Wednesday, the cable network TV Land pulled reruns of "The [Bill Cosby] Show" from the air, a development that echoed decisions by NBC to drop a sitcom starring Mr. Cosby and Netflix's announcement that it would postpone the release of his new comedy special. Even if there is dispersed knowledge about the allegations (as in Mr. Cosby's case), the information may not trigger a reaction unless it receives what Mr. [Ari Adut] calls "collective and focused attention." In Mr. Cosby's case, allegations by numerous young women that he drugged and raped them were largely ignored until a routine performed last month by the comedian Hannibal Buress drew newfound attention to the claims. Mr. Buress's routine appears to have helped foster that collective, focused attention.
ISSN:2269-9740