From Shame to Gain
I am a subscriber to Walt Mueller's updates on youth culture from CPYU (Center for Parent/Youth Understanding). He never fails to have new insights and ideas that challenge me and the culture around me. Last week (6/23) he wrote about the Jennifer Wilbanks situation. You remember. She was the "runaway bride" who has now turned into the "let's cash in on it all" bride. Here's what Walt had to say at the end of his blog post:

Granted, I don’t know the entire story. But that’s the point. . . . . I don’t need to. Neither do the rest of us. Shame on the media, and shame on us. But Wilbanks has gone from the embarrassed woman with the beach towel over her head to a woman who’s cashing in on her cold feet by signing a book and a movie deal. Reports I’ve seen indicate that she’s probably getting somewhere around $500,000 just for the book deal. Come on. . . . what’s wrong with this picture. Quite a bit. But I’ll only mention one of the messages that Wilbanks and her original and continued actions send to our kids. . . . . who, by the way, know what’s going on. It’s this: do something stupid or unexplainable and you’ll wind up as a rich and famous celebrity. Sure, after Wilbanks pays back the town for the search bill her take will be down a bit. But she is making a pretty nice profit. Perhaps it’s enough to pay for an elaborate wedding with 600 guests and 28 attendants. I don’t want to be too hard on Wilbanks. Again, I don’t know her nor do I know her situation. These things are always complex. The problem is that the massive media coverage and subsequent publishing deals make it all look a lot simpler than it really is. Sadly, there’s a simple message coming through to our kids.
--from Walt Mueller at CPYU