Celebrity News Do the tabloids are worthy of a government bailout? Today’s dubious offerings make a bad case for their survival.

It’s simple to miss the days of Bat Boy, Hillary Clinton’s adopted alien infant and Bigfoot’s love servant.

The a lot departed though rarely mourned Weekly World News served to expose the intrinsic sensationalism bordering on self-parody of so-called difficult news.

It made us question the integrity and unimpeachability of so-called mainstream news.

But in an age where the president of the United States derides the “lamestream news” as “fake news” merely for disagreeing with him or responsibly challenging his legion of lies, the tabloids have ended up being surplus to requirements, superfluous to our reality needs.

Maybe that’s why American Media International, the group behind publications consisting of the ‘National Enquirer,’ ‘World’, ‘Star’ and ‘United States Weekly’ magazines has actually gone cap in hand trying to find a PPP taxpayer bailout to the tune of up to $6 million to keep it afloat.

This is the same tabloid group that slavishly passed off Donald Trump on its readers, eliminated negative stories about him, and admitted breaking federal project laws by paying $150,000 to silence a supposed Trump girlfriend,

At their best, the tabloids can work as a corrective to a complacent mainstream media, digging into scandals where others fear to tread. As politics has actually ended up being identical from show-business, and self-aggrandizing social networks has actually revealed the private lives of practically every celebrity, there remains a need for hard-hitting tabloids willing to pierce pomposity, expose hypocrisy, and hold authority accountable.

But one look at today’s offerings reveal that today’s tabloids are paper tigers, peddling insubstantial scandal soufflés that even they can’t keep from deflating.

” New Tell-All Attack on Royal Family,” announces the cover of the ‘National Enquirer.’ “Harry & Meghan’s Cruel Revenge! Implicate William & Kate of ruining their lives! Insult passing away queen as senile and out of touch! Blame Charles & Camilla for destroying Diana!”

Of course, Prince Harry and Meghan have actually done no such thing, nor are they most likely to. There’s a grain of truth that stimulated the idea for this story: the royal abandoners have taken a seat with 2 journalists to pen a licensed book: ‘Completely Modern Royals: The Real World of Harry and Meghan,’ poised for publication in August.

But there is no proof that the duo will utilize their book to settle ratings. Harry and Meghan sat for interviews with the authors last year, prior to transferring to Canada and more just recently to Los Angeles, California, and long prior to stepping down as senior royals, relinquishing a lot of their royal duties and the British taxpayer support that accompanied it.

Instead, the book is more likely to be a huge cheerleading exercise, flattering Harry and Meghan while attempting to deactivate their critics.

The ‘Enquirer’ points out unnamed sources who hypothesize on what the memoir may consist of, throwing every tabloid-generated scandal into the mix, However it’s bit more than wishful thinking. The Queen, who recently won worldwide recognition for her thoughtful and hope-infused televised speech to her country about the threat of coronavirus, is hardly likely to be branded “senile” or “out of touch” by Harry or Meghan.

Fair and balanced as ever, the ‘Enquirer’ report concludes: “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex did not respond to our ask for comment.” No joking.

Sibling tabloid the ‘Globe’ also features British palace intrigue on its cover today, resolving its most current fantasies of Prince Andrew’s awkward entanglement with the late billionaire pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

” New Royal Headache!” screams the front page. “Andrew Paid Epstein $15 m in Sex Tape Blackmail! Wild antics captured on spy cameras! Teenager servant asks court to release videos.”

Yet again there’s a sliver of truth buried deep underneath the surface: self-professed Epstein sex slave Virginia Roberts’ attorney has actually submitted in New york city federal court asking to see “all written or electronic correspondences” in between Epstein and Prince Andrew, and “any proof that he engaged in sex or massages” while at Epstein’s numerous homes.

Despite declaring that “wild antics” were “caught on spy electronic cameras,” the story inside points out unnamed sources claiming: “Spy-cam video requested by Roberts and her attorneys might be the last cigarette smoking gun – if it exists.”

So the compromising video footage may not exist, however we’re anticipated to think that Prince Andrew paid $15 million in hush money anyway?

An unnamed “private investigator” (police detective? personal investigator? tax investigator?) informs the ‘Globe’: “We hear Andrew was shaken down for $15 million after Epstein threatened to bare dirt that might devastate Britain’s monarchy.”

But while a sex scandal might shake Andrew, absolutely nothing that happens to him could ever devastate the British monarchy, since he, like the tabloids, has long been surplus to requirements. The rag includes: “Andrew aspired to prevent even the whiff of a scandal and coughed up the cash – while swearing he ‘d done nothing incorrect.” Right.

Jennifer Aniston’s “Nude Picture Problem!” is exposed in the ‘Enquirer.’ Other than there is no naked picture of her. Nor has anything similar been made public. Nor is her nude image been dragged into any scandal.

It’s her half-brother, Alexander Aniston, who apparently published naked images of himself on social networks – carefully postured to reveal next to nothing – and there is no scandal. But the ‘Enquirer’ has actually dragged her into a non-existent brouhaha, anyhow.

‘ Us Weekly’ publication continues its demoralizing practice of running astonishing front page stories that are flatly rejected by what lies inside the rag.

” Brad Pitt At 56,” states the cover story. “New Love, New Life! Hot dates in lockdown with starlet Alia.”

That’s ‘Arrested Advancement’ starlet Alia Shawkat, to you and me.

In spite of the cover declaring Pitt’s “hot dates” with his “new love,” the inside story makes clear that the publication’s sources believe there is no romantic relationship. The couple “are just friends” says one unknown source, who, perhaps when pushed, hypothesizes that they might end up being more than pals.

” Sure, there’s a slim chance they’ll remain simply buddies, but their chemistry recommends they’ll turn their deep friendship into something romantic.” Actually? Due to the fact that deep relationships constantly turn romantic?

This from the magazine that two years ago claimed Pitt was having a “hot brand-new love” with MIT professor Neri Oxman since he ‘d seen her a couple of times. The male’s not allowed to have female good friends, obviously.

The ‘Enquirer’ tries to provide us some Las Vegas animal act razzle dazzle with its report on tiger-loving magician duo Siegfried & Roy: “Infected Roy Horn’s Desperate Plea: Conserve My Tigers From COVID Hell! Trampled magician’s cherished big cats in deadly threat.”

” Perishing Roy Horn” has apparently been diagnosed with COVID-19, and is priced quote asking his long-time partner Siegfried to look after the 52 tigers at their sanctuary. But not when is he priced estimate fearing that the big felines may catch coronavirus – though 4 tigers at a New York zoo have actually evaluated positive for the infection.

The ‘World’ dives into geopolitics in yet another quote to win its long-overdue Pulitzer Reward with a story about the battle for succession in North Korea: “Kim’s Cruel Kid Sis Outlines Bloodbath!” That’s what occurs when you believe that “cruel autocrat Kim Jong-un” is in a “vegetative state,” and can’t be bothered to alter the story after he is pictured walking North Korea larger than life, and relatively more animal than veggie.

Fortunately we have the crack investigative team at ‘Us Weekly’ to tell us that Regina King wore it finest (though at $6,990 she should not need to see Irina Shayk and Josephine Skriver both using the similar dress), Brie Bella “can never state no to donuts” (does not that depend on what the donut is asking?), which the stars are much like us: they cook, garden, clean your home and work out. It’s revelations like these that provide us expect the future prosperity of tabloids all over.

Onwards and downwards …