Press tours have evolved quite a bit over the years. There was a time in the not-too-distant past, when someone promoting a book or movie just needed a brief audience with the reigning king of late night, his high holiness, Johnny Carson. On a gaudy set befitting the tastelessness of the era, you savored the time slot and the eyes of nearly every American gazing at your reflective suit.
Now, not so much. There is no Johnny. There isn’t even a Cavett. Instead, there are several late-night shows with barely any discernible difference between them. And dozens of podcasts, usually shot on the same set from the same angle. You hone your couple minutes of obvious self-promotion and make the rounds on various platforms. You tell the same story over and over, hoping new audiences don’t notice, unable to pick out a fungible word whenever you decide to shake things up a tad.
A modern press tour comprises of a few minutes of genuine material stretched into many hours of seemingly original content. Like a piece of dough rolled out from a tiny doughy ball, there are ways of getting the most out of what you’ve been given. Because the audience needs whatever you knead.
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