Thursday February 8, 2007
Is there any chance the celebrity "coven of witches" can salvage their careers? David Batty asks the experts
The overwhelming public hostility towards Celebrity Big Brother's so-called coven of witches - Jade Goody, Jo O'Meara and Danielle Lloyd - has raised doubts about whether they will continue to enjoy any degree of fame.
But if Mel Gibson can come back with another box-office smash after his anti-semitic outbursts during a drink-drive arrest last year - his latest film Apocalypto has raked in $50m (£25.5m) in the US alone after just six weeks - is there any reason why the disgraced housemates cannot overcome their racist reputations?
The psychologist and media commentator Alistair Ross says there are several factors that determine a celebrity's chances of recovering from a scandal.
These include the nature and circumstances of their offence, the reason for and degree of their fame, how they address their bad behaviour, as well as their age, gender, sexual orientation and ethnic background.
Dr Ross, who teaches social psychology at the University of Strathclyde, says one of the biggest problems for Goody, O'Meara and Lloyd was that they behaved badly on national TV.
"Jade went into the diary room and made racist comments broadcast to millions of people, which is much worse than being caught out in a News of the World sting," he says.
Guardian Unlimited
