That Martha Stewart is everywhere. Commenting on Your World with Neil Cavuto on Fox News last night, her daily show, Martha Stewart Living still selling reasonably well, and, in New Zealand, her cancelled same-again Apprentice show is still going through its first run.
   The community has sided with her, probably because they sensed that she got a raw deal: while Ken Lay and his mates were running free, she was hauled before the courts and got done. Had the Enron trials happened first, I wonder if things would have worked out as well.
   Post-‘Yale’ Martha is a bigger celebrity than ever, with the sort of worldwide reputation that she lacked prior. Mention Martha Stewart to lay people outside America, and they would look at you puzzled five years ago.
   But if jail made Martha more famous, why do I still feel bitter about New Zealand sportsman Marc Ellis? He’s marketing his book, has huge displays everywhere for it, and yet we knew this guy was buying drugs that were a bit harder than pot. New Zealand media have forgiven him, but I still find his comeback leaves a sour taste. Maybe it’s the sheer illegality of Ellis’s cocaine versus Stewart’s share trading.
   I am sure he is a nice chap, and it goes to show what a friendly face and adoring fans will do to soften the blow. If he looked like a harder bastard, I doubt his mug would be in my local Paper Plus store window. Will New Zealanders buy his book, or will we make a judgement that we won’t buy from a cocaine user? And if we do not shun it, then will we admit the media have had a greater role in our forgiving Ellis than we think? Posted by Jack Yan, 10:53  permalink

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