No Such Thing as Bad Publicity: Difference between revisions

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[[Wikipedia]] has an article on this philosophy, going by the French phrase [[wikipedia:Succès de scandale|succés de scandale]] (success from scandal).

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== Anime and Manga ==

* Although it was nearly cancelled for it, the ''[[Pokémon (anime)|Pokémon]]'' anime first gained popularity internationally after the infamous seizure-inducing episode, ''[http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/EP038 Computer Soldier Porygon]''. There were a lot of downsides though—the Japanese studio had to hack up any sequence of Pikachu's electricity from previous episodes, which was sold for the international release, thus making a lot of the action sequences get extremely choppy. The Japanese show toned down special effects from that point forward and banned the episode, as well as effectively banning Porygon from ever appearing again in the show ([[Misblamed|despite the whole incident technically being the fault of Ash's Pikachu...]]). Several American TV affiliates also refused to carry the show initially, though they quickly reversed their position when it took off. So while it got a lot of free press, the show still suffered for the backlash early on.

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* ''[[The Far Side]]'' was a little-known comic strip when the now-legendary [[Cow Tools]] cartoon was published early in its run, sparking a frenzy of debate and discussion as to what "Cow Tools" really meant. Cartoonist Gary Larson was mortified by the response, and was forced to write a press release [[Don't Explain the Joke|explaining the cartoon]], but the attention attracted by "Cow Tools" actually increased interest in ''The Far Side'' and probably boosted Larson's circulation.

{{quote|''"So, in summary, I drew a really weird, obtuse cartoon that no one understood and wasn't funny and therefore I went on to even greater success and recognition. Yeah- I like this country."'' - ''(Gary Larson'', The Prehistory of The Far Side'')''}}

* In ''[[Preacher (Comic Book)]]'', Arseface's manager puts out increasingly offensive statements that he attributes to Arseface in order to get Arseface's single higher in the charts, leading to angry protests and demands to "Ban The Arse" while pushing up sales further and further. Eventually, he bugs out with all the money, leaving Arseface penniless.

* In ''[[Preacher (Comic Book)|Preacher]]'', Arseface's manager puts out increasingly offensive statements that he attributes to Arseface in order to get Arseface's single higher in the charts, leading to angry protests and demands to "Ban The Arse" while pushing up sales further and further. Eventually, he bugs out with all the money, leaving Arseface penniless.

* In recent years, comic book writers and editors have taken to deliberately antagonizing readers in an attempt to invoke this trope. The most notable example is Joe Quesada, who has publicly stated that he has fun rubbing ''[[One More Day]]'' in the readers' faces.

* DC's Ian Sattlet on the universal reaction to {{spoiler|Lian Harper's death}} in ''Cry For Justice'': "I'm happy it upset people because it means that the story had some weight and emotion."

* King Features fired Bobby London as the artist on the [[Popeye]] comic strip (which were reprinted in paperback as "Mondo Popeye") after they rejected a storyline in which Olive tries to return a Cabbage Patch Bluto, equating it as a metaphor on abortion.

* King Features fired Bobby London as the artist on the ''[[Popeye]]'' comic strip (which were reprinted in paperback as "Mondo Popeye") after they rejected a storyline in which Olive tries to return a Cabbage Patch Bluto, equating it as a metaphor on abortion.

* An issue of ''[[Life With Archie: The Married Life]]'' fell under controversy from news outlets and parent groups, for depicting the wedding of Archie's [[Invisible to Gaydar]] friend, Kevin Keller. It went on to sell out at several retailers.

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== Commercials ==

* A series of commercials for outpost.com seem to have been designed on this principle. If nothing else, they were [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzbMcsrK-tw certainly memorable!]

* Priceline had a series of ads featuring [[William Shatner]] talking about how he used the service, until it was revealed that he never actually had. He's still their spokesperson today, as a [[Adam Westing|hammy]] 70s-movie-style character called "The Negotiator".

* Priceline had a series of ads featuring [[William Shatner]] talking about how he used the service, until it was revealed that he never actually had. He's still their spokesperson today{{when}}, as a [[Adam Westing|hammy]] 70s-movie-style character called "The Negotiator".

* [[Moral Guardians|NOM]] ''tried'' to invoke this trope when ''[[The Colbert Report]]'' parodied their anti-gay "A storm is coming" ad as "Homostorm". NOM's response? "Thank you Stephen for [[Unwitting Pawn|playing our ad in full on national television]] - for free." Of course, when the thing in question is quite possibly [[Narm|the funniest advert created in modern times]], being presented to the very people who would take it as such (Colbert viewers), it wasn't exactly ''good'' publicity either.

* A 2010 ~~Dominoes~~ Pizza campaign has the company admitting their pizza [[We Don't Suck Anymore|tasted like cardboard]] so they changed the formula of the sauce and crust.

* A 2010 Domino's Pizza campaign has the company admitting their pizza [[We Don't Suck Anymore|tasted like cardboard]] so they changed the formula of the sauce and crust.

== Film ==

* ''[[The Passion of the Christ]]'' was a huge hit for three reasons. 1. The result of its promotion by conservative churches and their youth groups. Many of them even bought large lots of tickets and sent busloads of the faithful to theaters. 2. Because the media couldn't shut up over the controversy of the film's ultra-violence. 3. The additional boost of publicity given after a number of Mel Gibson anti-semitic rants. And 4. The trope being [[Invoked Trope|invoked]] in France. Mel Gibson persuaded local newspapers to print an article about how the film was "too hot for France!" despite the fact that French cinemas had been very interested in carrying the film since its announcement.

* ''[[The Passion of the Christ]]'' was a huge hit for three reasons. 1. The result of its promotion by conservative churches and their youth groups. Many of them even bought large lots of tickets and sent busloads of the faithful to theaters. 2. Because the media couldn't shut up over the controversy of the film's ultra-violence. 3. The additional boost of publicity given after a number of Mel Gibson's anti-semitic rants. And 4. The trope being [[Invoked Trope|invoked]] in France. Mel Gibson persuaded local newspapers to print an article about how the film was "too hot for France!" despite the fact that French cinemas had been very interested in carrying the film since its announcement.

** Pretty much every single movie that has been attacked by the Church became popular enough to be considered a blockbuster. The most [[Egregious]] example would be ''El crimen del padre Amaro'', a Mexican film about a Catholic priest who falls in love with a girl and decides to ignore his vows of celibacy, ''which actually turned overnight from a small, low-profile film into a massive blockbuster!''

* ''[[The Last Temptation of Christ]]'' was destined to be an obscure arthouse/independent film, until word got out that there was a sex scene involving [[Jesus]] and Mary Magdalene (though it was clear that, given the plot of the film, this was [[All Just a Dream]] AND the same leaks pointed out that Jesus and Mary were married in the dream at the time). The Religious Right went nuts with protests, generating the kind of publicity ''Last Temptation's'' producers could've never afforded, otherwise; turning it into a modest hit and a cult classic.

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*** [[Memetic Mutation|DOWN WITH THIS SORT OF THING]]

*** [[Memetic Mutation|CAREFUL NOW]]

** In France, some fanatics [http://www.ina.fr/art-et-culture/cinema/video/CAC89012114/explosion-cinema-st-michel.fr.html ~~BURNED~~ ~~DOWN~~ a theater]. Thirteen people were wounded, and a lot of French extremely shocked.

** In France, some fanatics [http://www.ina.fr/art-et-culture/cinema/video/CAC89012114/explosion-cinema-st-michel.fr.html ''burned down'' a theater]. Thirteen people were wounded, and a lot of French extremely shocked.

** Similarly, fanatics burned copies of the book on which the movie is based outside theaters in Greece. This, of course, required them to purchase a copy.

* ''[[Basic Instinct]]'': People were protesting in the streets because Sharon Stone uncrosses her legs. It is really the only reason why the film is known, and the so-called controversy helped it along.

* ''[[Basic Instinct]]'': People were protesting in the streets because Sharon Stone uncrosses her legs. It is really the only reason why the film is known (along with complaints about stereotyping bisexuals as [[Depraved Bisexual|depraved]]), and the so-called controversy helped it along.

* ''[[Showgirls]]'' is about as well known for the scandal surrounding its NC-17 rating as it is for being a critical and box-office disaster. In a slight inversion of this trope, no major studio has attempted a mass release of an NC-17 film since its epic flop, and ~~its~~ taken numerous DVD releases for the film to show a profit, regardless of the cult success.

* ''[[Showgirls]]'' is about as well known for the scandal surrounding its NC-17 rating as it is for being a critical and box-office disaster. In a slight inversion of this trope, no major studio has attempted a mass release of an NC-17 film since its epic flop, and it's taken numerous DVD releases for the film to show a profit, regardless of the cult success.

* After ''[[Dark Knight Trilogy|The Dark Knight]]'' wrapped up filming, Heath Ledger, who was cast as antagonist The Joker, tragically died from medication overdose. This ended up causing a surge of additional popularity for the then-upcoming film and, along with an exception performance, ultimately led to him receiving a posthumous Oscar for a role that might have otherwise been consigned to the [[Sci Fi Ghetto]]..

* Parodied in ''[[Matinee]]'', when SF B-movie producer Lawrence Woolsey (John Goodman) hires two guys to pose as Moral Guardians and picket the opening of his new film.

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* The 74 films on the [[Video Nasties]] list. Nobody save [[Quentin Tarantino]] would know these obscure, ultra-low budget independent Italian and American grindhouse horror films existed were it not for Mary Whitehouse's (totally false) allegations that these were despicable, immoral, [[Gorn]]tastic shlockfests responsible for the corruption of Britain's children and the BBFC's subsequent banning of them.

* Averted, in part, with ''[[Brokeback Mountain]]''—at one point the studio actually ''complained'' that Christian groups ''weren't'' protesting the film.

* At some point, some people started going to see [[Avatar (film)|Avatar]] just to see the "[[Hype Backlash|overrated]]" film people kept complaining about.

* At some point, some people started going to see [[Avatar (film)|Avatar]] just to see the [[Hype Backlash|"overrated"]] film people kept complaining about.

* ''[[Caligula]]'' would have come and gone in two weeks had it been left to succeed or fail on its nonexistent merits. It became successful, and something of a cult classic, solely because of the protests that it sparked.

* Invoked by Mark Cuban over the controversy surrounding his film ''Redacted''. Lots of political pundits were mighty pissed about the movie's alleged [[Demonization]] of U.S. Marines, to which Cuban -who produced the movie- responded by sarcastically thanking them for all the free publicity. However, ''Redacted'' [[Subverted Trope|did so poorly at the box office that it technically doesn't exist anymore.]]

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* A pair of news stories involving ''[[Drive (film)|Drive]]'' - one involving a moviegoer suing the studio for false advertising and another about a golf spectator being inspired by the film to throw a hot dog at [[Tiger Woods]] - helped the film, which was starting to drop theatres heavily, stick around for longer in some markets. A few markets even brought the film back and had stronger results than its first run due to the publicity.

* [[Michael Bay]] is one of the most ''hated'' people on the internet, even on this very wiki people had to prevent pages for his movies from being excessively vandalized and slandered. Hasn't hurt his popularity.

* Mocked and exploited simultaneously by director [[Kevin Smith]] when he surreptitiously joined a group of Catholics protesting his film ''[[Dogma]]'' outside a New Jersey theatre -- and kept up the [[Kayfabe]] when he was caught by a news crew doing so.

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** [[The Film of the Book]] was more successful at drawing fire, but this didn't lead to any notable box office assistance.

* [[The Oprah Winfrey Show|Oprah]] praised the book ''A Million Little Pieces'' and gave it her bookclub sticker. Then came the reveal that the author had made up a good portion of the book, which he was selling as a non-fiction memoir. The publicity his book got from having Oprah rake him over the coals was amazing, and sales still went on, because everyone wanted to know what pissed off Oprah. The writer may never be able to sell another book, but he probably won't need to.

** Actually Frey has a second book coming out, called ''[[I Am Number Four]]''. With a film adaptation that was made at the same time.

** Actually Frey has a second book coming out{{when}}, called ''[[I Am Number Four]]''. With a film adaptation that was made at the same time.

* Most of the works on this ~~list~~ have aroused a lot of controversy, but how many have provoked national leaders to call for the execution of the writer? Ask Salman Rushdie, author of ''The Satanic Verses''. After the book's publication, Ayatollah Khomeini issued a ''fatwa'' calling on all Muslims to kill Rushdie and his publishers. The book's Japanese translator was killed, the Italian, Norwegian and Turkish translators were attacked, and Rushdie himself had to be put under police protection. Most people would never have heard of the book if not for the ''fatwa''.

* Most of the works on this page have aroused a lot of controversy, but how many have provoked national leaders to call for the execution of the writer? Ask Salman Rushdie, author of ''The Satanic Verses''. After the book's publication, Ayatollah Khomeini issued a ''fatwa'' calling on all Muslims to kill Rushdie and his publishers. The book's Japanese translator was killed, the Italian, Norwegian and Turkish translators were attacked, and Rushdie himself had to be put under police protection. Most people would never have heard of the book if not for the ''fatwa''.

** And indeed most people outside the Muslim world would not have heard of a ''fatwa'' if not for the book. This sometimes leads to [[Small Reference Pools]].

* ''[[The Catcher in The Rye]]''. If it weren't for all the censorship over the [[Precision F-Strike|swear]] [[Cluster F-Bomb|words]], teenage prostitution and teen drinking, it would not have sold so well, nor would it have found its way into required reading curriculum. Mark David Chapman holding a copy as he killed John Lennon didn't hurt either.

* [[Older Than ~~Television~~]] example: The novella ''[[The Great God Pan]]'' published in 1890 (and again in 1894) by Arthur Machen, was decried by the Victorian era press for its immoral and sexual content (for example, a character's "seizures" are actually revealed to be orgasmic convulsions). It went on to become a best-seller of the time period.

* [[Older Than Radio]] example: The novella ''[[The Great God Pan]]'' published in 1890 (and again in 1894) by Arthur Machen, was decried by the Victorian era press for its immoral and sexual content (for example, a character's "seizures" are actually revealed to be orgasmic convulsions). It went on to become a best-seller of the time period.

* [[Mark Twain]] once wrote to his editor: "Apparently, the Concord library has condemned [[Adventures of Huckleberry Finn|Huck]] as 'trash and only suitable for the slums.' This will sell us another five thousand copies for sure!"

* Another [[Older than Radio]] example: [[Mark Twain]] once wrote to his editor: "Apparently, the Concord library has condemned [[Adventures of Huckleberry Finn|Huck]] as 'trash and only suitable for the slums.' This will sell us another five thousand copies for sure!"

* In-story example: In Andrew Clements' ''[[Frindle]]'', Nick's teacher expresses outraged disapproval at his creation of a new word for 'pen', spreading it far further than it would have otherwise. Turns out {{spoiler|she's quite [[Genre Savvy]] and was playing up the villain in order to do precisely that}}.

* Kaavya Viswanathan's debut novel, ''How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild, and Got a Life'', had already generated quite a bit of publicity at the time of its 2006 release, due to the author being 19 and having written it during her freshman year at Harvard. However, things completely blew up four weeks later when the ''Harvard Crimson'' reported that over 40 passages in the book had been plagiarized from two other novels by Megan McCafferty. Sales of the book skyrocketed, but the whole thing ended just a few days later when Viswanathan's publisher recalled the book from stores. After ''that'' happened, people were selling it on eBay for $80! (The controversy couldn't have hurt McCafferty, either, as she had just released a third book at almost the same time the first two were suddenly back in the spotlight.)

* While ''[[Twilight (novel)|Twilight]]'' had some praise back in its day that led to some of its success, the movies and books also owe their success to their Hatedom and [[Hate Dumb]], too. A lot of people who never would have heard of the books or seen the movies actually went to read/watch them because they were so angry about it.

* ''[[Johnny Got His Gun]]'', a rather famous anti-war novel, endured this. Published in the mid-~~30s~~, it was pulled from publication when America entered World War II; Dalton Trumbo infamously reported people who wrote to him, desperately hoping he had spare copies that he might be willing to part with, to the FBI for "hindering the war effort", as the novel was embraced by the US Isolationist movement in the early years of the war (while Trumbo was anti-war, he hated the Nazis and thought that they needed to be stopped). Trumbo's own legal problems due to his left wing views only added to the book's mystique; it was brought back into print and adapted into a movie by Trumbo during the height of the Vietnam War. But the movie flopped, and the novel itself largely faded into view until [[Metallica]] bought the rights to the movie version and re-edited it to create the video for "One" (which was about the novel), their first music video ever. This revived interest in the novel and the movie, though in a bit of irony, Metallica sat on the movie rights for nearly two decades, adding to its infamy due to the fact that many fans considered "One" to be the preferred version of "Johnny Got His Gun", due to the film being seen as being too longwinded for its own good.

* ''[[Johnny Got His Gun]]'', a rather famous anti-war novel, endured this. Published in the mid-1930s, it was pulled from publication when America entered World War II; Dalton Trumbo infamously reported people who wrote to him, desperately hoping he had spare copies that he might be willing to part with, to the FBI for "hindering the war effort", as the novel was embraced by the US Isolationist movement in the early years of the war (while Trumbo was anti-war, he hated the Nazis and thought that they needed to be stopped). Trumbo's own legal problems due to his left wing views only added to the book's mystique; it was brought back into print and adapted into a movie by Trumbo during the height of the Vietnam War. But the movie flopped, and the novel itself largely faded into view until [[Metallica]] bought the rights to the movie version and re-edited it to create the video for "One" (which was about the novel), their first music video ever. This revived interest in the novel and the movie, though in a bit of irony, Metallica sat on the movie rights for nearly two decades, adding to its infamy due to the fact that many fans considered "One" to be the preferred version of "Johnny Got His Gun", due to the film being seen as being too longwinded for its own good.

== [[Live Action TV]] ==

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* [[Jerry Springer]] is fond of mentioning that according to TV Guide, he has the worst show on television. After all, it's a [[Guilty Pleasure]].

* ''[[Gossip Girl]]'' used negative reviews in billboard ads, generally criticizing it for being excessively sleazy, all accompanied by [[Fetish Fuel]] stills.

** Unsurprisingly the stills are more ~~racey~~ than anything in the show.

** Unsurprisingly the stills are more racy than anything in the show.

* ''[[Police, Camera, Action!]]'': the series returned after a 5-year [[Hiatus]], and the media hype over the drink-drive incident died down. It's still in production now. It seems this show has become a [[Karma Houdini]], which is a rare feat.

* ''[[Deadliest Warrior]]''. For the uninitiated, the show takes two armies/warrior cultures/real life commanders/crime syndicates, tests the weapons to decide which would win in a fight. They seem to love this trope. Matchups fitting the trope include Mafia vs. Yakuza, SS vs. Viet Cong (Yeah, [[Godwin's Law|~~THAT~~]] SS), IRA vs Taliban (actually ~~BANNED~~ in Britain), Somali Pirate vs. Medellin Cartel, and arguably Jesse James vs. Al Capone.

* ''[[Deadliest Warrior]]''. For the uninitiated, the show takes two armies/warrior cultures/real life commanders/crime syndicates, tests the weapons to decide which would win in a fight. They seem to love this trope. Matchups fitting the trope include Mafia vs. Yakuza, SS vs. Viet Cong (Yeah, [[Godwin's Law|''that'']] SS), IRA vs Taliban (actually ''banned'' in Britain), Somali Pirate vs. Medellin Cartel, and arguably Jesse James vs. Al Capone.

* [[In-Universe]]. An episode of ''[[Law and ~~Order|Law &~~ Order]]'', based on the Puff Daddy/Jennifer Lopez shooting incident, sees a rapper put on trial for a murder he knows his movie star girlfriend committed. Why did he keep quiet all through his trial? Because his CD sales were going into orbit.

* [[In-Universe]]. An episode of ''[[Law and Order]]'', based on the Puff Daddy/Jennifer Lopez shooting incident, sees a rapper put on trial for a murder he knows his movie star girlfriend committed. Why did he keep quiet all through his trial? Because his CD sales were going into orbit.

* '''ANYTHING''' done by/involving/remotely related to a "Reality TV Star." Here's (unfortunately) looking at you, [[Tila Tequila]].

** ''[[Jersey Shore]]'' ~~owes~~ most of its success. Despite some advertisers actually taking away their ads and Abercrombie even asking The Situation ''not'' to wear their clothes, the show ~~is still~~ growing strong. This is especially true about ~~Snooki~~, who is often called ugly and over-tanned but still got a book deal recently.

** ''[[Jersey Shore]]'' owed most of its success to this. Despite some advertisers actually taking away their ads and Abercrombie even asking The Situation ''not'' to wear their clothes, the show kept growing strong. This was especially true about Snookie, who was often called ugly and over-tanned but still got a book deal recently{{when}}.

* The slightly infamous Snuggie blankets are banking on this in commercials aired in late 2010, saying to effect, "No matter what channel you're watching, you just can't help but hear about the Snuggie!"

* ~~More recently,~~ ''[[The X Factor]]'' fell into this territory - [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1338376/X-Factor-2010-sleaze-Ofcom-act-Christina-Aguilera-Rihanna-lewd-scenes.html as this link proves]. Despite an ongoing Ofcom investigation and pressure from the [[Moral Guardians]], it's not stopped the publicity hype machine and [[Bile Fascination]].

* ''[[The X Factor]]'' fell into this territory - [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1338376/X-Factor-2010-sleaze-Ofcom-act-Christina-Aguilera-Rihanna-lewd-scenes.html as this link proves]. Despite an ongoing Ofcom investigation and pressure from the [[Moral Guardians]], it's not stopped the publicity hype machine and [[Bile Fascination]].

* ''[[Arrested Development (TV series)|Arrested Development]]'' featured an in-universe example at the end of its second season. Maeby produces an American remake of a French film about [[Incest Is Relative|cousins dating]]. A religious group (led by the girlfriend of Maeby's cousin George-Michael) protests the film and turns it into a hit.

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== Music ==

* Many forms of popular music in the 20th century were largely built on controversy. Ragtime, blues, jazz, swing, rock and roll and it's sub-genres, heavy metal and punk, and their sub-genres, and gangster rap. Some received considerably larger backlashes than others, but they were all aided by the claims that they had marked the downfall of society.

* Pop stars that are hugely popular among teen and tween girls, particularly in recent years, have received lots of free publicity both from criticisms for their highly sexual images being inappropriate for their fan base, and from their obsessive [[Hate Dumb]]s.

* Pop stars that are hugely popular among teen and tween girls, particularly in recent years{{when}}, have received lots of free publicity both from criticisms for their highly sexual images being inappropriate for their fan base, and from their obsessive [[Hate Dumb]]s.

* Erykah Badu brought her name back into the spotlight with the video for her song "Window Seat", in which she [[Shameless Fanservice Girl|strips entirely naked]] and mimes being shot. At [[Who Shot JFK?|Dealey]] [[Crosses the Line Twice|Plaza]], no less! She later received a fine.

* [[Madonna]] probably wouldn't have sold as well if she didn't constantly piss people off by doing things like setting crosses on fire, making out with a black saint, and masturbating on stage.

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* [[Marilyn Manson]] is the master of this trope. Not so evident anymore since they're [[Seinfeld Is Unfunny|not quite as shocking as they once were]], but in their heyday in the mid and late 90's, they received a lot of free advertising from Christian groups protesting their "blasphemous" lyrics. They reached their peak for using this trope after the Columbine High School massacre in Littleton, Colorado in 1999. Manson's music was blamed for inciting the shooters in the massacre to commit their actions, giving them tons of free publicity from the news media.

*** Manson's considerable decline in shock value was spoofed in [[The Onion]] in [http://www.theonion.com/articles/marilyn-manson-now-going-doortodoor-trying-to-shoc,459/ this 2001 article]..

* ''Relax'' by [[Frankie Goes to Hollywood]] initially peaked at number 6 in the singles chart. It was subsequently banned by the BBC (and its videos didn't fare much better) shortly after its release and hit number one on five consecutive occasions. Even the Beeb itself has poked fun at this in more recent broadcasts.

* ''Relax'' by [[Frankie Goes to Hollywood]] initially peaked at number 6 in the singles chart. It was subsequently banned by the BBC (and its videos didn't fare much better) shortly after its release and hit number one on five consecutive occasions. Even the Beeb itself has poked fun at this in more recent{{when}} broadcasts.

* [[Justin Bieber]] owes a good portion to his popularity to his obsessive [[Hatedom]] and [[Hate Dumb]].

** Similarly, Rebecca Black's "Friday" wouldn't have become such a hit if not for the people linking to the video just to show others how bad it is.

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* Several people discovered ''[[Exterminatus Now]]'' after it was [http://www.somethingawful.com/d/awful-links/awful-link-3631.php featured] in [[Something Awful|Something Awful's]] Awful Link Of The Day, even despite them showing possibly the most atypical strip in the archives.<ref>not only is the strip in question a guest strip drawn by Lothar's girlfriend, but as the authors themselves said, the comic "doesn't do bedroom scenes"</ref>

* Mike Krahulik and Jerry Holkins, of ''[[Penny Arcade]]'', have more or less made their business on proving this notion wrong. There is such a thing as bad publicity, and Gabe & Tycho know exactly how to dish it out.

** Plus, look at any time they've butted heads with someone (most recently being Gamestop, over Penny Arcade's positively appalling claim that someone ~~OTHER~~ than Gamestop would be selling On The Rain Slick Precipice of Darkness! The nerve!). They just walk away and succeed without help.

** Plus, look at any time they've butted heads with someone (most recently{{when}} being Gamestop, over Penny Arcade's positively appalling claim that someone ''other'' than Gamestop would be selling ''On The Rain Slick Precipice of Darkness''! The nerve!). They just walk away and succeed without help.

*** Speaking of ''On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness,'' advertisements for the first episode proudly featured quotes from a particularly loathsome troll who denounced the game, along with Penny Arcade in general.

** When people still paid any attention to him, Jack Thompson did this for the PA guys time and time again. The biggest was undoubtedly when Thompson sent out a press release to any media camp that would listen and the WA state governor that he had requested the Seattle police to look into harassment charges (made especially funny when he claimed a $10,000 check given to charity in his name was assault of some kind), as well as a list of other petty things. ''He forgot to send anything to the police''. There was back-and-forth between Thompson and PA (mainly headed by Gabe for the most part), with Thompson constantly [[Playing the Victim Card|crying out he was the victim]], and nobody believing him. PA came out on top, and Thompson only brought his douchebaggery ways to the attention of the Florida State Bar.

** When people still paid any attention to him, Jack Thompson did this for the PA guys time and time again. The biggest was undoubtedly when Thompson sent out a press release to any media camp that would listen and the WA state governor that he had requested the Seattle police to look into harassment charges (made especially funny when he claimed a $10,000 check given to charity in his name was assault of some kind), as well as a list of other petty things. ''He forgot to send anything to the police''. There was back-and-forth between Thompson and PA (mainly headed by Gabe for the most part), with Thompson constantly [[Playing the Victim Card|crying out he was the victim]], and nobody believing him. PA came out on top, and Thompson only brought his douchebaggery ways to the attention of the Florida State Bar, which ultimately decided they didn't need his membership any more.

** [http://www.penny-arcade.com/resources/just-wow1.html Paul Christoforo] very firmly believes in this trope. After being a complete prick to a customer and Mike, [[Smug Snake|only backing down and apologizing after figuring out who Mike is]], he seems to think that he's going to spin a career out of this. [http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/nxpqo/i_am_paul_christoforo_ama/ And that's just the tip of the iceberg]...

** [http://www.penny-arcade.com/resources/just-wow1.html Paul Christoforo] very firmly believes in this trope. After being a complete prick to a customer and Mike, [[Smug Snake|only backing down and apologizing after figuring out who Mike is]], he seems to think{{when}} that he's going to spin a career out of this. [http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/nxpqo/i_am_paul_christoforo_ama/ And that's just the tip of the iceberg]...

* The only reason anyone knows about ''[[Sonichu]]'' is because of its author's exploits around the internet, many of them having severely damaged the man's credibility. The author himself, on the other hand, stands firmly by this trope, and believes himself to have a loyal fanbase of over a billion readers judging by the number of hits his Youtube videos receive.

* Mentioned in-story in ''[[Freefall]]'', [http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff2200/fc02162.htm by Sam.]

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* ''[[South Park]]'' rode into success by using this strategy for its first few seasons but toned it down a little after that. While still having no shortage of crude humor, the show switched more toward social and political satire.

* ''[[Family Guy]]''.

** Setting themselves up to make out from their most recent endeavor, with their abortion episode that got banned from being shown on Fox.

** Setting themselves up to make out from their most recent{{when}} endeavor, with their abortion episode that got banned from being shown on Fox.

* Durward Kirby, co-star of ''[[Candid Camera]]'' in the early 1960s, once threatened to sue [[Jay Ward]] Inc for parodying his name in ''[[Rocky and Bullwinkle]]'' (with a [[Nice Hat]] called the "Kirward Derby"). Ward's response? "Please sue us, we love the publicity." Kirby dropped it because his case wasn't strong enough.

* ''[[Code Monkeys]]'' In-universe. The episode, "The Story of 420", pokes fun at this happening with video games. First Lady Nancy Reagan forces Game-a-Vision to put [[Content Warnings|warning labels]] on all of their games stating "Playing this game increases the likelihood that you will engage in drug use and deviant sex". While Larrity objects at first, he's then extremely happy as the labels cause their game sales to skyrocket to the point where Reagan then has to reverse the move and ban them from having the labels on their games.

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* This is the reason you do not feed the [[troll]]s, ever.

* In April 2012, the National Organization for Marriage (NOM<ref>No, not like the [[Fun with Acronyms|sound of eating something yummy]]</ref>) began a boycott of Starbucks for its company statement affirming approval of same-sex marriage, the main issue NOM opposes. [http://instinctmagazine.com/blogs/blog/nom-s-boycott-is-already-impacting-starbucks?directory=100011 It seems to have backfired]. This was parodied by a ''[[Huffington Post]]'' article [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/scott-wooledge/microsoft-apple-unite-to-_b_1394821.html in which Microsoft and Apple request a similar boycott].

* The UK courts have recently ordered major Internet Service Providers to block access to the file sharing search engine The Pirate Bay by May 30, 2012. Soon after the first ISP implemented the block it was reported that The Pirate Bay had actually seen the number of visits increase by several million. Many of these extra visitors are assumed to be people who hadn't heard about the site until it was reported in the news, while some others are visitors who are just trying to circumvent the block.

* The UK courts have recently{{when}} ordered major Internet Service Providers to block access to the file sharing search engine The Pirate Bay by May 30, 2012. Soon after the first ISP implemented the block it was reported that The Pirate Bay had actually seen the number of visits increase by several million. Many of these extra visitors are assumed to be people who hadn't heard about the site until it was reported in the news, while some others are visitors who are just trying to circumvent the block.

* [[Donald Trump]] won the nomination of the Republican Party and then was elected President of the United States despite some of the most uniformly negative press coverage in the history of political campaigns. Apparently his detractors did not stop to think that if they never stopped talking about Trump, then they would never let Trump fade from the news cycle, and thus gave him -- for free -- higher name recognition than any candidate not already an incumbent President has ever known.

* [[Donald Trump]] won the nomination of the Republican Party and then was elected President of the United States in 2016 despite some of the most uniformly negative press coverage in the history of political campaigns. Apparently his detractors did not stop to think that if they never stopped talking about Trump, then they would never let Trump fade from the news cycle, and thus gave him -- for free -- higher name recognition than any candidate not already an incumbent President has ever known.

** A recurring joke is that 'Donald Trump is the first candidate in history to get his opponents to pay for most of his campaign'.