And The Winner Is...

...anyone who has suffered the slings and arrows of outrageous media attention without then having to take arms against a sea of reputation troubles, and by opposing end them. Awards season brings out our favorite celebrities and stars for their annual accolades - but it also brings out the cameras. And if you dare to strut the red carpet, or put your head above the publicity parapet, you may take home a shining trophy - but you are also at risk of having your reputation, brand and privacy, blown apart.

Awards season has just concluded. This was the time for entertainers to be showered with Golden Globes, Oscars, Tonys, Grammys and a whole host of shiny embodiments of recognition, applauding the recipient for their achievements in cinema, theatre and music.

But it can also be a time for crowns to slip, for reputations to take a tumble and for privacy to take a bashing. The bastardised adage "live by the camera, die by the camera" is truer today when everyone with a phone is a paparazzi photographer and a publisher, than it was decades ago when stars of the silver screen where still able to maintain some modicum of privacy and to manage the image that they showed to the public.

Today, the insatiable curiosity of the public is served by omnipresent social media and by an omnipotent mainstream media. Any talented individual seeking to secure their fortune through the arts must also be prepared for the fame that is its companion. And while one side of the celebrity coin is accolade and approval, the other can be intrusion and reputational damage. The media, other people, and we ourselves, hold the means of reputational damage on the one hand, or preservation on the other, in our own hands.

Reputation rehab - no, no, no

There are numerous slips and trips for entertainers along the red carpet to stardom. Weeping at the podium - Gwyneth Paltrow takes the award for that; red carpet wardrobe disasters; overlong speeches; jokes that don't quite hit the mark - all minor mistakes from which a penitent may be rehabilitated. But the oxygen of publicity of Twitter storms and 24 hour rolling news can turn a judgment failure into a catastrophic brand killer.

Today, rehabilitation from the errors of one's past is hindered by the private desire of many, and the professional need of some, to live our lives online. Inaccurate information, false and defamatory allegations, private information, even postings that were once acceptable but which are now inappropriate and out of date can sink a...