I’m sure you haven’t been to the National Enquirer website lately.
But while owner and editor David Pecker testifies about his fealty to Donald Trump, the once vaunted tabloid is a shell of itself.
Online, the Enquirer is a ghost town of a site. The main story right now is not about a movie star cheating or life on Mars. It’s about sweet flavored Kosher wine. “From Bubbe’s Table to TikTok Influencer: Manischewitz” read the headline for this advertorial on top of the home page. Stop the presses!
Just below is a story about someone no one’s heard or cares about: “The Untold Story: Marko Stout’s Journey from Obscurity to Art World Phenom!”
Who? What? Described on the imdb: “Marko Stout is a multimedia and film artist based out of New York City.” Again, NOT Breaking News!
The weirdest headline on the home page: “James Caan Looking for gal he Can’t Refuse!”
It’s comforting to know Caan is still dating in the afterlife. He died almost four years ago. And the story was published June 3, 2022 — two years ago!
Many of the Nationalenquirer.com stories are dated 2022 or earlier. It’s clear Pecker and whoever is running the site don’t care about the web. They are sticking to the checkout counter in supermarkets. But with so many food delivery services like Instacart, Peapod, Door Dash, are people still buying the Enquirer with their Diet Cokes and Twinkies?
By 2018, the Enquirer circulation was down to around 250,000. It had been ten times higher in 1998. Continuing internal scandals, lawsuits, and the advent of the internet combined to strip away its popularity. Now it relies on made up stories about the Royals, and off topic subjects like Scientology and P Diddy. It used to be there was a kernel of truth to the stories. Now they are almost completely fiction.
I don’t know what else the prosecutors will ask David Pecker on the stand. But I will never forget being invited to a 90th anniversary party at the AMI offices circa 2016. Among the entertainers was a Donald Trump impersonator. This was back when Pecker had sense of humor about Trump, who was two months away from being elected president. The eclectic group of guests guffawed heartily. No one would have believed what was about to happen!
