A porn star, a convicted liar, and the publisher of the National Enquirer walk into a courtroom. It sounds like the beginning of a joke.
A porn star, a convicted liar, and the publisher of the National Enquirer walk into a courtroom.
It sounds like the beginning of a joke. It’s not. Except that it is.
David Pecker, former publisher of the National Enquirer, testified against Donald Trump at the former president’s Manhattan trial this week. His appearance seems a self-inflicted error for the prosecution given that for many, the publication he once led conjures up trash journalism (for others, it conjures $2.69 from their pockets in the checkout line). Even if someone launched Filthy Liar magazine, it seems doubtful it could dethrone the National Enquirer as the publication most synonymous in the public imagination with fabrication.
This seems an injustice because the National Enquirer often prints not lies but just very inconvenient truths for famous people caught by their cameras or (often paid) sources in bad spots. Another tabloid certainly deserves the title for profiting off tall tales. Unfortunately for the prosecution, their witness also published the Weekly World News. While known for a Chiroptera–Homo sapiens amalgamation naturally called “Bat Boy,” Pecker’s publication occasionally delved into politics. Headlines included: “Dick Cheney Is a Robot,” “Space Alien Tells All in Shocking New Book: My Steamy Nights with Hillary in UFO Love Nest,” and “Elvis Is Alive—and Running for President.
