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Ever wonder why we go to bat for these historical villains?
One of the reasons is the halo effect, a glitch in our brains discovered by psychologist Edward Thorndike. Basically, if someone is a genius artist or a brilliant leader, our brains automatically assume they’re a good person overall. We let their talent blind us to their massive red flags.
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When the ugly truth finally drops, cognitive dissonance kicks in. Coined by Leon Festinger, this theory explains the absolute mental discomfort we feel when a beloved idol turns out to be a monster.
To stop the distress, people might subconsciously make excuses, minimize the crimes, or blame the victims just to keep their flawless image intact.
“When you find out information that is contradictory about what you believe, or how you [personally] would behave, it’s really quite shocking and disappointing. It shatters that image you had of the person,” explains Danya McStein, a psychologist and media consultant.
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ski_knee_runner:
I looked this up and yes, he was deeply racist against black people, supported apartheid, denied his wife life saving medical intervention, and forced young females in his family to sleep naked in bed with him. I did not know that before today.
los_angeles_john:
Teresa helped poor people die inside. She was not a bad person. It's India is so terrible that people were dying outside.
She was a nun, not a doctor.
Studies on collective memory also show that societies intentionally scrub the wrongdoings of national founders to protect the national identity. We are literally raised on propaganda, and our own brains are wired to help us swallow it.
For example, Christopher Columbus. To build a cool heroic origin story, 19th-century American writers totally airbrushed his record. They even erased his own journals detailing human trafficking, and brutality against the Taíno people.
Experts call this structural amnesia. Societies intentionally delete historical horrors from classrooms because keeping a pristine national myth is way easier than facing a deeply disturbing truth.
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The “history is written by the victors” playbook is actively running even today. We just call it crisis management and brand strategy.
Powerful institutions, public relations firms, and media spend millions annually to clean up the reputations of problematic icons.
According to experts, media uses calculated strategies like reducing offensiveness and shifting the spotlight back to the talent. It actively tries to drown out the dark side with sheer star power.
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It’s not just historical figures who got away with horrible things.
Take a look at modern celebrity culture. Global superstar and footballer Cristiano Ronaldo faced intense and documented legal battles over a 2009 a*****t allegation. Yet, a relentless PR machine kept him framed as the ultimate disciplined family man and the most followed person on Instagram.
Rock legend Anthony Kiedis from the Red Hot Chili Peppers band has written a literal autobiography detailing deeply disturbing behavior with underage girls. Director Woody Allen maintained a legendary Hollywood status for decades despite severe and h**h-profile allegations.
Even when people hear about these scandals today, their brains completely bypass the bad stuff.
Instead of seeing a predator, they only picture Ronaldo’s record goals or Allen’s cinematic masterpieces. Their talent acts like a shield.
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jendcpdx:
Right? It boggles my mind. I know MJ had a tough childhood and ab*sive father. But that’s not an excuse for most of what he is accused if.
The ultimate erasure happens when these figures pass away.
Several studies show a massive trend of narrative flattening. For instance, a 2021 analysis of news coverage following basketball star Kobe Bryant’s 2020 demise examined stories from 18 major US news organizations.
The study found that despite the #MeToo movement, journalists oversimplified and cleansed his narrative. They focused heavily on his athletic greatness and status as a girl dad. Meanwhile, they almost entirely scrubbed his documented 2003 a*****t case from the collective memory.
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Why does it matter if some of these figures are not even alive? Is it even our business anymore?
Experts argue that keeping their dark sides in the spotlight is crucial for our own society today.
When we put historical icons on a flawless pedestal, we create a dangerous cultural blind spot. Excessive and unchecked praise actually breed entitlement and ignorance.
“The effects of excessive praise on conduct are also worth concern. Praising people, even those who deserve praise, can actually have a negative effect on their behavior. Praising people excessively can lead them to act badly, while blame puts them on notice and reinforces good behavior,” writes David V Johnson for Big Think.
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Historically, we treated artists like they were practically gods. Because they could create beautiful things, we assumed their souls had to be spotless. We built this massive cultural expectation that if you’re a genius, you must be a moral saint.
Experts point out that people are deeply complex. Someone can create a masterpiece and still be a total mess behind closed doors. They can do incredible things for the world and simultaneously make horrific, toxic choices.
Accepting that icons are deeply flawed doesn’t mean we excuse their bad deeds, it just means we stop treating them like deities.
#20
Two different child-brides, plus several s*xual relationships with teenaged girls resulting in babies to whom he provided inconsistent child support. Just. gross.