I think many people were expecting too much too soon. Once it became clear that Schofield was going to have to make his announcement, an extremely expensive damage limitation team snapped into action. So it shouldn't be a surprise that this ruthless and remorseless silencing operation is currently working.
But it won't last. In a case like this, there's a very intense burst of activity, and then it starts to fade. It starts to fade partly because the initial blitz has been so effective that critics start to despair, and partly because, quite frankly, it's way too expensive to keep the operation going.
You can, for example, employ a huge team of people, aided by sophisticated software, to scour Twitter etc for 'inappropriate' messages, and throw money at lawyers to initimidate the press, and pursue multiple other means to patrol the culture, but only for a brief time. The Schofield operation looks very much like a 'short, sharp shock' to blast the opposition away.
It's what happens after this that's intriguing. Once Schofe's team start to feel it's 'job done,' that's the time that he'll start to relax and get too cocky. That's the time when all kinds of accidents could happen - say, TM start to relax and make the mistake of choosing one of those icky 'he cheated on me'/'she lived a double life' guests and suddenly Schofield's input seems strikingly inappropriate, or Schofe gets drunk at 2 in the morning and sends a message that reveals too much, or one of his boyfriends speaks out, or a journalist decides it's safe to make an alegation, etc etc.
So there's no need for resignation. It would have been incredible if his initial burst of intimidation and silencing hadn't worked. It was always extremely likely he'd survive the first wave of controversy.
But if people are vigilant, and remain prinicipled and impersonal in the way they seek to encourage a proper and open investigation into his behaviour, then the next few months are going to be far more interesting and eventful than Phillip expects.
But it won't last. In a case like this, there's a very intense burst of activity, and then it starts to fade. It starts to fade partly because the initial blitz has been so effective that critics start to despair, and partly because, quite frankly, it's way too expensive to keep the operation going.
You can, for example, employ a huge team of people, aided by sophisticated software, to scour Twitter etc for 'inappropriate' messages, and throw money at lawyers to initimidate the press, and pursue multiple other means to patrol the culture, but only for a brief time. The Schofield operation looks very much like a 'short, sharp shock' to blast the opposition away.
It's what happens after this that's intriguing. Once Schofe's team start to feel it's 'job done,' that's the time that he'll start to relax and get too cocky. That's the time when all kinds of accidents could happen - say, TM start to relax and make the mistake of choosing one of those icky 'he cheated on me'/'she lived a double life' guests and suddenly Schofield's input seems strikingly inappropriate, or Schofe gets drunk at 2 in the morning and sends a message that reveals too much, or one of his boyfriends speaks out, or a journalist decides it's safe to make an alegation, etc etc.
So there's no need for resignation. It would have been incredible if his initial burst of intimidation and silencing hadn't worked. It was always extremely likely he'd survive the first wave of controversy.
But if people are vigilant, and remain prinicipled and impersonal in the way they seek to encourage a proper and open investigation into his behaviour, then the next few months are going to be far more interesting and eventful than Phillip expects.
