Cliche of the Week 124 – Fifty Shades
May 4, 2013 at 1:07 pm 1 comment
Fifty Shades of Grey, the trilogy of erotic books, has had undue influence on headline writers and anyone seeking a quick publishing dollar or trying to get punters to a fundraising night.
Media coverage of Fifty Shades peaked in December with over 3000 appearances worldwide for the month.
“Marvel Comics Goes `Fifty Shades’ With New Line of Romance Novels.” (Hollywood Reporter, February 8)
“Mary Lou McDonald momentarily set male faces 50 shades of crimson during the week when she announced, at a committee meeting, that she wanted to raise the cost of whips in Leinster House. `By that I mean party whips,’ she clarified.” (The Irish Mail, October 27)
“Inspired by the latest craze over author EL James’s trilogy Fifty Shades of Grey, the Reach for a Dream Foundation will be hosting a dinner fundraiser called Untie Fifty Shades Of Red Ladies Night.” (The Post, South Africa, October 24)
“A Fifty Shades of Pink fundraiser for women’s cancer research will be held in the Central Coast Adventist School hall tomorrow.” (Central Coast Express, October 24)
“This `Fifty Shades of Fashion’ show is a must for all who desire to dress to impress.” (The Fingal Independent, Ireland, October 23)
Chris Pash’s book, The Last Whale , a true story set in the 1970s about Australia’s last whaling station and the activists who fought to close it, was published by Fremantle Press in 2008.
Entry filed under: Cliche of The Week. Tags: journalism, reporting, writing.
Chris Pash 
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cleanphil | May 12, 2013 at 1:56 pm
I experience a “fifty shades” fantasy without using it as an adjective. We were given a “trustful walking” exercise in our MBSR yoga course. I was led around blindfolded by a young woman with clammy damp hands. I reported that the experience was “mildly erotic”, like ballroom dancing with your eyes closed. The women couldn’t relate to my male experience. Maybe if I called it a “fifty shades” moment they would get it.