The general public have become a somewhat easily led bunch, especially by the gutter press, who can report on anyone in such a positive way their popularity soars,, and then equally in an instant, destroy them.
news / media, isn't about "fact" anymore, its careful and calculated manipulation of the masses to prevent them from thinking for themselves.
and of course those who stand to gain the most from this phenomenon can feed the media the appropriate information to achieve almost any ends, good or bad.