American Pop-Moments: Clinton, Lewinsky, and the Rise of Spectacle Politics (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798294626921)

Clinton. Lewinsky. Drudge. Leno. Cable news. The internet.
In 1998, a White House scandal became something entirely new: content.

From the bestselling American Pop series comes a gripping cultural excavation of the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal and the media spectacle it unleashed-a moment that redefined not only the presidency, but the way Americans consume politics itself.

In American Pop: Moments: Clinton, Lewinsky, and the Rise of Spectacle Politics, cultural historian Taylor Prescott charts the story behind the story: how a late-night news leak, a navy-blue dress, and a televised impeachment trial collided with emerging technologies, partisan cable networks, and the rise of late-night political comedy.

This was more than a political crisis-it was the birth of scandal culture, where the private became public, shame became currency, and the internet began rewriting reputations in real time. Monica Lewinsky became the first viral celebrity. Matt Drudge broke the traditional news cycle. CNN and Fox News discovered their most bankable product: nonstop outrage.

Prescott deftly explores how this scandal created the blueprint for modern politics: endless coverage, performative outrage, media fragmentation, and the collapse of editorial gatekeeping. With the sharp, immersive style readers have come to expect from the American Pop series, this volume uncovers how the Clinton impeachment became the template for the Trump era, social media politics, and the age of performative governance.