Why Social Media Guarantees Celebrity Controversy

4. The Calculated Strategy of Intentional Provocation
While many controversies are accidental, a significant number are deliberately manufactured as strategic publicity stunts designed to combat the ultimate celebrity fear: irrelevance. For some stars, especially those with declining careers or upcoming projects, a "crazy" or inflammatory post is a highly effective, low-cost method of dominating the news cycle. The philosophy is simple: negative publicity still generates clicks, headlines, and engagement metrics, which are the modern currency of fame. By courting outrage, they leverage the public’s addiction to drama and moral indignation to remind millions of their existence, proving that for a certain tier of fame, controversy is not a consequence, but a deliberate business model.