Next, we can think about David Letterman.
David Letterman on the Late Show, a late night talk show host and comedian.
And here he seems to make everything funny, now,
he faced some sexual misconduct of his own.
It turns out that he was accused of sexual harassment, having sexual relationships
with interns and staff, but he's able to transform this into a joke.
He talks about how I got in my car this morning, and
not even the navigation lady would speak to me.
So he's making light of this, and actually,
this inappropriate behavior turns out to be a bump in the road for
David Letterman, but it was terminal for Elliot Spitzer.
That is, the relationship we have with David Letterman is as an entertainer,
as a comic, and he maintains that form.
And this violation doesn't derail us from the relationship that we have with him.
Now, similarly, Martha Stewart,
accused of insider trading, she ends up going to prison.
Now, insider trading, however, is serious financial wrongdoing.
And she lied to investigators, that's what really tripped her up.
While she was in prison, she ends up doing just fine.
Her K Mart products are selling well, ad sales in her magazine, Living,
turned out to be fine.
Her interior paint line is doing well.
And Omnimedia stock,
it took an initial hit, but it rebounds while she's in prison.
And when she gets out of prison, she comes roaring back.
So, she gets a show on the Apprentice.
She goes back on daytime television, she ends up doing very well.
This transgression is not a core violation for her.
We turn to Martha Stewart for advice about what colors to use,
how to decorate our homes, how to cook meals.
That style advice she still got, and this is a non-core violation.
Now, in contrast, when Arthur Andersen Accounting ran into trouble,
that turned out to be terminal, that was a core violation.
They built a brand for integrity, not just a last name, a lasting name.
So, Andersen was their brand.
They were signing off on accounting statements,
and companies turned to them for that verification.
But they signed off on misleading documents, and
worse, they ended up shredding bunch of these documents in 2002 for Enron.