On the cover story of this weekend’s New York Times magazine is a redemption story — or an attempt at one, at least. The article is called “Anthony Weiner and Huma Abedin’s Post-Scandal Playbook” and it features the disgraced Congressman’s first major interview since his resignation nearly two years ago. In the interview, Weiner expresses remorse, swears he’s become kinder, gentler, and more level-headed and reveals that he’s considering running for mayor.
Weiner is not the only public figure who has recently tried to clean-up his image and restore his career. Earlier this month, as Tiger Woods reclaimed his number one World Golf Ranking spot, Nike published an ad with a photo of woods captioned: “Winning takes care of everything.” Around the same time, former South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford marked his return to politics, winning a sixteen-way Republican primary for a congressional seat in South Carolina’s 1st District.
This all as fallen cycling superstar Lance Armstrong announced plans to compete in a masters swim meet in Austin.
Dorie Clark, author of “Reinventing You: Define Your Brand, Imagine Your Future,” describes the ethics, etiquette and personal branding strategies of image rehabilitation.