History Main / EngineeredHashtag

* For the launch of ''VideoGame/StreetFighterV'', Creator/{{Capcom}} advertised the hashtag [=#RiseUp=] (the {{tagline}} of the game) which is a direct call-out to the players encouraging them to become a [[UsefulNotes/FightingGameCommunity Pro Gamer]].

* The show ''Series/AtMidnight'' asks the audience to tweet in with hashtag jokes, and the funniest ones will appear on the show the next day.

* In ''Fanfic/WithPearlAndRubyGlowing'', people who thought Lapis (given the name Bobbie [=DeMayo=]) was the one abusing Jasper (named Treasure Agateva) mocked her online using the hashtag "#SloppyDemayo".

SubTrope of ViralMarketing. Compare HashtagForLaughs which is a comedic use of hashtags (which can overlap with this trope if it is savvy enough) and AudienceParticipation ([[AudienceParticipationFailure Failure]] when it turns into a ForcedMeme). Has nothing to do with TheEngineer nor HashtagRap, though the punchline could potentially be turned into a viral hashtag.

!!Straight Examples

With the rise of {{Friending Network}}s, corporations adapted their AdvertisingCampaigns to better reflect their viewers/consumers. One of the bigger changes was courting the youth demographic up to 25 years old by using their own NewMedia habits to make them promote the show/product themselves. This also has an added benefit by letting corporations rally the ViralMarketing for a product under one specific hashtag. Different consumers could otherwise create their own hashtag individually, resulting in an awkward "hashtag battle". It can simply be the title ([[TitleTheAdaptation #TvTropesTheShow]]), only the initials to shorten it ([[OnlyKnownByInitials #TTTS]]) or sometimes the {{Tagline}}, a CatchPhrase ([[LampshadedTrope #lampshaded]]) or even something completely new created only for this purpose ([[AudienceParticipation #ShareTheTrope]]). Another more ingenious, and insidious, method consists of including a "#" (pronounce "number sign") inside the very title, immediately turning the work into a trendy word. Since hashtags' capitalization in not important, it could either be [[CapsLock ALL CAPS]] to better stand out, {{all lowercase|Letters}} because millennials "don't have the time for that", or use CamelCase to remain readable while looking [[WeWillUseWikiWordsInTheFuture somewhat futuristic]].

-->--'''WesternAnimation/BoJackHorseman''' on Twitter

[[quoteright:350:[[Music/RobinThicke https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/thicke.jpg]]]]

* ''Film/XMenApocalypse'': Four special temporary cute emojis triggered by specific hashtags were created: [=#SoGenius=] for Professor X, [=#SoDevastating=] for ComicBook/{{Apocalypse}}, [=#SoQuick=] for ComicBook/{{Quicksilver}} and [=#SoElectric=] for ComicBook/{{Storm}}.

* WebVideo/GameGrumps created a ShowWithinAShow called ''"I ''🍔'' Burgie"'' to promote their tee-shirts. The main protagonist is an obnoxious burger called Burgie shooting "Beefy!" as his CatchPhrase. Anytime he does it, the hashtag #beefy appears in the corner. In a funny twist, they realized later that the hashtag was already used by a gay porn website. Other fake hashtags include [=#RelishShits=] and [=#BurgerFeels=].

For the detractors of this practice, it is viewed as a sneaky way to sell their products to [[ViewersAreMorons easily manipulable]] [[YouthIsWastedOnTheDumb kids and teens]], because NewMediaAreEvil and PopularIsDumb (in other words, TotallyRadical for TheNewTens). On the other side, many people find this an easy way to see what other people think about their favorite subject (which is basically the entire purpose of an hashtag to begin with). [[OldMediaPlayingCatchUp Old brands can use this]] to either [[WereStillRelevantDammit make themselves look "hip" once again]]. Remember: Administrivia/TropesAreNotBad. For example, old brands could actually ''make'' themselves hip again through a well executed hashtag campaign, an independent artist could use an hilarious and charming {{pun}}-based hashtag to help promote the Website/{{Kickstarter}} for their lifelong dream project or a major company may genuinely be looking for feedback in the hashtag of their disappointing but yet-not-that-hopeless TV show in order to improve things in the next season.

* ''Machinima/FinalFantasyVIIMachinabridged'' streamed the celebration of Rufus becoming Shinra Inc.'s President across the Shintranet and proposed hashtags to celebrate certain milestones. The event itself used [=#NewPrez=]; a concurrent Gold Saucer contest used [=#GP4Lyfe=], and it mocked Cloud's poor parade performance with [=#YouHad1Job=].

->[[TheStinger You could react to this trope on social media by using the hashtag]] [[SelfDemonstratingArticle #EngineeredHashtag]]. [[PleaseSubscribeToOurChannel Don't forget to follow]] Wiki/TVTropes on Website/{{Twitter}} and to like our Website/{{Facebook}} page.

* ''Film/{{Chef}}'' is known as ''#Chef'' in some parts of the world (which is still a fitting title as Website/{{Twitter}} plays a big part in the plot of this movie).

* In the episode "A Tale of Two Piggies" in ''Series/TheMuppets'', Miss Piggy's tail pops out while she's being photographed by paparazzi, and after a story from a young fan inspires Piggy, she starts the hashtag [=#UnveilTheTail=] to promote the upcoming episode of ''[[ShowWithinAShow Up Late with Miss Piggy]]''.

* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Animals}}'', the family of Jerry the pigeon wears tee-shirts sporting [=#TeamJerry=] for his big race against Mike.

This is mainly used in LiveActionTV as a way to directly interact with their audience by displaying it in one corner at all times. Some chosen tweets can be displayed onscreen during the show at the bottom of the screen to show how the general audience react and incite the rest of the public to react as well and hopefully [[LookMaIAmOnTV be featured live on television]]. Some shows push the concept further by creating episode-specific hashtags to hype up their next episode ([[GrandFinale #TheBigFinale]], [[AliceAndBob #AliceVsBob]], …) or ''even further'' by creating hashtags to react to key moments while they are still happening ([[ColourCodedForYourConvenience #RedTeamWins]], [[PutOnABus #FarewellAlice]], …). Of course, {{rerun}}s featuring them immediately look dated and the hashtags useless. Another trend appeared late 2015, with corporation making brand deals with Twitter themselves to make specific hashtags (momentarily) appear special [[{{Emoticon}} emojis]] related to the film/product.

-->--'''WesternAnimation/BojackHorseman''' on Twitter

* Fox once experimented with posting suggested hashtag names below specific events on their shows, immediately after they happened. For example, the Lady Gaga episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' contained a scene where Gaga suddenly kissed Marge on the lips -- and then half a second later, [=#GagaKissesMarge=] appeared near the Fox logo. Viewers found it more annoying than "helpful" and Fox soon quit the practice.

* NBC Universal has #[=WhyImThankful=], a hashtag that appears on most NBC programming every Thanksgiving.

* Creator/{{ABC}} and Creator/{{Fox}} often display the program's name in the form of a hashtag underneath their logo.

[[folder:[=#ProgrammingBlocks=] ]]

* Creator/{{ABC}} often displays the program's name in the form of a hashtag underneath their logo.

->''"How has Secretariat touched your life? Use [[AC:#[=SecretariatTouchedMe=]]] to share how."''

* The [[UsefulNotes/SuperBowl Big Game]] trailer for ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar'' ends asking the viewers the choose a side between [[GoodVersusGood the two groups of superheroes]] with the hashtag [[AC:[[Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger #TeamCap]]]] or [[AC:[[Film/IronMan #TeamIronMan]]]].
* For the release of ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'', Creator/WarnerBros partnered with [[ProductPlacement Turkish Airline]] and released two fake advertisements for the film InUniverse locations, with [[Creator/JesseEisenberg Lex Luthor]] and [[Creator/BenAffleck Bruce Wayne]] endorsing the ads themselves. They end up with the hashtags [[AC:[[Franchise/{{Superman}} #FlyToMetropolis]]]] and [[AC:[[Franchise/{{Batman}} #FlyToGotham]]]] respectively. Another hashtag used in the promotion was [[AC:[=#WhoWillWin=]]].
* ''Film/XMenApocalypse'': Four special temporary cute emojis triggered by specific hashtags were created: [[AC:[=#SoGenius=]]] for Professor X, [[AC:[=#SoDevastating=]]] for ComicBook/{{Apocalypse}}, [[AC:[=#SoQuick=]]] for ComicBook/{{Quicksilver}} and [[AC:[=#SoElectric=]]] for ComicBook/{{Storm}}.
* Around the release of the 2016 ''Film/{{Ghostbusters|2016}}'' reboot, tagging a tweet with [[AC:[=#Ghostbusters=]]] would make appear an emoji of the famous "stop ghost" logo.
* For ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'', Marvel asked that fans DoNotSpoilThisEnding with the tag [[AC:[=#ThanosDemandsYourSilence=]]].
** Which ''Film/Deadpool2'' soon parodied with [[AC:[=#WadeWilsonDemands=][[FreudianSlip YourSister]][=SorryStupidAutoCorrectSilence=]]].
** ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' followed up ''Infinity War'' with a similar tag, [[AC:[=#DontSpoilTheEndgame=]]].

* In ''Series/FaceOff'', the hashtag [[AC:[=#FACEOFF=]]] is displayed on the workshop door and under the clock (plus your usual reminders by the host).
** In season 8, the contestants were coached by a previous winner. During their ConfessionCam sessions, the hashtag of their team name was displayed ([[AC:[=#TeamLaura=]]], [[AC:[=#TeamRayce=]]], or [[AC:[=#TeamAnthony=]]]).
* Fox once experimented with posting suggested hashtag names below specific events on their shows, immediately after they happened. For example, the Lady Gaga episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' contained a scene where Gaga suddenly kissed Marge on the lips -- and then half a second later, [[AC:[=#GagaKissesMarge=]]] appeared near the Fox logo. Viewers found it more annoying than "helpful" and Fox soon quit the practice.
* Sister shows ''Series/{{Survivor}}'' and ''Series/TheAmazingRace'' both use these. Most of the time, the hashtags show up for the usual scenes that show up every episode, like [[AC:[=#ImmunityChallenge=]]] or [[AC:[=#Roadblock=]]], but sometimes a unique one will pop up in response to something that was just said or shown onscreen. Beginning in Season 26, ''Amazing Race'' started prepackaging nicknames for their teams.

* NBC Universal has [[AC:#[=WhyImThankful=]]], a hashtag that appears on most NBC programming every Thanksgiving.

** One example would be [[AC:#[=ThankYouWillard=]]] during the days leading up to and during the last day the show's resident CoolOldGuy Willard Scott was on the show as a correspondent before he retired.
** There's also [[AC:#[=IAmUnbroken=]]], which encouraged viewers to "share their unbreakable spirit" but was little more than a shameless plug for Universal's film ''Film/{{Unbroken}}''.

* The TropeCodifier is the music video for ''"Blurred Lines"'' by Robin Thicke, pictured, which features the hashtags [[AC:#THICKE]] and [[AC:#BLURREDLINES]] briefly appearing onscreen from time to time.

** [[Wrestling/{{WWE}} World Wrestling Entertainment]]'s NXT brand took it a step further by having the roster's resident pretty boy/selfie enthusiast Wrestling/TylerBreeze, who also has a forced hashtag for his theme song [[AC:[=#MmmmGorgeous=]]], campaign to get himself into an updated video for the Chainsmokers' song.
* Susan Boyle promoted one of her albums with the hashtag [[AC:[=#SusanAlbumParty=]]]. Thanks to TheProblemWithPenIsland, a good number of Twitterers were instead invited to Su's Anal Bum Party.
* {{Parodied|Trope}} in the music video for Music/WeirdAlYankovic's "Word Crimes" to spoof the actual [[AC:#[=EngineeredHashtags=]]] - [[AC:#THICKE]] and [[AC:#BLURREDLINES]] - that briefly appear in the music video for Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines", the original song. The fairly normal [[AC:#WORDCRIMES]] and [[AC:#YANKOVIC]] appear early, but then it gets silly with hashtags like [[AC:[[HashtagForLaughs #YOU'DBETTERSLOWDOWNANDUSETHERIGHTPRONOUNSHOWTHEWORLDYOU'RENOCLOWN]]]].

* Creator/{{Toonami}} uses hashtags in the bumpers and promos for each show on the block. This can get confusing when fans end up trending a different hashtag (sometimes on purpose) and sometimes the block's hashtag choice for a show is not what you'd expect (like [[AC:#Shippuden]] instead of [[AC:#[=NarutoShippuden=]]] or simply [[AC:[[Manga/{{Naruto}} #Naruto]]]])

* The French [[UsefulNotes/AssociationFootball Football]] Federation created the hashtagline [[AC:#[=FiersDetreBleus=]]] ("Proud to be Blues", the [[FanNickname/{{Sports}} nickname]] of the French sport teams) right in time for [[UsefulNotes/EuropeanChampionship Euro 2016]].

* In 2014, Creator/{{NBC}} aired a live broadcast of ''Theatre/PeterPan''. The stage show rather famously includes a scene in which Tinker Bell is close to death and Peter Pan calls on the audience to clap their hands if they believe in fairies in order to save her. During the broadcast, however, NBC decided to take this one step further and initiated [[AC:[=#SaveTinkerBell=]]].

* For the launch of ''VideoGame/StreetFighterV'', Creator/{{Capcom}} advertised the hashtag [[AC:[=#RiseUp=]]] (the {{tagline}} of the game) which is a direct call-out to the players encouraging them to become a [[UsefulNotes/FightingGameCommunity Pro Gamer]].
* ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' had the hashtag [[AC:[=#Pokemon20=]]] for the series' [[MilestoneCelebration 20th anniversary]].

* [[http://hextupleyoodot.deviantart.com/ Artsy Omni]] created a hoax announcing the arrival of VideoGame/{{Rayman}} in the popular ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' series to promote his new show called Creator/{{Smashified}}, and it far exceeded its initial expectations. He and his team ask their viewers to use the hashtag [[AC:#smashified]] to suggest what characters they would like to see made in the show.
* In his "10 Romantic Valentine's Day Gifts!" video, [[Creator/{{Nigahiga}} Ryan Higa]] has a RunningGag called "Fart Cam" consisting of farting with a camera between his legs to film someone's reaction to it. It apparently wants it to become a thing, since the episode ends with [[AC:[=#FartCam=]]] appearing on the screen for a split second.
* WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic, in association with WebVideo/YourMovieSucksDotOrg and WebVideo/IHateEverything, launched the hashtag [[AC:[=#WTFU=]]] ("Where is the Fair Use?") to fight back against the copyright claims abuse on Website/YouTube by Hollywood and other creators despite the work being used under the protection of UsefulNotes/FairUse laws.
* On 6/26/15, the day of the SCOTUS decision to make gay marriage legal across America, Twitter unveiled the hashtag [[AC:#[=LoveWins=]]] which would make a rainbow heart emoji appear in the tweet.

* When it was new, Creator/CartoonNetwork created [[AC:#bearstack]] to promote ''WesternAnimation/WeBareBears''. They used it in several videos showing the three bears in their signature stack wandering in several locations, [[WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse even]] [[WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo in]] [[WesternAnimation/RegularShow other]] [[WesternAnimation/AdventureTime Cartoon]] [[WesternAnimation/UncleGrandpa Network]] [[WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball shows']] [[WesternAnimation/{{Clarence}} backgrounds]].
** They did something similar for the 2016 reboot of ''WesternAnimation/{{The Powerpuff Girls|2016}}'', with various characters from other CN shows watching the three girls fly with anticipation, the clips ending with [[AC:#CNPPG]].
* For the GrandFinale of ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'', "[[Recap/GravityFallsS2E20WeirdmageddonPart3TakeBackTheFalls Weirdmageddon Part 3: Take Back The Falls]]", Creator/DisneyChannel and [[Creator/DisneyXD XD]] aired multiple short ads featuring the hashtag [[AC:#[=TakeBackTheFalls=]]], sometimes [[http://i.imgur.com/S1Sn2WE.png as a]] FreezeFrameBonus (the ''GF'' fandom is known for analyzing everything related to the show in hope of discovering hidden clues).
* Shortly before season 3 of ''WesternAnimation/BojackHorseman'' went live, the show's Twitter feed, as a means of promoting the Secretariat biopic that Bojack made during season 2, asked followers how Secretariat affected them by launching the AccidentalInnuendo-ridden hashtag [[AC:[=#SecretariatTouchedMe=]]] (quoted at the top of the page).
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': During the original broadcast of "Lisa Goes Gaga", on-air graphics with the hashtags [[AC:[[CoolTrain [=#GagaExpress=]]]]] [[AC:[[SweepsWeekLesbianKiss [=#GagaKissesMarge=]]]]] were shown during certain moments.
* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' had [[AC:#cancelsouthpark]] at the end of every episode of Season 22 (minus one that had [[AC:#cancelthesimpsons]] [[TakeThat instead]]), probably as an attempt to create controversy that however failed to catch on.
* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'' had [[AC:[=#CloneWarsSaved=]]] when the installment's [[UnCancelled renewal]] was announced as a shoutout to fan campaigns dedicated to bringing it back.

* In ''Fanfic/InfinityTrainBlossomingTrail'', while Chloe is on the Infinity Train, her family decides to start a movement called [[AC: [=#CallingChloe=]]] to convince others to show their support for the Vermillion City girl.

* In the episode "A Tale of Two Piggies" in ''Series/TheMuppets'', Miss Piggy's tail pops out while she's being photographed by paparazzi, and after a story from a young fan inspires Piggy, she starts the hashtag [[AC:[=#UnveilTheTail=]]] to promote the upcoming episode of ''[[ShowWithinAShow Up Late with Miss Piggy]]''.

--> ''"We did good, the attack's trending! [[AC:[=#CityOfFear =]]]! Upload your pics!"''
** In the same game, the Riddler tried to ignite an uproar against Batman's failures with [[AC:[=#CrusaderGate=]]]. Unfortunately for him, it appeared that even the worst internet {{troll}}s were on the bat's side.

* In ''VideoGame/RatchetAndClank2016'', the CEO of Gadgetron, the game's weapons manufacturer, asks Ratchet to use [[AC:#Gadgetron]] online to advertise the Hologuise he just gave him.

* WebVideo/GameGrumps created a ShowWithinAShow called ''"I ''🍔'' Burgie"'' to promote their tee-shirts. The main protagonist is an obnoxious burger called Burgie shooting "Beefy!" as his CatchPhrase. Anytime he does it, the hashtag [[AC:#beefy]] appears in the corner. In a funny twist, they realized later that the hashtag was already used by a gay porn website. Other fake hashtags include [[AC:[=#RelishShits=]]] and [[AC:[=#BurgerFeels=]]].
** Invoked in a ''VideoGame/SuperMarioMaker'' episode in which they pitch a generic {{sitcom}} about a quirky nerdy girl named Laura. [[AC:#rawful]]
* In a "[[Creator/{{Nigahiga}} Skitzo]]" episode, [[TheDitz Regina]] suggests a new ShowWithinAShow with her friend [[IncrediblyConspicuousDrag Shaundi]] called "[[NWordPrivileges Rhawnderies]]" teaching how to be an [[FunWithAcronyms ANNOYING]][[note]]Awesomely Never Not Obeying Yolo Is Not Good[[/note]] Girl. At the end, they ask the audience to tag their questions with [[AC:[=#ReginersAndShaundies=]]].

-->'''Grizzly:''' "!!!CUTEST video ever" [[AC:#righteous #holla]]\\
'''Panda:''' [[AC:[[DesperatelyCravesAffection [=#PandaSingle=]]]]]\\
'''Ice Bear:''' [[AC:[[ActionPolitician [=#IceBearForPresident=]]]]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Animals}}'', the family of Jerry the pigeon wears tee-shirts sporting [[AC:[=#TeamJerry=]]] for his big race against Mike.

->[[TheStinger You could react to this trope on social media by using the hashtag]] [[AC:[[SelfDemonstratingArticle #EngineeredHashtag]]]]. [[PleaseSubscribeToOurChannel Don't forget to follow]] Wiki/TVTropes on Website/{{Twitter}} and to like our Website/{{Facebook}} page.

** One example would be [[AC:#[=ThankYouWillard=]]] during the days leading up to and during the last day the show's resident CoolOldGuy Willard Scott was on the show as a corespondent before he retired.

* ''WebVideo/DragonBallZAbridged'' had Cell launch the hashtag [="#CellGames"=] to promote the titular event, which according to Yamcha started trending within seconds. In a rather unique case, the hashtag ended up trending on Twitter ''in RealLife'' thanks to the series's popularity and some tweets by Creator/TeamFourStar that promoted the hashtag.

* ''"Blurred Lines"'' by Robin Thicke, pictured, features the hashtags [[AC:#THICKE]] and [[AC:#BLURREDLINES]] briefly appearing onscreen from time to time.

With the rise of {{Friending Network}}s, corporations adapted their AdvertisingCampaigns to better reflect their viewers/consumers. One of the bigger changes was courting the youth demographic up to 25 years old by using their own NewMedia habits to make them promote the show/product themselves. This also has an added benefit by letting corporations rally the ViralMarketing for a product under one specific hashtag. Different consumers could otherwise create their own hashtag individually, resulting in an awkward "hashtag battle". It can simply be the title ([[AC:[[TitleTheAdaptation #TvTropesTheShow]]]]), only the initials to shorten it ([[AC:[[OnlyKnownByInitials #TTTS]]]]) or sometimes the {{Tagline}}, a CatchPhrase ([[AC:[[LampshadedTrope #lampshaded]]]]) or even something completely new created only for this purpose ([[AC:[[AudienceParticipation #ShareTheTrope]]]]). Another more ingenious, and insidious, method consists of including a "#" (pronounce "number sign") inside the very title, immediately turning the work into a trendy word. Since hashtags' capitalization in not important, it could either be [[CapsLock ALL CAPS]] to better stand out, {{all lowercase|Letters}} because millennials "don't have the time for that", or use CamelCase to remain readable while looking [[WeWillUseWikiWordsInTheFuture somewhat futuristic]].

This is mainly used in LiveActionTV as a way to directly interact with their audience by displaying it in one corner at all times. Some chosen tweets can be displayed onscreen during the show at the bottom of the screen to show how the general audience react and incite the rest of the public to react as well and hopefully [[LookMaIAmOnTV be featured live on television]]. Some shows push the concept further by creating episode-specific hashtags to hype up their next episode ([[AC:[[GrandFinale #TheBigFinale]]]], [[AC:[[AliceAndBob #AliceVsBob]]]], …) or ''even further'' by creating hashtags to react to key moments while they are still happening ([[AC:[[ColourCodedForYourConvenience #RedTeamWins]]]], [[AC:[[PutOnABus #FarewellAlice]]]], …). Of course, {{rerun}}s featuring them immediately look dated and the hashtags useless. Another trend appeared late 2015, with corporation making brand deals with Twitter themselves to make specific hashtags (momentarily) appear special [[{{Emoticon}} emojis]] related to the film/product.

The line between an [[TitleDrop Engineered Hashtag]] and a good ol' regular hashtag is thin but clear: the latter is created ''by'' the users who want to share their experiences while the former is created ''for'' the users ''by'' the creators themselves to encourage them to talk about their product. It is not impossible for a creator to eventually exploit a popular hashtag created by the users to communicate about the product, effectively turning it into an AscendedMeme. Similarly, an InUniverse hashtag could also be used by the fans and/or the creators to talk about the show, {{defictionaliz|ation}}ing it. Badly conducted campaigns could create {{Forced Meme}}s by pushing a particular hashtag too much (though one could argue that there is NoSuchThingAsBadPublicity). However, if it is [[MemeticMutation successful enough]] to the point that the hashtag is known [[PeripheryDemographic outside of its original demographic]] it can even bring out people eager to WatchItForTheMeme. Note that it is not only reserved to multinational corporations selling truckloads of products or a network promoting their new show. A single person, from a football fan supporting his team with [[AC:[[TheWildcats #LetsGoWildcats]]]] to a protester with [[AC:[[WavingSignsAround #EnoughOfThis]]]] on a placard, could do it as well. As long as they publicly show their hashtag to the world with the hope that it will become a thing, the media covering the events could easily offer them free publicity.