RG ST 71 Lecture Notes - Lecture 23: Tammy Faye Messner, The Surreal Life, Christian Broadcasting Network
Document Summary
10:56 am: tammy faye bakker (and husband jim) Turned her life into somewhat of a reality show. Exemplary of how media and reality entertainment became somewhat of an outlet for and marriage to religion. Was very successful - talk shows, etc. Expansion of enterprises by building heritage usa in south carolina (christianity-based theme park -- kind of like disneyland) Sex, drug, and embezzlement scandal rocked their ministry. Caused their empire to topple over as luxury became the bakker"s number one priority. Jim bakker made scandals worse, because he had extramarital affairs with his secretary (jessica hahn) who then accused him publically and legally of sexual abuse. Bakker tried to pay her off to keep quiet, but that did not suffice. Tammy became a national joke as she supported her husband, and showed little to no embarrassment as her life publicly fell apart. She embraced the scandal, had fun with it, and capitalized on it to make it last.
