Heidi Montag

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Heidi Montag became a reality star as a result of her role on the MTV series The Hills. Since then, she and her husband, Spencer Pratt, have desperately tried to extend their 15 minutes of fame.

Heidi came to Los Angeles from Colorado and got a job working at a Los Angeles PR firm. Unfortunately, the pressure of Hollywood got to her. Heidi felt presssure to look "perfect" and thought bettering her body would help her reach fame.

After The Hills, Heidi tried to start a music career. She failed miserably and solidified her reputation as "becoming famous for nothing". Heidi continued her career, with help of her husband, by participating on the celebrity reality show "I'm a celebrtiy..get me out of here!". The duo left ealry in the show and spent the entire time complaining. Recently, Heidi has been on the covers of magazines and doing interviews about her plastic surgery. in 2010, Heidi underwent 10 platic surgeries in one day. She had previously had a nose and boob job. She not only re-did those procedures, but also had liposuction, a chin job, an eyebrow lift, botox injections and at least three other procedures. After the surgeries, Heidi looked like a completely different person. Heidi defended herself and her surgeries, but just recently admitted she has regrets about the surgery.

At first, Heidi's life may have seemed like a PR nightmare, but that may not be the case. Although Heidi has not done much to become famous, she is famous and is in magazines and talked about on television shows all the time. She has extended her 15 minutes of fame past what anyone expected. She did damage to her career when she got 10 plastic surgery procedures done and changed her look completely, but coming forward saying she regrets her decision will get her sympathy and possibly give back some credit to her name. Heidi could probably continue her career if she ended the plastic surgeries, stayed away from husband (possibly ex-husband) Spencer Pratt and actually worked at her career instead of expecting fame for being pretty. What will become of Heidi Montag is still an alluring question, even to those that do not like her.

Tiger Woods

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Tiger Woods, known as one of the best golfers of all time, has recently tarnished his name because of infidelity to his wife, Elin. Woods was married to a beautfil model, had 2 kids and a great career, but that was not good enough for him. He cheated repeatedly with many women. The scandal of his affaris was one of the biggest stories of 2009/2010.

After the scandal, Woods first response was coming clean...to a sex addiction. He blamed his mistakes and infidelities on an insatiable appetite for sex, a laughable defense. The self-proclaimed "addiction" negatively affected Woods' reputation in the scandal. It appeared as if Woods was not going to take responsibility for his own actions. This proved to be true. Woods continued to use the "sex addiciton" excuse and did do a couple short interviews. In the interviews, however, he said nothing of substance. He did not seem genuine and he should have just apologized and owned up to what he did. Unfortunately, that never happened. Woods' wife, Elin, divorced him and he lost what once was a great sports reputation. Although everyone makes mistakes, a public figure making excuses never bodes well. Woods should have owned up to his mistakes from the very beginning and not continue to make PR mistakes. It seems his PR team either was not providing him with good advice, or he was not listening to them. Either way, there is a definite possibility Woods' reputation will never be the same.

Charlie Sheen

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Charlie Sheen is best known for his role of the popular CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men. However, he is probably just as well known for the turmoil in his personal life.

Sheen has been exposed to the Hollywood lifestyle his entire life. His father is actor Martin Sheen and his brother is actor Emilio Estevez. The lifestyle he was accustomed to from brith did nothing but fuel his alcohol addiction and wild antics later in life. In 1990, Sheen accidentally shot his girlfriend in the face. In 1995, Sheen admitted spending $50,000 on female escorts that year. In 1998, he was hospitalized for a drug overdose and his father turned him in to a rehab clinic. In 1996, second ex-wife Denise Richards filed for divorce while pregnant alleging drug use, gambling, hiring prostitutes, and threatening to kill her. Things only got worse in 2009 and 2010 when Sheen was arrested for domestic violence against his then-wife Brooke Mueller on Christmas morning. Next, Sheen was hospitalized in New York after vandalizing his hotel room. The same year, his third ex-wife, the same one he abused in 2009, filed for sole custody of their children.

Sheen has been to rehab before and because of his 2010 hotel stunt, is said to be entering rehab again. On Tuesday, October 26, a hotel in New York called the police about an intoxicated male. Sheen was found in his demolished hotel room drunk and naked. He was taken to the hospital, accompanied by his ex-wife and two daughters.

Sheen's PR team released a statement saying, "what we are able to determine is that Charlie had an adverse allergic reaction to some medication and was taken to the hospital, where is expected to be released tomorrow." They made no mention of the police citing they removed him for "alcohol abuse and psychological evaluation." According to New York police, Sheen was visibly extremely intoxicated.

Unfortunately, Sheen's PR team did not attempt to comment on him getting help or going back to rehab. Given Sheen's previous and current drug, alcohol, and domestic abuse issues, it is safe to say he needs help in a severe way. Maybe after his third divorce, he will realize his life needs to change, not only for him, but for his children. Hopefully more news or a statement will be released from Sheen's PR representative putting a positive spin on the story. Mentioning Sheen's dedication to getting help or being worried about his life and ready to change would serve well for Sheen's reputation.

David Hasselhoff

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David Hasselhoff, once a beloved Baywatch star, has faced serious personal and career problems in the last few years. From alcohol abuse to publicly screaming at his daughter, the "Hoff" has made his repuation anything but sterling.

Hasselhoff was rushed to a hospital for alcohol poisoning in September 2009. Reportedly, this was his second case of alcohol poisoning in months. He has publicly admitted to have alcohol problems and has attended rehab without success. There are reports of Hasselhoff's drug addiction, but nothing has been proven. Perhaps the most damaging to his career are the videos/recordings of him taken by his daughter. He yells, curses, and has obviously had way too much to drink. The media got ahold of these videos and different companies have reportedly fired Hasselhoff for excessive drinking and strange behavior.

Hasselhoff has tried to revive his career numerous times, to the point where his "career revival" has become a joke. He has been fired from many jobs and turned down for many acting roles and show ideas. He recently was brought onto the 2010 season of the very popular Dancing with the Stars. Hasselhoff was the first voted off and reports of his strange and annoying behavior only hurt his repuation more. Although Hasselhoff seems to be trying very hard to revive his career, I think his "15 minutes of fame" were up in the 1990's.

From a Public Relations view, Hasselhoff should attempt to stay in rehab until he is cured, however long that may take. He isn't going to get any acting deals or respect until he proves he has gotten help and can control his addiction. Also, a big part of  The Hoff's reputation damage deals with his daughter. If he were to truly work on a long-time repair on his relationship with his daughter, that would do a lot of good. Perhaps if she knew her dad were cured of his alcohol addiction. she would be willing to support him. If those 2 things happen successfully, maybe companies would realize Hasselhoff does have potential. My #1 piece of advice: get him away from alcohol.

Mel Gibson

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Mel Gibson, once one of the most respected and valued actors in Hollywood, has turned his public and private life in a completely different direction. Gibson has been accused of threatening his ex-girlfriends and children, beating up his ex-girlfriend, and has been recorded cursing and yelling racist remarks at members of his family. It is easy to say that Gibson's name, once associated with great films, like Braveheart, now causes immediate thoughts of abuse, screaming, and other bad behaviors.

Gibson used to be a very successful actor and director, but is now unable to get acting jobs and the jobs he does get are not successful. Gibson, currently working on "The Beaver," a film directed by Jodi Foster, has forced the opening of the film to be postponed because of the negative connotations of the Gibson name. It is quite sad that a film whose screenplay was very much talked-about and foreseen to be a good film, may not even get to be seen unless Gibson can clean up his act.

Gibson's Public Relations team has been forced to deal with a lot of bad press because of the actor's actions. Most wonder if his career can ever be saved. Some, like crisis management expert and PR manager Howard Bragman, think  Gibson's focus should be on his private life instead of working. Bragman thinks the only way to repair Gibson's career would be therapy, settling all legal issues, apologizing, and re-building the career without blunders. This is a long shot. Even if all of these things were to happen, which is doubtful, I am not sure the public would ever want to pay to watch a man with such an awful reputation. He may have done to much damage to ever recover his career. While the Gibson PR team is working hard, they need to focus on getting him away from work and Hollywood. Gibson needs to repair himself before thinking about working again, otherwise his work won't be taken seriously. Maybe he should attend rehab, take a prolonged vacation, or retire from show business. Only time will tell what can become of Gibson's once ultra successful career.

Bret Michaels

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Bret Michaels, frontman of 80's rock band Poison, has endured a long and interesting career. The Public Relations choices he and his employees have made greatly impacted the length and success of  his career.

Bret's band was wildly popular in the 1980's, but after his musical success, Michaels, like many other 80's rock band singers, became known as a washed up has-been. Similar to many "former stars", Michaels sought a career in the recently popular genre of reality television.
Michaels received his own reality television show in 2007. Rock of Love debuted on VH1 and, to the surprise of viewers and critics, the show was a success. Rock of Love ran for 3 seasons before being canceled by VH1, allowing Michaels to move on to bigger and better opportunities. Michaels joined the cast of 2010's Celebrity Apprentice and won over audiences across the nation. Critics did not expect much from Michaels, but were pleasantly surprised at his determination and "realness." During the show's taping, Michaels suffered from severe health problems, including an emergency appendectomy and a brain hemorrhage.

Michaels' PR team did an excellent job throughout the revival of his career. Michaels did not let the cancelation of his VH1 show stop him, and he used Celebrity Apprentice to show a more real and sincere side of his personality. That decision proved extremely beneficial for his career and reputation. The PR team also used the unfortunate health issues and recovery from those issues to boost his career by being open and honest about every detail.

Michaels ended up winning Season 9 of Celebrity Apprentice and the hearts of America. Michaels' success gained him another show on VH1, but this time focusing on his life struggles and triumphs. Life As I Know It aired on May 31 and returned in the fall on VH1. Bret's PR strategies have helped revive his career and make it thrive. The best PR strategy celebrities can have is to be themselves and have audiences love it. Michaels has achieved this and possibly much more to come.

Britney Spears

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Britney Spears, once a household "bubblegum" pop singer, experienced a very public personal and career crisis in the last few years. The singer's life fell apart with losing custody of her children and the decline of her career. The media frenzy around Spears makes all instances of poor behavior magnified and incredibly public. Whether shaving her head, endangering her children, or attacking paparazzi, Spears has publicly tarnished her image.

In the aftermath of these decisions, Spears was hospitalized, taken to court, and took some time off from fame. The decision to get help and stay out of the limelight for a while was smart idea from a PR standpoint. Spears' family and publicity team did a fair job of keeping the press at bay, but the rumors were bound to circulate either way because of Britney's previous fame.
Spears made the smartest decision she could by staying out of the press and not even addressing rumors. She let the public know she was getting help and focusing on her children while taking a break from her career. Focusing on a career revival while in personal turmoil would have made her recovery seem less sincere.

Britney Spears has turned her career and life around sincer her personal crises. She has released a popular album, gotten visitation for her children, and revived her career in advertisements and guest appearances. If Spears' PR team continues to help her focus on good choices and let the public know how well she is doing, she will continue to gain credibility and hopefully return to a successful career woman with a happy family.