Steven Slater goes viral.
On Monday, Steven Slater, disgruntled Virgin Airlines flight attendant, made headlines with his much publicized and even more widely debated departure from his job. The sequence of events started simply enough: A passenger failed to comply with Slater’s pre-take-off instructions for proper stowage in the over-head compartments. The “disagreement” escalated after the passenger told Slater to “go f**k himself,” rising in volume and intensity to the point Slater delivered a “tapestry of profanity” which still hangs in the friendly skies. He subsequently grabbed a couple of cold beers from the rear cabin refrigerator, pulled the escape chute, and made one of the most dramatic exits in “I quit” history.
By Tuesday, Slater had become both a working class hero, champion of exploited, alienated customer-service employees everywhere and an internet sensation. Although industrial psychologists and other self-anointed pundits wrung their hands over the consequences of idolizing Slater, the conventional wisdom held that Slater had given voice and action to the feelings of wage earners around the world. By the time Slater’s attorney won his release from jail, the grab-a-beer-and-bail guy had more than 100,000 fans on Facebook. By Tuesday night, Slater had become a staple in late night comedians’ repertoires. No Slater, no monologue.
“A story with legs”
In journalism jargon, a story that outlives its natural life expectancy—usually twenty-four to forty-eight hours—is known as “a story with legs.” The story takes on a life of its own and moves on its own momentum. Slater’s story seems to have bionic legs.
On Thursday, Stephen Colbert awarded Slater “Alpha Dog of the Week” honors, saying he “rode his balls like a sled,” doing what the beta dogs only wish they could. Meanwhile, YouTube’s most prolific singer-songwriter scored tens of thousands of hits as he crooned a ballad commemorating Slater’s dramatic escape. Similarly, a relatively unknown morning radio team from Iowa increased their worldwide popularity with a YouTube recreation of the events leading-up to Slater’s sensational slide; and an Asian animation team very vividly recreated the entire episode in 3D.
Late Friday, even as Slater’s legend continued its exponential growth, Slater and his attorney acknowledged that the twenty-year veteran of airborne service has petitioned for reinstatement in his job.
