the issue here is that the “prominent person” in question has no intrinsic value, thus strip-mining them for news leaves them with nothing left.

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton have each said a host of problematic things over the course of their lives, yet strangely they haven’t been abandoned by everyone yet.

Trump was elected because of this and actively exploited it on purpose, a move most others cannot safely execute.

Intrinsic value isn’t the actual defense against it.  It’s more about a sort of social or political power.