America gains both fame and fortune

Chapter 204 The focus of public opinion
Not only did Thomas reach an agreement with the LAPD on Martin's behalf, but Warner Television also reached an agreement with the LAPD.

All TV stations were reporting the news frantically, and only Warner TV had exclusive footage.

The video shot by Helen did not contain any content that was unacceptable to the LAPD. For the sake of ratings and popularity, the video was specially cut into several segments and broadcast on TV news at different time periods.

Warner TV is really crazy.

Helen, who hosted the show herself, also found the best excuse and reason: because of her hasty escape, the DV was damaged, and the technicians were repairing the storage disk overnight.

Warner TV used the following comment on the headline of its 6 o'clock evening news: Los Angeles' hero: Martin Davis!
The video being played was of Martin saving people in a convenience store.

Helen, with the credit of filming the video on the scene, personally hosted the news report, and her voice choked up several times when she mentioned Martin.

"I don't know how to thank him. Anyone who can bravely stand up to a gun deserves the title of hero. He saved 16 people, including me!"

There’s no need to brag about it, because the video Helen shot speaks for itself!
The four major television networks all followed suit and various news channels broadcast the news continuously.

Before leaving the scene, Martin deliberately appeared in front of the media reporters and asked them to take photos of his blood-stained body.

Now, each of his live photos can sell for tens of thousands of dollars.

Martin Davis' name spread throughout North America in an instant as the media reported it crazily.

Many European media outlets, such as the BBC and Sky TV, reprinted the news as soon as possible. The video and images of Martin in the shooting spread beyond North America and caused a great response in Europe.

Martin was linked to Helen, and several videos of the incident appeared on the internet that night.

From fleeing in panic when attacked by gunmen to fighting back desperately when faced with a desperate situation.

Among them, the most widely circulated one is that after Martin escaped from danger, he picked up the gun from the ground, rushed out of the convenience store, and turned around and said: "My brother is outside!"

The comments on the Internet can only be described as crazy.

“This sentence made me cry!”

"I also want to make friends with a brother like this!"

"For this, I will never say anything bad about Martin again in my life!"

The name Martin Davis topped Google's hot search list that night.

Countless netizens flocked to Martin's blog to leave messages.

"I saw the video on the news, and even though I don't like your movie, you really are a hero!"

"I originally thought that the sight of a perverted murderer being killed by someone behind the scenes was an exaggeration in film art, but now I know that it is a true portrayal of you!"

"Martin is a true hero!"

There were thousands of similar comments in the blog section, and by around ten o'clock in the evening, the number had exceeded 50,000.

Some of the cheerleaders who survived were interviewed as they left the school.

NBC aired an interview with an ordinary girl.

"We all thought we were dead. The classmate next to me was so scared that he peed his pants." The girl had a coat wrapped around her waist. She made typical remarks from my classmates: "It was Martin who stood up! He took the risk of hiding behind the counter near the door closest to the gunman and subdued the gunman without regard for his own safety. When I secretly watched, I saw him hitting the gunman's head with a Coke..."

At the same time, the head of NBC News held an emergency meeting in his office and shouted to his subordinates: "I want Martin Davis's detailed information! Also, contact him and have him appear on our show, not the damn entertainment show. I want him to appear on the real news, the most serious news show!"

CNN, headquartered in Atlanta, even called Kelly Gray to invite Martin for an interview.

ABC mobilized their connections overnight and called Ari Emmanuel of WAM.

Ali had already communicated with Thomas that Martin's exposure is now as high as it can be, and he does not need to be on any special show. Rashly participating in some shows may have a counterproductive effect, so he just turned it down.

What's more, there will definitely be an official press conference from Los Angeles later.

At 10 o'clock in the evening in Los Angeles, the ratings of Warner TV's evening news reached a new peak. Tens of millions of viewers across the United States stayed in front of their TVs, waiting for the latest shooting video.

This is a scene where Martin and his two companions are forced into a corner.

Since both sides reached an agreement with the LAPD, the news story became that Martin and his team were waiting for the LAPD to rescue them and cooperating with the LAPD to distract the gunman.

Martin was performing throughout.

"Because I am the leader of the Coke Cult, and I can control Coke to attack!"

This message spread across the United States through television programs.

Considering that Martin used a glass bottle of Coke to headshot another gunman, the leader of the Coke Cult lives up to his reputation.

The news video was quickly forwarded to the Internet and spread rapidly like a virus.

The reputation of the Coca-Cola Cult was established on the Internet in just one hour.

Although Martin has always remained silent on the Internet to avoid being misunderstood, it still cannot stop enthusiastic netizens from coming to worship the "leader".

"How can I join the Coke Cult?"

At first, he asked tentatively, but later he took the initiative to join the sect. "Master, please accept me into the sect!"

"I want to join the Coke Cult!"

"Kneel down and beg to join the religion!"

Some people are even more ambitious: "Is there any position for deputy leader or high priest? Can you leave one for me?"

…………

Because of the time difference, it is still early morning in Los Angeles while people in Atlanta have already gone to work.

At the Coca-Cola headquarters, as soon as Brody, the marketing director, arrived at work, his supervisor Justin knocked on the door and entered the office.

"Boss, big news!" Justin held a USB flash drive in his hand: "Look at this, there was a shooting in Los Angeles."

Brody picked up the USB drive and plugged it into a laptop. "I heard there were heavy casualties at Burbank High School."

Justin said: "Martin Davis, a Hollywood star who walked out of Atlanta, saved more than a dozen people. He was so amazing that he knocked down the gunman with our Coca-Cola."

Brody responded quickly: "Really? Can the marketing promotion do something about this?"

Justin added: "Also, Martin Davis claimed that he founded a Coca-Cola cult and claimed to be the leader..."

Brody has already clicked on the video and started watching it. There are two videos in total. One is a video in which Martin Davis uses a bottle of Coca-Cola to knock down a gangster, and the other is a video in which Martin uses the so-called Coca-Cola cult to attract the attention of another gangster.

The more he looked at his face, the more interesting it seemed. Is there such a thing as the Coca Cola Cult?

Justin waited until his superiors finished reading it and said, “The reaction online was explosive.”

Brody opened the browser and found that three of the top five search keywords on the Google search page were related to yesterday's shooting. The top two were Martin Davis and Burbank High School.

And the Coca Cola Cult ranked fifth!
Brody clicked on the relevant entries and saw many web pages with messages from netizens clamoring to join the Coca Cola Cult. He couldn't help but ask, "Is there really a Coca Cola Cult? Or was it just something Martin Davis said casually?"

"I'm not sure yet." Justin remembered something his friend had mentioned: "Since last year, there has been a rumor in the Atlanta beverage industry that there is a guy who calls himself the High Priest of Coke and is buying up Coke produced in 03 everywhere."

Brody was puzzled: "Why buy 03 Coke? It's expired now."

He shook his head and returned to the point: "You asked me to watch this because of the spokesperson?"

Justin said: "He is one of the best young stars under the age of 25 in Hollywood. The movies he played the leading role in have grossed over million yuan in North America. Last week, Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio's new film The Departed announced that he would play the second leading role."

He pointed at the USB drive and said, "And these, among the young Hollywood male stars, who is more suitable than him to be our spokesperson?"

Brody had a similar view, and Coca-Cola made a big splash in the video of Martin subduing the gangster.

The leader of the Coca-Cola cult and Coca-Cola, a perfect match!

Justin continued: "Martin Davis is from the birthplace of Coca-Cola! Just think about it, we have a lot to do in advertising!"

Brody thought for a moment and said, "You are responsible for collecting information related to Martin Davis. At the next meeting, I will propose that Martin Davis be the new spokesperson for Coke. With the fermentation of this matter, it is very likely to be passed. Your team must also prepare for the relevant negotiations."

Justin responded, "Boss, I'll take care of it."

At the subsequent meeting, with almost no resistance, the preliminary resolution to contact Martin Davis and invite him to serve as the new spokesperson for Coca-Cola was passed.

…………

After a night of fermentation, the next day the front pages of the three major North American newspapers, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times and The Washington Post, were all filled with reports on the Burbank High School incident.

The authorities are trying to control public opinion, and the most prominent position in the newspapers is filled with large close-ups of Martin saving people!

Mainstream media reports all used small print to describe sensitive points such as the number of casualties, and used bold black fonts to emphasize Martin's heroic act of saving lives.

This is the most common news reporting method for tragedies.

The Los Angeles Times headline was succinct: "LA's City Hero: Martin Davis!"

"Martin Davis, he deserves to be called a hero more than any hero in Hollywood movies!" This is the headline of the New York Times.

The Washington Post was even more exaggerated: "Yesterday, Martin Davis was the spiritual totem of America!"

Warner TV News Channel launched a special report on the shooting early in the morning. Helen, an eyewitness, became popular and discussed with another guest why Martin was able to defeat the gangster.

"In every shooting, there are always innocent people falling, and Burbank High School is no exception, but this time someone stood up, and his identity was surprising: Martin Davis, a Hollywood star."

"He happened to be there because of the movie promotion. When the incident started, he panicked like an ordinary person, but when he ran away, he did not forget to remind others to escape quickly. When he was cornered by the gunman and others were waiting for the verdict of their fate, Martin stood up."

The morning news ratings were extremely high because of the shooting and Helen.

Helen specifically said: "Martin is preparing to participate in an action gunfight film adapted from the comic book "Wanted". In order to better play the leading role, he has undergone a long period of action gun training. It is precisely these rigorous trainings that allow Martin to burst out in desperate situations and subdue the criminals in one fell swoop!"

Countless people remembered the wanted poster.

(End of this chapter)