Sony Pictures is no doubt in turmoil.
On November 24, hackers released a trove of data from the entertainment company including explosive emails, executive salaries and even unreleased copies of Sony movies.
The media has pounced on the leaks, giving them endless coverage of stars, their families, insults and attitudes.
The hacks, conducted by the “Guardians of Peace” have forced the head of Sony Pictures to decry that organizations covering stories derived from the stolen property would face legal action.
To add insult to injury, on Monday, employees of Sony Pictures Entertainment filed a lawsuit against their employer for failing to protect their personal information including Social Security digits and health information.
On Tuesday, this story took a wild twist in which Sony now claims there is a terrorist threat toward any theaters showing their film, The Interview.
While the Department of Homeland Security has deemed the threats to not be credible, Sony has cancelled its December 18th premier and five cinema chains including AMC and Regal have pulled the film.
Terrorism, defined as the use of terror as a means of coercion, has been effective against Hollywood in this case.
Even the stars of The Interview, Seth Rogen and James Franco have cancelled media appearances related to the film which has a storyline of attempting to assassinate the leader of North Korea.
Since Sony’s move toward focusing on terrorism, the headlines of “racist emails” and “Sony greed” have shifted to a whisper.
One has to wonder if this is a crisis management tactic dreamed up by Sony, or are company executives truly willing to cave to empty threats that are likely originating from a powerless, child-like despot in North Korea?
