How to Newsjack the Jeff Bezos Divorce for Free Publicity

Everybody’s buzzing about the Jeff Bezos divorce which could become the most expensive in history.

That means it’s a perfect opportunity to piggyback onto it and offer your expert commentary, background and story idea on some aspect of this bombshell. This is known as newsjacking, a term coined by PR expert David Meerman Scott.

As the divorce winds through the courts, the media and other news providers will continue covering it. But if you’re smart, you’ll jump on this today, while it’s still hot.

Who can newsjack this?

Many experts including authors, speakers, marriage and relationship counselors, business coches, crisis managers, financial advisors, CPAs and accountants, and anyone who can discuss the ramifications of a high-profile divorce such as this one on a publicly held company.

Here are my questions along with those other people are asking. How do  I know? I went to Twitter’s search tool and searched hashtags such as #JeffBezos and #BezosDivorce.

• This isn’t just a divorce story. It’s a business story and it made the front page of today’s Wall Street Journal. How will the divorce affect Amazon’s stock price? Are investors getting jittery about holding onto Amazon stock?
• What power might MacKenzie Bezos have over decisions affecting Amazon after the divorce? Is this something high-profile couples typically negotiate before announcing their divorce?
• Bezos is leaving $137 billion on the line and doesn’t have a prenuptual agreement. If you don’t have a prenup, can you write a postnup as fortunes start to grow? How many couples do this?
• At what point should couples write a prenup or postnup?
• Help put the numbers in perspective. What can you buy with half of $137 billion?
• How can a man and his mistress be followed around the world by the National Enquirer for four months and not know they were being tailed? If you want to cheat and travel, what precautions do you need to take? Private investigators, this is perfect for you.
• The Bezoses have four teen-age children. What effect does divorce have on teens, and what’s the best way to keep them outside of the fray?
• At what point are the consequences of divorce so troubling for children that they need counseling?
• When a CEO divorces, what’s the best way to share the news with the exec’s inner circle and management team?
• Do CEOs who are devastated over the decision to divorce ever step aside and delegate major decisions to a trusted associate?
• Are a celebrity’s personal fortunes accurately reflected in the press?  
• How can CEOs and their spouses create a smart divorce strategy?
• How was MacKenzie instrumental in building and shaping her husband’s career? And what advice do you have for others who are helping their spouses build a company?
• At what point does the CEO of a publicly traded company have to tell the board of directors or shareholders about the divorce?
• How much do investors need to know about the private lives of their portfolio managers or other trusted advisors?

I also expect to see lots of queries coming from journalists who need sources like these and subscribe to HARO, the free media leads service that delivers dozens of leads each day to your inbox, Monday through Friday. If you unsubscribed from HARO, short for Help a Reporter Out, and you can offer expertise on the Bezos divorce, subscribe again and read the HARO queries. 

Yesterday, I wrote that HARO is one 5 surefire ways to make journalists cover you. 

If you have an idea for how to newsjack this story, share it in the comments.