Why the Dave Grohl news is especially disappointing

Dave Grohl shocked his fans with a surprise announcement Tuesday that he fathered a child outside of his 21-year marriage to Jordyn Blum.
The Foo Fighters frontman is seeking “forgiveness” from his family after the birth of his youngest daughter. “I’ve recently become the father of a new baby daughter, born outside of my marriage,” Grohl, 55, wrote in a statement shared on social media Tuesday. He is already a father to Violet, 18; Harper, 15 and Ophelia, 10.
“I plan to be a loving and supportive parent to her. I love my wife and my children, and I am doing everything I can to regain their trust and earn their forgiveness,” the statement continued. “We’re grateful for your consideration toward all the children involved, as we move forward together.”
Grohl’s reps declined further comment.
Fans, naturally, shared their opinions. “Dave Grohl reminding us that at the end of the day, men will always be men smh,” wrote one X user. Another added: “Out of every rock band frontman you’d expect to cheat on their wives and have a baby outside their marriage…Dave Grohl is at the bottom of everyone’s list.” Plus: “I had so much respect for Dave Grohl. He’s made a few out of place comments, but I genuinely believed he was one of the very few good guys left in music. Cheating on your wife of 20+ years with 3 daughters and having a CHILD with someone else? There goes that reputation.”
The incident highlights the pitfalls of fan culture. When you place any person, no matter how famous, on the highest of pedestals, you’re bound to be disappointed.
“It’s important to not hold celebrities to impossible standards because these are fallible humans with inevitable flaws and shortcomings, just like the rest of us,” Shana Redmond, a professor of English and comparative literature at Columbia University, previously told USA TODAY. “What we see on social media is a small slice of who they are – we can’t substitute that glamour for the whole.”
More details:Dave Grohl announces he fathered a child outside of 21-year marriage, seeks ‘forgiveness’
Stan culture is flawed because people are flawed. How can you expect someone who is talented at singing, for example, to be great at everything? Grohl may have had a reputation as a nice guy, but no one is 100% good or bad in their lives.
“I really, really admire my urologist because he was able to get kidney stones out of my body,” Robert Thompson, founding director of the Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture at the Newhouse School of Public Communications Syracuse University, previously told USA TODAY. “I do not also, therefore, think my urologist is completely free and perfect in every other way.”
Such letdowns aren’t unexpected.
“When (figures) show themselves to be something other than what you imagine, disappointment is expected,” Redmond says. “And it can happen often as we’re constantly inundated with new media meant to hook us and make us fall for someone.”
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Of course, there’s a lot we don’t know about this particular situation. But one can’t help wonder why Grohl chose a moment where this news easily could have slipped under the radar – just ahead of a presidential debate.
“The timing of this Dave grohl ‘announcement’ is impeccable,” wrote another X user. “Hours before a presidential debate. The headlines will be buried in a matter of hours.” While the news made the rounds, it likely had less of an immediate impact given the distraction.
Time will tell as news trickles out whether Grohl can best manage his reputation.
With this latest news, fans are once again reminded their heroes sometimes lose their capes.
Contributing: KiMi Robinson