Cheating on your romantic partner is becoming more accepted in modern society—and one expert has said that America’s political landscape is just one display of it.
Voter reaction, or lack thereof, to Kamala Harris’ husband’s previous affair, is just one instance of a culture that is inching towards accepting nonmonogamy as a standard, claims Paul Keable, an exec at cheating site Ashley Madison.
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Doug Emhoff admitted in August that he had an affair during his first marriage.
Yet the bombshell reveal made no change was made to his appearances with Harris or the Democrats’ push to show off their family.
Keable, who works as Chief Strategy Officer for the dating app designed for people having affairs, told The U.S Sun that the culture towards nonmonogamy is changing “dramatically.”
He claims Emhoff’s confession didn’t make “any movement” in voters’ support for Harris, who was nominated as the Democratic candidate for the 2024 presidential election.
Read more on the election
“During my first marriage, Kerstin and I went through some tough times on account of my actions,” Emhoff said in a statement to CNN at the time.
“I took responsibility, and in the years since, we worked through things as a family and have come out stronger on the other side.”
It wasn’t just voters who were indifferent to the announcement – the news cycle was quick to move on from Emhoff’s statement.
“It’s not even a story anymore. We’ve moved past it,” Keable said.
“America is not as judgmental on this issue as people would want to believe.”
Emhoff’s first wife defended the second gentleman in a statement to the Washington Post, saying, “Doug and I decided to end our marriage for a variety of reasons, many years ago.
“He is a great father to our kids, continues to be a great friend to me and I am really proud of the warm and supportive blended family Doug, Kamala, and I have built together.”
Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, has also faced several claims of extramarital affairs throughout his decades in the public eye.
However, the former president has always denied the accusations of infidelity.
“People who are voting on that side are not bothered by that accusation,” Keable said.
“Not that long ago, a mere accusation would have ended a political run.
Ashley Madison Scandal
The 2024 Netflix documentary is based on the 2015 scandal that outed users on the affair-seeking website
The Canadian dating service was launched in 2001 and marketed toward married individuals looking to engage in extramarital affairs.
Users were prompted to create profiles and communicate with each other within the platform.
In 2015, a group of hackers called the Impact Team accessed the site’s database and threatened to leak information if it didn’t shut down.
After the company refused, the hackers revealed users’ personal information, including names, addresses, and emails.
Several celebrities’ names were linked to the site, including Josh Duggar, Jionni LaValle, Josh Taekman, Sam Rader, Hunter Biden, and Jeff Ashton.
On May 15, 2024, Netflix released a docuseries based on the scandal titled: Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies & Scandal
“So you’re seeing America say, we may not agree with it, but we’re not going to denigrate people,” Keable continued.
“It’s not as important as it used to be.”
ON THE BIG SCREEN
Keable said the normalization of affairs, while prevalent in politics and celebrity culture, might also be thanks to mainstream media.
“Some of the most coveted and loved TV shows and movies have affairs at the core of them,” Keable said, citing TV like Scandal and The Sopranos as just two series that feature extramarital relationships.
“Think about how many shows you’ve watched where affairs are central to its premise,” he added.
“People love watching it. So people are interested in it, people want to know more.
“My job isn’t to convince people to have affairs. My job is to tell you what’s really happening behind the scenes so you can make a better judgment.”
ASHLEY MADISON’S REBOUND
Keable has worked for the dating website Ashley Madison, known for its slogan of “Life is short. Have an affair,” since 2013.
The CSO joined the company just two years before the site experienced its infamous data breach in 2015, exposing millions of people who were stepping out on their relationships.
A Netflix documentary released in May explored the cyberattack, which revealed the scandal that brought the affairs of celebrities and non-famous users alike to light.
The site has rebuilt since then as data shows the number of the services’ memberships has even grown since the hack.
Since 2015, membership on the married dating site has even grown by 130% – now boasting over 85 million users.
Keable said Ashley Madison is now based on privacy and regaining the trust of nonmonogamous users.
“Discretion and security are a core part of every single person’s function at Ashley Madison,” he said.
“We’re not in the business of judging our members. We’re in the business of giving them a discreet platform to discover what’s missing in their lives.
“But that said, throughout the world and in multiple societies, affairs have become a natural part of life.”
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