Tenor's Accident, Steve Fah, and the Buzz Economy
When a serious car accident involving rapper Tenor dominated Cameroon social media in July 2021, media personalities like Steve Fah quickly mobilized to broadcast commentary on the tragedy. The writer examines this reflexive rush to monetize attention around crisis as symptomatic of a deeper economy—one in which relevance and growth depend on capturing and amplifying every viral moment.
July 15th 2021, Cameroon woke up to the news of rapper, Tenor, being hurt in an accident. His car had crashed and burst into flames in the wee hours of the morning. Three occupants were extricated from the vehicle before it went aflame. Tenor, his driver, and a young lady who, unfortunately, passed away according to a statement put out by Tenor's manager.
Cameroon social media, as one would expect, was aflame with the news, and over the course of the day, information about the accident began to trickle and we got as much as we could about the entire sad situation.This of course was fodder for the likes of Steve Fah who with an alacrity that should surprise no one, announced he was going to go LIVE addressing the issue at 7pm.
To discuss what about it exactly? That was what I asked myself.....
.....All these people operate in what I call the Economy Of Buzz. They thrive and grow in an environment where they can catch wind of every viral issue that blows by and then make a storm in a teacup of it. That is the economy, and the currency is our attention. And the more we give them attention, the more they grow in power and in a thwarted relevance.
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The piece captures a moment in contemporary Cameroonian digital culture when social media has become both a primary news source and a space where media personalities compete for audience attention through rapid-response content. The accident itself became less a private tragedy than public spectacle, transformed into content almost instantly.
The essay articulates a critique that remains urgent: the structural incentives embedded in attention-based media economics reward speed and sensation over reflection or restraint. By naming the 'Economy of Buzz' explicitly, the writer invites readers to see their own engagement—their clicks, shares, and views—as the currency fueling this cycle, making the analysis implicate the audience as well as the amplifiers.