Sarah Phillips: Why Scandal Will Propel Her Fame to Greater Heights

Sarah Phillips—or whatever her real name is—has become more famous, or infamous, than she ever could have dreamed of writing for Covers.com or ESPN.

She's become the poster child of the Internet age, where you can write from your home with nobody ever knowing what you look like or who you truly are.

Via Deadspin, Phillips used her anonymity to the extreme for the past year, rising through the ranks of the sportswriting world as a person to trust when it comes to sports gambling. She was plucked off a message board at Covers.com and contacted by ESPN five months later to write for Page 2, which has since become Playbook.

However, no one ever truly knew who she was during this whole process. They thought they knew, but her identity is now being questioned after a reader raised doubts a few weeks ago in her weekly "Junk Mail" column:

"

Rumor has it "Sarah Phillips" isn't a real person and this column is being produced by a ghost writer. Is this true?

"

Whoever "Sarah Phillips" is, you can bet she stands to gain from all of this, as unusual and immoral as it is.

Drama tends to bring ratings across the board, whether it's in blog form or on TV. In that sense, if Phillips ever reveals her true identity, imagine the offers she would receive.

She would be approached by talk shows and news outlets to tell her story. She would even be approached with job offers, as crazy as that may seem. As immoral as her actions may have been, she would undoubtedly bring ratings to whoever hired her. They could tab her as "The Real Sarah Phillips." Even reality TV shows would have a ball with her.

Discovering who this character is has been a lot like trying to find Waldo...in a sea of Waldos.

Whoever eventually finds Sarah Phillips is probably going to strike when the iron's hot, fearing another publication or TV show will pick her up first. She's become something out of a fiction novel—a very intriguing, unfathomable fiction novel at that.

Her rise, combined with what she stands for in the Internet age, has made her a sensation, whether you like it or not. America will naturally build her up over time.

Follow me on Twitter. We can talk about this Sarah Phillips character.