The record-collector magazine Goldmine has a department now called “All Things Elvis” but formerly called “Elvis News.” I once mentioned to a friend, much more a Presley enthusiast than I, that I did not see how there could be such a magazine column or much “news” about Elvis, who had already been dead many years. My friend looked at me as if I were crazy – how could I be so unaware of the perpetual flow of reissues, newly discovered recordings, books written by Presley's acquaintances, accomplishments by or tabloid stories about daughter Lisa Marie Presley, and developments involving Graceland or Elvis's estate?

Viewed this way, most of the actual, journalistic “news” (loosely defined) is about Elvis's aftermath – either his survivors or the latest product line extensions growing from his 1950–70s career. Another type of “news” is the abundant research (again, loosely defined) that continues to be produced by writers ranging from scholars to amateur memoirists to fanzine publishers.

There is, obviously and justifiably, substantial and ongoing interest in Elvis. The “news” about him is actually the discursive and commercial afterlife of celebrity. Elvis is no longer here, but “news” about him still arises, often in the form of pseudo-events and public relations.