10 Reasons WWE Raw Is Lucky To Still Be On The Air

7. Steroids 2.0

Shawn Michaels
WWE.com

The second verse was the same as the first, 'cept a little bit louder and a little bit worse.

Following the Benoit family double-murder suicide in 2007, WWE were backed into a corner to act in ways they'd only pretended to after initiating a 2006 Wellness Policy. Suspensions flooded WWE.com whilst the company were knee-deep in a public relations sh*theap unseen for over a decade.

For a while, it wouldn't go away. The lingering threat of more uncomfortable violations loomed large, with John Cena and Triple H notably entrusted with pushes at the expense of virtually every other talent - so secure that the company presumably were in the likelihood of them remaining squeaky clean during extremely dirty times.

Bodies shrunk whilst use of blood, boobs and brawls were tempered dramatically until the company went all-in with an entirely new philosophy in 2008. It was also the year the organisation embraced High Definition, as if to use a literal clearer picture to represent what they were attempting to become in place of the hidden horrors they'd been inadvertently fostering for far too long.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett