The excessive coverage of the scandal signals that the news media may have finally hit/reached 'the bottom of the barrel'.
Salaries in the industry are scraping/hitting 'the bottom of the barrel'. [=salaries in the industry are very low]
Several people have lost their jobs recently, so the office isn't exactly a 'barrel of laughs' these days.
(..) as Ol'Ben. Now lay your palms flat on the table top! If you lift those palms off that turtle shell table top, Mr. Butch is gonna let loose with both barrels of that sawed off! There have been a latta lies said around this diner table here tonight, but that you can believe! Mr. Moguy, (..)2012 Django Unchained
(..) 'cross the street from the saloon! I want six men, six rifles behind it. I want two men, two rifles up on this roof, two men two rifles on that roof. All the barrels aimed at that front door. Somebody git poor Bill outta the goddamn street. You in the saloon! We got a hundred riffles aimed (..)2012 Django Unchained