Is Gossip News, or Is News Gossip?
- 6 years ago
Mainstream news is serious business, but as the purveyor of "the McDonald's of the Internet," Perez Hilton knows gossip will always have a place within it.
Question: Why should anyone care about the gossip on your
site?Perez Hilton: I don't think anybody should care about the
gossip I put on my site. You know. You don't have to read it. The
great thing about it is it's... I like to think of my website as, like,
the McDonald's of the Internet. A lot of people love to criticize
McDonald's, but yet it's still really popular. And I love the french
fries.
Question: Why do people crave gossip?Perez Hilton: I think gossip is... people's interest in
gossip is nothing new. It's been around for decades. It's been around
for centuries. The only thing that's changed is the media has become
aware that celebrity news can be profitable. So, gossip, or celebrity
news, is now mainstream news.
Question: Do you think celebrity news should be mainstream news?Perez Hilton: I don't know, but I know that celebrity
news is mainstream news. I know that Anderson Cooper has discussed
Lindsey Lohan many times and he probably hates it. But you know what?
He will continue to discuss about celebrity news and he will continue to
talk about Lindsey Lohan.
Question: Do you think the shift to celebrity coverage in the
mainstream news is a good thing?Perez Hilton: I still think that mainstream news is very
valuable, invaluable. Mainstream news is just doing their job. If they
weren't making money, they wouldn't be able to provide us with the
news. So they have to have that celebrity element there so that they
can get ratings. But you know, not all the times. There are those
shows that have nothing to do with politics. But there's been a shift,
definitely, over the last five or 10 years, where there is a lot more
celebrity content in mainstream news.
Question: Do you think that trend affects people's perception of the
world positively or negatively?Perez Hilton: I think celebrity news is only a positive
thing. I look at it as aspirational. It's a great escape for people
and a lot of them love to fantasize. "Wouldn't it be great if I were
famous too? Wouldn't it be great if I could go to that shop and buy
those fancy clothes that Kim Kardashian buys?"Recorded April 29, 2010
Question: Why should anyone care about the gossip on your
site?Perez Hilton: I don't think anybody should care about the
gossip I put on my site. You know. You don't have to read it. The
great thing about it is it's... I like to think of my website as, like,
the McDonald's of the Internet. A lot of people love to criticize
McDonald's, but yet it's still really popular. And I love the french
fries.
Question: Why do people crave gossip?Perez Hilton: I think gossip is... people's interest in
gossip is nothing new. It's been around for decades. It's been around
for centuries. The only thing that's changed is the media has become
aware that celebrity news can be profitable. So, gossip, or celebrity
news, is now mainstream news.
Question: Do you think celebrity news should be mainstream news?Perez Hilton: I don't know, but I know that celebrity
news is mainstream news. I know that Anderson Cooper has discussed
Lindsey Lohan many times and he probably hates it. But you know what?
He will continue to discuss about celebrity news and he will continue to
talk about Lindsey Lohan.
Question: Do you think the shift to celebrity coverage in the
mainstream news is a good thing?Perez Hilton: I still think that mainstream news is very
valuable, invaluable. Mainstream news is just doing their job. If they
weren't making money, they wouldn't be able to provide us with the
news. So they have to have that celebrity element there so that they
can get ratings. But you know, not all the times. There are those
shows that have nothing to do with politics. But there's been a shift,
definitely, over the last five or 10 years, where there is a lot more
celebrity content in mainstream news.
Question: Do you think that trend affects people's perception of the
world positively or negatively?Perez Hilton: I think celebrity news is only a positive
thing. I look at it as aspirational. It's a great escape for people
and a lot of them love to fantasize. "Wouldn't it be great if I were
famous too? Wouldn't it be great if I could go to that shop and buy
those fancy clothes that Kim Kardashian buys?"Recorded April 29, 2010
Question: Why should anyone care about the gossip on your
site?Perez Hilton: I don't think anybody should care about the
gossip I put on my site. You know. You don't have to read it. The
great thing about it is it's... I like to think of my website as, like,
the McDonald's of the Internet. A lot of people love to criticize
McDonald's, but yet it's still really popular. And I love the french
fries.
Question: Why do people crave gossip?Perez Hilton: I think gossip is... people's interest in
gossip is nothing new. It's been around for decades. It's been around
for centuries. The only thing that's changed is the media has become
aware that celebrity news can be profitable. So, gossip, or celebrity
news, is now mainstream news.
Question: Do you think celebrity news should be mainstream news?Perez Hilton: I don't know, but I know that celebrity
news is mainstream news. I know that Anderson Cooper has discussed
Lindsey Lohan many times and he probably hates it. But you know what?
He will continue to discuss about celebrity news and he will continue to
talk about Lindsey Lohan.
Question: Do you think the shift to celebrity coverage in the
mainstream news is a good thing?Perez Hilton: I still think that mainstream news is very
valuable, invaluable. Mainstream news is just doing their job. If they
weren't making money, they wouldn't be able to provide us with the
news. So they have to have that celebrity element there so that they
can get ratings. But you know, not all the times. There are those
shows that have nothing to do with politics. But there's been a shift,
definitely, over the last five or 10 years, where there is a lot more
celebrity content in mainstream news.
Question: Do you think that trend affects people's perception of the
world positively or negatively?Perez Hilton: I think celebrity news is only a positive
thing. I look at it as aspirational. It's a great escape for people
and a lot of them love to fantasize. "Wouldn't it be great if I were
famous too? Wouldn't it be great if I could go to that shop and buy
those fancy clothes that Kim Kardashian buys?"Recorded April 29, 2010
Question: Why should anyone care about the gossip on your
site?Perez Hilton: I don't think anybody should care about the
gossip I put on my site. You know. You don't have to read it. The
great thing about it is it's... I like to think of my website as, like,
the McDonald's of the Internet. A lot of people love to criticize
McDonald's, but yet it's still really popular. And I love the french
fries.
Question: Why do people crave gossip?Perez Hilton: I think gossip is... people's interest in
gossip is nothing new. It's been around for decades. It's been around
for centuries. The only thing that's changed is the media has become
aware that celebrity news can be profitable. So, gossip, or celebrity
news, is now mainstream news.
Question: Do you think celebrity news should be mainstream news?Perez Hilton: I don't know, but I know that celebrity
news is mainstream news. I know that Anderson Cooper has discussed
Lindsey Lohan many times and he probably hates it. But you know what?
He will continue to discuss about celebrity news and he will continue to
talk about Lindsey Lohan.
Question: Do you think the shift to celebrity coverage in the
mainstream news is a good thing?Perez Hilton: I still think that mainstream news is very
valuable, invaluable. Mainstream news is just doing their job. If they
weren't making money, they wouldn't be able to provide us with the
news. So they have to have that celebrity element there so that they
can get ratings. But you know, not all the times. There are those
shows that have nothing to do with politics. But there's been a shift,
definitely, over the last five or 10 years, where there is a lot more
celebrity content in mainstream news.
Question: Do you think that trend affects people's perception of the
world positively or negatively?Perez Hilton: I think celebrity news is only a positive
thing. I look at it as aspirational. It's a great escape for people
and a lot of them love to fantasize. "Wouldn't it be great if I were
famous too? Wouldn't it be great if I could go to that shop and buy
those fancy clothes that Kim Kardashian buys?"Recorded April 29, 2010