Tabloid Targets Or Wild Women?

Americans lap up celebrity gossip faster than prepubescent boys can scarf down pizza. Our craving for the latest dirt is insatiable, but the supply never runs out, thanks in part to perennial paparazzi targets such as Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan.

Other young female stars catch the paparazzo's eye: Jessica and Ashlee Simpson's alleged plastic surgery is a constant topic, as is Hilton's "The Simple Life" co-star Nicole Richie's shrinking waistline.

But for the moment, no one satisfies appetites like Hilton and Lohan, who have been the center of several recent unflattering reports. No matter what they do, the public craves more.

Hilton, 25, an heiress to the Hilton hotel fortune turned singer, actress and reality TV star, captivates the public with her wealth, beauty and robust lifestyle, says her publicist, Elliot Mintz.

"I think it could be argued that Paris is the most famous (person) in America. ... I'm not certain, maybe Hillary Clinton," Mintz said. "Among her constituency, a large group of people in their 20s in America, the Paris world is a world they like, they emulate. ... Even when there is something of a negative nature, people want to know about that, too."

Lohan and Hilton are the media's "party girls du jour." But the tabloid press cycles through "it girls" all the time. The difference is that today, technology and the desire to know about celebrities have come together, enabling people to get their fix whenever they want and in a variety of ways, including via celebrity blogs such as PerezHilton.com, dlisted.com and online publications like TMZ.

"A lot of it is multimedia marketing," said Jeffery Brown, a professor of pop culture at Bowling Green University.

Before Hilton and Lohan, Brown said the media honed in on pop singer Britney Spears, calling her an out-of-control party girl. After Spears got married and had children, Brown said the media has turned her into a symbol of low-class culture.

"They exaggerate them both ways. Nobody's a darling for long. People age, and they become a warning," he said.

In recent months, Hilton and Lohan's missteps have been widely publicized. Lohan, 20, fell and broke her wrist, resulting in her fifth trip to the emergency room this year. Hilton was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and could face up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

"That's just bad," Mintz said. "People know that kind of coverage is not good and that kind of behavior is not good."

Lohan inadvertently exposed herself at a film festival in Venice, where her movie "Bobby" was being shown. Recently, the "Mean Girls" star was caught on tape dancing alone in a parking lot while smoking a cigarette. Bloggers constantly insinuate that she has a substance abuse problem. In addition, she has been called a jealous and possessive girlfriend and is rumored to have been dumped by restaurateur Harry Morton.

Her publicist, Leslie Sloane Zelnick, is sick of it, but said her client's career is intact.

The coverage "doesn't hurt her for magazine covers," she told The ShowBuzz. "I think it hurts her as a person. Her talent will surpass any of this. She's actually the most talented person — and the thing is she's not afraid, she doesn't want to sit home. She's just being a 20-year-old girl."

Hilton and Lohan both have been publicly criticized for their work ethic. Lohan was blasted in a letter from James G. Robinson, who heads the production company for Lohan's movie, "Georgia Rule," and by "Bobby" costar William H. Macy. Hilton was ripped by "Bottom's Up" co-star Simona Fusco, who called her "talentless."

"Lohan got a wakeup call," New York Daily News gossip columnist Lloyd Grove said. "I think she did take seriously the letter. … She's a pretty good actress, and if she works at her craft, she'll improve."

Lohan just received the Hollywood Film Fest Breakthrough Actress award.

Grove doesn't let Hilton off as easy. He banned her from his column nearly two years ago. In the final Paris column he wrote: "The arc of Paris' 'career' — from rich, witless party girl to rich, witless party girl with a hit television show — is an insult to the American sense of fairness: the idea that you get ahead by working hard, playing by the rules and acquiring a skill of some sort. Paris has bothered with none of the above, and yet society continues to reward her with money and fame."

"Once Paris Hilton starts to lose her appeal — which is inevitable in her case — ashes to ashes, dust to dust … people age and things happen and plastic surgery kicks in … and all she has left is her freakishness and that will be that," Grove told The ShowBuzz.

Mintz said it's not fair to characterize Hilton in that way, saying she's something of a career-driven feminist.

"She doesn't set herself up as a role model. She is living her life as she chooses to live her life, working hard," he said. "She wakes up at 7 a.m. to do whatever she does. ... In that sense, she represents a highly contemporary woman. She's living in a man's world. In that level, she's extremely independent."

Lohan may have talent and Hilton may have business sense, but celebrity blogger Perez Hilton said some reports make them look like immature and petty.

"They're young ladies who like attention," he told The Showbuzz in June. "Hollywood is still high school, even if it is in New York. Everyone wants to be Queen Bee."

Exhibit A: the fire-crotch/Niachos feud.

Reportedly, Hilton and Lohan had a falling out over Hilton's ex-boyfriend, Stavros Niarchos, who allegedly moved on to Lohan after splitting with Hilton in May. Hilton's pal, oil heir Brandon Davis, unleashed a diatribe against the red-headed Lohan, calling her, among many other things, "fire crotch." Hilton cackled in the background. It was all caught on tape and posted on TMZ. Later, Lohan accused Hilton of hacking into her BlackBerry. Earlier this week, Page Six reported that the stars are again fighting over Niarchos.

But why do we care, and why do we want to know who said what about whom and which girl is dating which Greek shipping heir?

Brown, the pop culture professor, said the attention is all driven by big companies hoping to get young girls to buy their products.

"It's constructed because they're brought out there as commodities to a 'tween' audience," he said. "Companies like Disney can (take) Hillary Duff and Lindsay Lohan and create this kind of artificial desire to know everything about them."
By Caitlin Johnson