Celebrity Gossip Websites

Since the days of Vivien Leigh and Cary Grant, we just haven't been able to overcome our need to delve into the private lives of public figures. Some say it's because we're more global and no longer have the tightknit communities where everyone knows everyone and town gossip was all the rage. Others might say it's just because we're naturally nosy. Whatever it is, we can't seem to get enough of it. Celebrity gossip continually makes its way into the major headlines and tickertapes of major news channels. One minute, we're watching an expose on the war in Iraq. The next, we're following the custody battle of Britney Spears.

Despite the fact that the public has been following the lives of celebrities for years, it's never been more prominent than now. With instant media and global communication, when Mel Gibson blows his nose, we'll have video coverage on youtube within the next five minutes. It's made celebrities more cautious and, amazingly, the public just can't get enough of it. Finally, the velvet rope has been freyed and we're able to see that celebrities are just like everyone else: normal folks with noses to blow.

This hub covers the most prominent celebrity gossip websites. Hopefully, if you're in the market for a bit of trash talk, you'll find exactly what you're looking for here.

Celebrity gossip isn't necessarily for everyone. I myself have issues with it, but like most people, curiousity gets the best of me when a certain link or story catches my eye.

There are certain things that people should keep in mind when perusing celebrity gossip websites.

• Just because it's written doesn't necessarily mean it's true. Remember what your mother told you: Don't believe everything you hear and only half of what you see. On many sites, anyone can submit a tip. It's easy to start a rumor. Other times, someone thinks they saw one thing when they saw another. While many times, celebrity gossip has a ring of truth, there are also many other times where it's just conjecture on the part of the one doing the reporting.
• If celebrity gossip isn't your thing, stay away! Why go to a site that's only going to cause you to become angry? Celebrity gossip isn't for everyone
• Try not to let a tidbit about an actor or musician you enjoy color their work for you. First of all, it might not even be true. Secondly, when the event occured, they were probably "off the clock" so to speak. Not everyone can be "on" all the time. You're not, are you?
• When commenting, keep in mind that everyone can see what you're posting - including the person who the tidbit is about should they look online. Rule of thumb - and it's a hard one to follow - if you wouldn't say it to their face, perhaps it's best to keep it to yourself. Trust me - I know that's a hard rule to follow. After all, it's so easy to blow off steam on the net, right?

Above all, don't take it seriously. Celebrity gossip isn't really news. Save the serious stuff for CNN. There's way too much strife in the world without worrying about whether or not the latest Britney tidbit is true.

TMZ has positioned itself as the current foremost source for celebrity gossip and with good reason. TMZ has broken a number of stories which have gone on to become major media fodder such as Michael Richards racist tirade and Mel Gibson's anti-semitic slurs after a DWI incident. What makes TMZ unique from other gossip sites is its ability to obtain video, audio recordings and legal documents. As TMZ pays for video and audio, this is no mystery as to why they continue to be the go-to for anyone with such material.

TMZ has quickly made celebrities become more cognizant of their behavior while in public and others wish they had been. With a companion television series and corporate backing, TMZ is a force to be reckoned with.

As the West Coast companion to Gawker, Defamer tracks the happenings of Hollywood's most recognizable. Well, for the most part.

Defamer, while infusing humor, tends to take a more journalistic approach to the celebrity gossip they report as well as reporting on various other happenings in Hollywood such as the current, as of this writing, Hollywood writer's strike. While a bit more grounded than some of the other gossip sites, the writing is still engaging and you'll quickly find yourself falling down the rabbit hole with their crosslinking to prior stories.

Oh No They Didn't is a guilty pleasure of many. Myself included. What makes ONTD so alluring isn't the gossip so much as the commentary. One post can easily generate pages of witty, snarky and sometimes downright mean comments. But you can't help but continue reading and, yeah, admit it, laughing.

Whether its Paris Hilton's latest faux pas or Dumbledore's outing, there's one thing for certain: the commentary is way more interesting and entertaining than anything anyone in Hollywood could possibly be caught doing. The most brilliant comedy writers in Hollywood have nothing on some of these commenters.

While many celebrity gossip rags focus on the central Hollywood area, Gawker focuses on New York City and, being that NYC presents such a laid back atmosphere when compared to Hollywood and celebrities, the sightings offered by Gawker sometimes tend to be more entertaining.

Gawker received criticism from some celebrities, including George Clooney, when they introduced Gawker Stalker, a map that indicates the latest celebrity sightings in the metro area. Arguing that the map encouraged stalking, Gawker has rebutted saying that there would be much better ways to stalk a celebrity than by using Gawker Stalker. However, it's been suggested that some major celebrities use the Stalker as a decoy and others as a way to get their name on the map.

Love him or hate him, Perez Hilton has become one of the foremost names in online celebrity gossip. He's drawn the fury of a number of celebrities and their fans as well. His trademark of drawing on the photos of celebrities has also landed him in a bit of hot water as a number of photographers claimed Perez was using their photos without permission.

This hasn't stopped him, however, and his site draws in visitors by the millions each day making his site one of the top grossing ad revenue sites on the net currently. Perez is more for those surfers looking for a dose of mean with their celebrity gossip.

dlisted tells it like it is. Straight shooting and not holding anything back, dlisted takes the glamour of Hollywood and infuses it with snark and an unwillingness to be dazzled by the lights of Tinsel Town. With its motto of "Be Very Afraid," one can't hold them responsible for the sometimes very frightening photos they post of various celebrities.

And trust me. Some of them are very frightening.

Just Jared is light on the snark, but heavy on the celebrities. For a nice change of pace from the regular gossip fare, Just Jared provides those who simply want to live vicariously through various celebrities with the chance to do so. With plenty of photographs and news on both movie and television personalities paired with a dose of nice, it's no wonder that Just Jared is catching up with the rest of the sites in this category.

Damn I'm Cute is high on celebrity gossip. And I do mean gossip. No simple quotes from magazines or TV interviews. I'm talking so and so said that they saw so and so doing such and such. Whether it's true or not, it's definitely engrossing. And if you ever really need a Britney Spears gossip fix, this is the place to be.

It's difficult to read Mollygood without laughing. Like many other celebrity gossip websites, Mollygood serves its gossip with a side-dish of funny. They take on the latest celebrity gossip as well as the crazy antics of television personalities (for instance, one of today's post gave the lowdown - hee - on Tyra's Vagina episode). Chances are, if you're interested in the lowdown, literally, on any celebrity, Mollygood's got it.

Popsugar is constantly refreshed with the latest happenings on various celebrities. Their "Guess Who" games, which allow posters to "guess" who the celebrity is in a photo where their face is obscured, have been emulated on other blogs.

Popsugar is also a member of network of blogs which covers everything from fashion to sports. Their site is also one of the easiest to navigate with a clean design and vast interlinking.

The Superficials slogan is, "Because You're Ugly." Can't get more direct than that!

The Superficial tends to focus on celebrity fashion - or should I say bad celebrity fashion - along with other random celebrity gossip. Their commentary on the various "looks" of celebrities is quite entertaining, if not a little mean. But then, it's gossip, it's all mean, right?