newsworthiness

I go to Google News this morning, 7am MST, to see what I missed while I slept. The top story? Paris Hilton busted for coke, as reported by CNN. Try the AP; it’s the third headline. Even the NYT has it on its front page, albeit a bit more buried.

I would love it if someone could tell me why I should care about this person. Or about Lindsay Lohan. Or about any other vapid celeb who’s always getting in the news for substance abuse. What evidence do the media have that there are any readers who care? Why do the media care? What makes these persons’ actions worthy of news coverage?

I’m going to take a wild guess that the answer to that last question is: nothing.