Illeana Douglas: When I watch TMZ TV, it's so funny how they're all laughing as if it's exciting. 'Get this! I've got Vince Vaughan! He's at a newsstand! He's reading Playboy!' And then they all laugh, as if it's a story.
I think the thing is is that it's commerce—
They provide the commentary, but it's not real. It's a series of shots of celebrities looking grumpy and hiding their faces. And that guy has a show! You'r'e saying 'Action' got canceled--and this guy's got a whole show! A half hour of people standing at a valet stand. Is that how he pitched it? Lemme tell ya—a big show! Insanely popular! Tons of raw feed of celebrities standing at a valet stand! And they're making millions of dollars. That's the more serious point. And again you've got some of these celebrities, I think if they have causes near and dear to their heart—put up a sign! it's pointless to argue—they're doing their job. Everyone should make a living. However, if the celebrity feels they have something that they're passionate about—animal abuse, or with me, homelessness—that's something I'd rather them film.... I, as a citizen, have questions: why am I more interesting at the airport than feeding the homeless at St. Thomas Church?....I've been with Tom Arnold doing charity events--and it's funny, I didn't see any paparazzi around. I was with Sharon Stone handing out sleeping bags on Christmas Day, and I didn't see TMZ there. Why is that not as compelling as her having lunch at the Ivy?
And as you alluded to earlier, it's pernicious because the regular media knows how much money TMZ is making. And then we go down that rabbithole. The McCain story—
And then it went away! But that was the New York Times! So again, all the news that's fit to print, that's what their banner says. Was that really fit to print? It had unsubstantiated sources and they put it on the cover of the New York Times. And then they didn't follow up with it. They just put it there! CNN does it all the time. Remember with the big meeting, between Obama and Hillary? They had a vigil! There was a CNN reporter saying, 'I've been in the news biz a long time—there's an excitement you feel when you know something big is going on.' Of course later they found out nobody was home! This was like all night long on Anderson Cooper. And then the beauty of the news is like, never any explanation the next day that they were wrong. It's great. it's fantastic. It's as if they don't need us anymore! When you watch the media, it's like this gigantic cancer, where they are just feeding on themselves. Are they even aware that we're watching?
omigosh, is it just me, or does she sound interesting?? so unusual in celebrity interviews.
