Mario Armando Lavandeira Jr. (born March 23, 1978 in Miami, Florida) is a Cuban-American celebrity gossip columnist/blogger known by the nom de plume Perez Hilton, based in Los Angeles, California. His blog - formerly Page SixSixSix- but now Perezhilton.com has become extremely popular since its inception.[1]
Beginnings in blogging
Hilton's professional occupations before blogging included some acting work [2], a stint as a publicist [3], and a writer for gay magazines. He started blogging "because it seemed easy" [4], and was a "perfect combination" of all the things he loves, which include celebrities, gossip and fame.
Within the first six months of his endeavor, the website was named "Hollywood's Most-Hated Website" by The Insider, which catalyzed his initial rise in popularity. As of December 1st 2006, PerezHilton.com was serving over 3 million unique visitors daily.[5]
Hilton has also garnered attention from lawyers representing those about whom he writes. For example, he was named as a defendant in a lawsuit filed by attorneys for Colin Farrell after Hilton posted a link to Farrell's sex tape on his site.[1]
Lavandeira told the Star that when he claimed that Clay Aiken was gay and had hired escorts, he was bombarded with death threats by Aiken's fans who also posted much of his personal information online [6].
Content
On his website Hilton posts gossip items about a variety of celebrities. His posts are usually delivered with a sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek or sometimes even cruel slant. Often he posts tabloid photographs over which he adds his own crude captions or "doodles" for comedic effect. The most frequent additions are white dots drawn on celebrities' faces to resemble drugs or semen.
Hilton's angle on celebrity gossip includes an unashamed desire to mingle with and be a part of celebrity culture, and as such he often describes celebrity awards shows, clubs, and private events he has attended, and posts photographs of himself with the celebrities he writes about. Among others, he purports to have befriended Paris Hilton, originator of his namesake and frequent subject of his posts.
Criticism
Although Hilton claims his background in journalism adds credibility to his posts,[citation needed] detractors have accused him of disinformation. For instance, Hilton posted the song "Come on and Get it (Up in 'Dem Guts)" on his website, claiming it was a new single to be released by singer Fiona Apple, when in fact it was a comedic song Apple had contributed to the television show Dog Bites Man.[citation needed]
Openly gay himself, Hilton's usage of homophobic slurs for a comedic effect -- scrawling 'fag' or drawing white semen marks on the faces of celebrities in photographs, for example -- is seen by some as equivalent to homophobia. Others deride him for calling some celebrities "fat," when he himself is fat.
Other readers claim that his coverage of Paris Hilton and her friends and family is biased. Perez Hilton has been accused of ignoring stories or rumors that casts the heiress in a bad light. Many bloggers have noted instances when Paris Hilton or her friends have commented about a socialite or actress and these comments have appeared in the blog verbatim as truth within hours.[citation needed]
Some bloggers, journalists, news agencies and photographers have claimed that Hilton illegally posts photographs and exclusive content from other sites. Hilton has admitted to using copyrighted photographs without permission, asking "how is that different from any other blog?"[2] On November 30, 2006, celebrity photo agency X17 filed a lawsuit against Hilton in federal court, seeking over $ 7.5 million in damages for copyright infringement.[7]
Controversy: "outing" of celebrities
When questioned on Midweek Politics about whether or not reporting on celebrities' sexual orientation incites homophobia by making it news, he indicated that he simply did not believe so. Hilton went on to say that coming out in Hollywood is not necessarily a bad thing, he used Ellen DeGeneres, and Rosie O'Donnell as examples, "I know there is some controversy about outing people, but I also believe the only way we're gonna have change is with visibility... if I have to drag some people screaming out of the closet, then I will. I think that lot of celebrities have an archaic fear that being gay will hurt their career but look at Rosie. Look at Ellen." [8]
In July 2006 Lance Bass officially came out as gay, and Hilton received heavy criticism for having been partially responsible for the outing. "It upsets me that people think what I'm doing is a bad thing," Perez told Access Hollywood. "I don't think it's a bad thing. If you know something to be a fact, why not report it? Why is that still taboo?" In addition, he claimed that Lance Bass was already "outed," but he simply reported on a new relationship of his.
Other celebrities whom Hilton frequently claims are gay, bisexual, or lesbian include Matt Dallas, Clay Aiken, Anderson Cooper, Jeremy Piven, Jake Gyllenhaal, Queen Latifah, Wentworth Miller, Salma Hayek, Jodie Foster, Star Jones' husband Al Reynolds, and Sean Hayes. On November 2, 2006, another celebrity often ridiculed by Hilton for remaining closeted, Neil Patrick Harris, revealed that he is gay.
Television appearances
Hilton can also be seen in media outside PerezHilton.com, such as on VH1 and E! and MSNBC's Scarborough Country. He is also developing his own reality show, which he considers "a hybrid" of The Real World, The Surreal Life, and Punk'd[9]. It is unclear, though, where, when or if this show will air. Lavandeira has also recently begun producing podcasts. He appeared on the Howard Stern Show on June 27, 2006 and Tom Green Live on September 14, 2006. He recently appeared on MTV Canada in September 2006. Many of these appearances can be seen at PerezHilton.com's video collection at [10].
Notes
- ^ A copy of the filing, available at http://www.thesmokinggun.com/graphics/art3/0719051colin1.gif, lists defendant 'DOES 1-20', which was later amended to include not only Mario Lavandeira (Perez Hilton) but his web host, http://hoodlumhosting.com, as well.[citation needed]
- ^ http://www.tmz.com/2006/10/26/perez-to-photog-you-dont-know-sh/
