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Much has been made recently of TMZ, the online celebrity news site that has developed a reputation for breaking exclusive stories, such as the death of Michael Jackson.
And there's been a lot of chatter lately about Perez Hilton, the celebrity blogger who seems to have a knack for getting his name in the news.
But while TMZ and Perez Hilton are working overtime, the celebrity Web site attracting the most viewers is the unassuming -- and unambitious -- OMG!
The Associated Press reports that the Yahoo Media Group affiliate garnered 20.6 million unique visitors in May, making it the world's top-viewed celebrity Web site by a wide margin, exceeding the unique visitors of No. 2 TMZ and No. 3 People combined.
While Hilton and TMZ often portray celebrities in an unflattering light, OMG is decidedly a puff-piece factory, pumping out positive blurbs and photos on the hottest celebrities, often based on longer stories produced by reporters working for People or the Associated Press.
Many businesses say they prefer to advertise on celebrity sites with an upbeat tone, regardless of how much traffic a snark piece can generate.
This phenomenon may serve to explain a surprising recent announcement by Hilton, in which the self-proclaimed creator of "Hollywood's most hated Web site" said through a spokesman that he will tone down the snark in hopes of attracting more advertising.
