Even though the
New York Times recently dropped its own, tepid version of a regular gossip column, the current hoo-ha over former Page Six contributor Jared Paul Stern has forced the august
Times to focus on the history and meaning of the
New York Post's powerful column. In sum, says the
Times, Page Six helps set the tone and agenda for the buzz that courses through
New York City's arteries. Even though it's often wrong, perhaps "willfully" so, says the
Times, Page Six is read by everybody who is everybody in fashion, media, the restaurant and real estate
businesses, even finance. "Page Six certainly can't move markets or knock Wall Street for a loop," says the
Times, "but in those New York industries where buzz matters... the right blurb can
have a more profound impact than any number of deeply reported articles in more sober newspapers." Writer David Carr, who covers media for the paper, cites a number of VIP Manhattanites on the
importance of Page Six. Hotelier Ian Schrager's observation was typical: "It is a little like the
Good Housekeeping seal of approval. When I do hotels in cities that don't have gossip columns,
like London or L.A., it is more difficult to market them. Page Six is a way of marketing by avoiding a tremendous advertising expense."
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