“Who” magazine has the formula. “Vanity Fair” was dragged back from extinction by Tina Brown by mimicking the same approach. Celebrities sell magazines. Increasingly, they sell newspapers and boost television ratings.

Earlier this month Pamela Lee Anderson was in Australia for a guest appearance on Channel Ten’s “Big Brother” show. While filming on the Gold Coast she took a petition to the local branch of Kentucky Fried Chicken to protest the treatment of pre-meal chickens. Her entrance to the fast food outlet received a 1/4 page in “The Australian.” Of course the photo of her in a low-cut top featured prominently.

Last weekend the latest installment of Batman broke box office records. Last night star Christian Bale was questioned for hours in a local police station as his mother and sister accused him of assault. He was released without charge.

Channel Nine evening news has morphed into a celebrity roll-call each night. August publications like “The Australian” dedicate large swathes of space to starlets delivering animal rights messages. Radio National on ABC brings assault accusations to the top of the hour news broadcast.

It’s not fair to fault the media. They are delivering what consumers want. In a constant race for better ratings, news outlets fill up with the material consumers want. And if we’d prefer stars to hard news then that’s what we’ll get.