But as the nation has been riveted by the historic race to the White House, tabloid television shows and magazines have discovered that politics is sexy and that readers want juicy morsels about the Obamas as well as Brad and Angelina.

CNN: Commentary: Michelle Obama finds tabloid love

Sometimes the outing is accidental - John Leslie was inadvertently revealed by a television programme as the man supposedly referred to by Ulrika Jonsson in her autobiography (though she never named him) after days of tabloid stories about an anonymous television presenter.

BBC: Net makes royal rumour spread inevitable

Scientists argue the more someone like Clooney appears--be it on television, on film or in tabloid spreads--the more his image begins to wear a neurochemical groove on our brain.

FORBES: Magazine Article

The email said Mr Rose had been asked by television shows, radio programmes and a major tabloid to talk about their old relationship.

BBC: Tamara Ecclestone's former boyfriend denies blackmail

To be fair, I feel more hate than love for this mother of eight who has trotted them since toddler days on national television, made a name for herself in the tabloid circuit and has recently joined the ranks of fame-hungry pseudo-celebrities on the Disney-owned hit Dancing With The Stars.

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Johnson, a regular on tabloid pages, most recently garnered attention for her engagement to MTV reality television star Tila Tequila.

FORBES: Johnson & Johnson heiress found dead in Los Angeles.

Murdoch already owns Britain's biggest daily tabloid newspaper, The Sun, as well as U.S. news television network Fox.

CNN: Branson, Murdoch square off in media war