Romenesko

New York Times
Times reader Molly Hickok notices that the paper is giving more space to celebrity culture -- a "depressing development," she says. "Jennifer Aniston, for example, is so omnipresent in our lives. Do we really need to read about her in The Times as well?" Culture editor Sam Sifton responds: "Well, here’s the thing. Jennifer Aniston is kind of a good actress. I can say that without being a board-certified critic. ...Celebrity walks hand in hand with artistic success and has since before the Medicis made art stars rich. We try to balance that fact against our interest in the art itself. And, having done that, we try to balance the art itself against other arts. We place pop culture against high. High culture against the middlebrow. Low culture against them all."