Katie Couric's Daughters Would Rather Be Watching Gossip Girl

Among the viewers that the third-place CBS Evening News with Katie Couric can't necessarily count on are the anchor's own two daughters, Ellie and Carrie – who've set their sights elsewhere.

"They watch The O.C.," says their mother, 50. "They're very excited about Gossip Girl. I don't think they pay a lot of attention to the news right now. They're 16 and 11."

Speaking Tuesday at Washington, D.C.'s National Press Club to veteran journalist and scholar Marvin Kalb (for his Kalb Report radio show), Couric said of her daughters: "They do watch my broadcast occasionally. I give them a pop quiz when I come home for dinner."

Offering her own theory for why her news broadcast is losing the ratings race, Couric suggested that the sometimes-frivolous segments she did in her previous Today show job "probably gave people the impression that I wasn't a serious person. So suddenly when I was put in a format where it was [not] personality-driven at all, I think it was a bit of an adjustment for people."

She added, "They're like, 'What happened to her? She used to be fun and say funny things.' It was just a very different world for me. I think it is taking people a while to get their heads around that."

And though her ratings have received wide press coverage, she says, "Frankly, I have never been obsessed with ratings. I probably should be more than I am. Clearly, I would like more people to watch. But more than 6 million people are watching every night. That's an extraordinarily high number. I feel really honored that that many people are entrusting us to give them their news."

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's High-Powered Day in N.Y.C.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are making the most of their time in New York: The high-wattage couple have packed their schedules for Wednesday, meeting with diplomatic and financial leaders to promote various causes.

The first stop of the day... The Clinton Global Initiative, where Pitt asked for support for his Make It Right program. He's partnering with billionaire Steve Bing on the project, which plans to build 150 affordable – and environmentally sustainable – homes in New Orleans' Lower Ninth Ward. Pitt and Bing have each promised to match donations pledged during the initiative up to $5 million.

"These people will not be beaten," Pitt said at the luncheon. "In the past year, we've been meeting with the community, building their trust ... We need your help."

In the afternoon... Jolie attended a press conference with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guteres, to talk about a new campaign, Nine Million, aimed at improving education for refugee children around the world.

Then in the evening... Jolie, a Goodwill Ambassador for the U.N. refugee agency, spoke at a session focused on education for children in war-torn areas such as Darfur and Iraq.

"These are the children who most need a safe place to learn, a place to heal, a place to learn reconciliation, and a place to just be children," said Jolie, who is the co-chair of the Education Partnership for Children of Conflict. "Some think we should only provide emergency relief to children in conflict ... They say education is not life-saving. All of us here today would beg to differ."

The busy day of high-powered goodwill work is hardly unusual – Pitt is already working with Global Green to create environmentally friendly housing in New Orleans, while Jolie has done extensive work in her role at the United Nations.

In was also announced Tuesday that Jolie would meet with British Foreign Secretary David Miliband in New York to discuss global diplomacy.

And if that's not enough, Pitt's doing a little acting, too: He's filming Burn After Reading, which costars his pal George Clooney.

Brittany Snow Dieting Was 'My Best Friend'

Brittany Snow's descent into the dark world of eating disorders began when she landed the role of Susan Lemay on TV's Guiding Light, the actress, now 21, tells MTVU.com.

"I remember looking around at all these women who were on the soap opera who were working out and dieting," Snow says.

Taking their cue, a 12-year-old Snow tried her first diet, called Eat Right 4 Your Blood Type. "I took it to the extreme," the Hairspray star admits, which included a two-month stint when she "lived on pineapple."

After losing 10 lbs. on the diet, Snow says she heard compliments and felt accepted from those around her. Soon it was a feeling she couldn't get enough of.

"It kind of progressed into this thing where I needed to always be dieting and losing weight and more weight," she says in the site's interview series Half of Us, which addresses mental health issues and ways to get help. "It became my life and I didn't have any friends and this was definitely my best friend and I held on to it really tight."

At 15, Snow was stepping onto the scale 10 to 15 times a day and weighed only 85 lbs.

"I knew that was a really low number and I knew that my hair was falling out and I had really weird skin. My face looked really weird and I was getting this fuzz on my face and I was always cold – always to the point of uncontrollably shaking," she says. " But "I was more scared that 85 lbs. wasn't good enough. I wanted to be lower."

Rock bottom came when Snow began cutting herself. "I would look at the scars and what I had done to myself and that would convince me not to eat," she says. "I also was crying for attention and I also really wanted someone to see my scars and help me and give me a hug."

By 19, Snow was in rehab and things took a turn for the better. She stopped cutting and got help for her depression. "But the eating stuff was still really hard to deal with," she says. "It's still a struggle."

Her advice to girls who are going though a similar situation is to take baby steps. "It's very important to talk to anybody. Maybe the first step is just to talk to a friend about it," she says. "Probably they'll relate in some way."

Love Denials: Hayden-Milo Rumors Nixed, Helena Scoffs at Heath Stories

Denial ain't just a river in Egypt – it was also the across-the-board response PEOPLE received Tuesday night regarding romance rumors between two recent are-they-or-aren't-they pairs: Milo & Hayden, and Heath & Helena.

First, a costar of Heroes' Hayden Panettiere and Milo Ventimiglia shot down recent rumblings (as well as a YouTube video that was closely analyzed by fans) that the 18-year-old actress and her 30-year-old costar were getting closer.

"The rumor is not true," costar James Kyson Lee, who plays Ando, told PEOPLE at Tuesday's Lift Up America Meet Me in Miami premiere in Hollywood. "Let's just end it there."

He added about the romance talk: "I think we were just surprised because they're 12 years apart – for people to even conceive that. I know there have been a lot of jokes, Hayden turning 18 and whatnot. At some point, you just have to let it go, and respect their privacy."

Also on rumor control Tuesday night was Helena Christensen, who scoffed at reports that she recently hooked up with newly single Heath Ledger.

Helena Christensen and Heath Ledger

Photo by: Andrew H. Walker / Getty; Chris Jackson / Getty
"It is so annoying," the model, 38, told PEOPLE at the premiere of Control in New York. "I can't even tell you. The funny thing is that they write, 'just out of a relationship with Josh [Hartnett] and now with Heath [Ledger].' Josh is one of my dearest friends. ... And in several different tabloids they wrote that we were biting each other's faces off or something like that."

Miley Cyrus Pregnancy Rumor Is 'Completely Untrue'

A rep for 14-year-old Hannah Montana star Miley Cyrus issued a strong denial on Monday after a fake teen magazine article began making the celebrity blog rounds claiming Cyrus is pregnant.

"It's 100 percent false. Someone doctored a J-14 article and posted this online," publicist Meghan Prophet tells PEOPLE. "It's ridiculous and completely untrue. Miley is not pregnant. She just wrapped season two of Hannah Montana and will go on tour beginning Oct. 18."

The rumors began circulating when a blog posted a mock interview with the teen star, supposedly given to J-14 magazine, saying she was expecting a baby. J-14 has also posted a denial on its Web site saying, "Despite Internet rumors, J-14 NEVER reported that Miley Cyrus is pregnant."

Indeed, the young star is actually about to hit the road a 54-date tour that kicks off on Oct.18 in St. Louis. In fact, she'll play to a sold-out crowd one night before her father's tour comes to town.

"Miley is opening for me in Nashville," her dad, singer Billy Ray Cyrus, quipped with a wink, noting that she'll actually be playing to a much larger crowd than her dad. "She plays the [Sommet Center] arena with 18,000 people on Thursday night and I play the Wildhorse Saloon for 1,800 on Friday night. We're both in town for the same 24-hour period and we're both sold out."

The elder Cyrus, speaking to PEOPLE last week from the Hannah Montana set, added that hitting the road "makes me very happy. There's going to be people in the audience and people singing along again."

Billy Ray's tour, to promote his latest CD Ready, Set, Don't Go, kicks off a free concert Sept. 29 at the University of Texas-Pan American in Edinburg, Texas.

As for his time on last season's Dancing with the Stars, he jokes that the career detour "got a little sick and twisted."

"I found myself on the wrong side of the microphone," says Cyrus. "I was on the dance floor and no, I'm supposed to be the singer...The dancers dance and I sing."

But he'll be going back for more: On Oct. 9, Cyrus will make his return to Dancing and "get things right" as the show's guest performer.

Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony; Doing It For the Kids

If you were lucky enough to be at PS 36 Unionport School in the Bronx yesterday, you may have noticed some pretty cool guests. Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony graced the students there with their presence.

The reason for the visit? The Puerto Rican power couple was doing a press conference for their upcoming tour together. They also announced that they would be donating a dollar from every ticket sold to the ING Run For Something Better Campaign.

J. Lo emphasized how much her upbringing in the Bronx made her the strong woman that she is today. “This is my core, this is where my stability was built,” she said. “Everything that I’ve been able to accomplish, everything that I go through, all the highs and lows, whatever it is, I get through it because of where I came from. And I came from here.”

And she explained why she and her hubby were so jazzed about working with ING. “For me, it was really a great thing to find a charity where they were talking about running, because I used to run track and it was such a big part of my life. Every concert there will be a booth setup and you can donate ten dollars and you will get these little symbolic laces saying that you’re running for something better in your life.”

Kristin Cavallari Dons Bikini For “Green Flash”

Kristin Cavallari has her sights set on success on the big screen - and doesn’t mind showing a little skin to take her there.

The Laguna Beach alum was spotted showing off her bikini body the past few days while on the El Segundo Beach set of her new movie, Green Flash.

The film also stars Baywatch “actor” David Charvet, who takes on the lead role of Cameron Day.

A plot description offered by IMDB informs us: “At the ripe old age of 30, Cameron Day has given up his chances at pro-basketball fame and settled into an aimless life. A chance encounter with a beautiful woman lands him smack in the middle of Southern California’s pro beach volleyball scene. A naturally talented true athlete, he seems destined for sports stardom once again until his old demons start creeping in, threatening his chances at success.”

Did Britney Spears Pull Another Hit-and-Run?

Speculation is arising as to whether or not Britney Spears had another minor car accident that we’re yet to find out about.

Two nights ago, the Gimme More singer was spotted cruising around Santa Monica with her sons. Since that time, it has been pointed out that her white Mercedes had a smashed headlight - prompting guesswork that Britney may have gotten herself into another fender bender. Her previous accident occurred while she was driving her black Mercedes.

And these rumors come at the perfect time, seeing that Britney’s former bodyguard, Tony Barretto, recently accused her of rash driving.

In his allegations, Barretto said that the troubled singer would just randomly take off in her car without telling anybody where she was going.

He also alluded to the fact that she would scream uncontrollably and have temper tantrums that would jeopardize the emotional well-being of her two sons.

He told press, “This wasn’t a safe place given the instability of the household. We were always concerned. At times she would want to leave without telling us where she was going, just to drive throughout the town, it was very dangerous with paparazzi. Then at times she would drive through town and go into oncoming traffic and we just didn’t understand what she was doing or what her motivation was.”

No Hayden Panettiere/Milo Ventimiglia Hookup

If you were hot on the trail of the Hayden Panettiere/Milo Ventimiglia rumor, things look to have cooled off. Several sources have debunked the notion that these two are together.

According to James Kyson Lee, Hayden’s costar on Heroes, vehemently denied the claims. He told press, “The rumor is not true. Let’s just end it there.”

Lee went on to say, “I think we were just surprised because they’re 12 years apart – for people to even conceive that. I know there have been a lot of jokes, Hayden turning 18 and whatnot. At some point, you just have to let it go, and respect their privacy.”

While the American public can sometimes be a little too eager to discover celebrity romance, they’re seldom wrong. Maybe it’s just not yet time to unveil this hot new couple.

Paris Hilton and New Beau Take To Toronto

It’s a busy day for Paris Hilton. Earlier this morning she was spotted at the Toronto airport getting ready to take off. Her new boyfriend was close by, and she looked as happy as ever to pose for a few paparazzi pics.

Speaking of traveling, the heiress has said recently that she’s very interested in doing some charity work, and goodwill ambassador-ing herself. And the first stop on her list just happens to be Rwanda.

She told press, “There’s so much need in that area, and I feel like if I go, it will bring more attention to what people can do to help.”

The Simple Life star got hooked up with Scott Lazerson from the Playing for Good organization in an effort to become involved with more charity work. Lazerson suggested that Hilton start in Rwanda, a land that has been plagued with genocide.

This newfound desire to help others is something Paris plans on continuing for years to come. Hey, it beats partying and going to jail!

Angelina Jolie Stands Up For Refugees

Angelina Jolie had yet another busy day today. The Lara Croft actress was doing her best to pitch in, as she attended an important and highly publicized meeting in NYC.

The press conference was held with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guteres, as the two spoke about a new campaign, Nine Million, aimed at improving education for refugee children around the world.

And while Ang was at the UN, her partner Brad Pitt was doing his part, as well. The Fight Club stud tossed in $5 million to help build houses in the lower ninth ward of New Orleans.

He spent this morning at the Clinton Global Initiative, asking for more support for his Make It Right program, in which he joined forces with billionaire Steve Bing. The duo plan to rebuild 150 homes destroyed by hurricane Katrina.

Jennifer Garner on the Today show, says Ben is a pushover when it comes to popsicles

Actress Jennifer Garner, 35, appeared on the Today show this morning in promotion of her new film, The Kingdom. The Violet Affleck-related highlights:

[Motherhood] just gets better and better. She's hysterically adorable. She's just coming into her 2s so she's really embracing the word 'no' right now. She'll just have a big smile on her face and say, 'No no no no!' as many times as she can.

I'm [tougher with her than Ben]. She'll come to me and say, 'Maybe a popsicle?' and I'll say 'Ah, no,' and later I'll see she has orange on her shirt and red and her mouth is green and she has three sticks...I'm like 'How did that happen?'
Source: MSNBC

"Sopranos" Suburban for Sale

Need a slick ride to pick up your goomar? Gotta make a run to Satriale's to pick up some chops? Got some concrete blocks to drop off the pier? An eBay seller has just the right ride for you!



It's Tony Soprano's Chevy Suburban from "The Sopranos" -- in a bloody maroon, marone!

While the seller disclaims that the interior "smells faintly of cigar smoke," this baby comes complete with James Gandolfini's signature on the visor!
Source: TMZ

Kiefer Sutherland Busted for DUI in Hollywood

Kiefer Sutherland was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence early Tuesday morning in Hollywood, Los Angeles police department officials confirm.

Around 1 a.m., Sutherland, 40, made an illegal U-turn. Officers pulled him over, and the 24 actor subsequently failed a field sobriety test.

He was booked at the LAPD Hollywood station and was released at 5:42 a.m. on $25,000 bail.

A court date of Oct. 16 was set.

A rep for Sutherland said Tuesday: "It would be premature to comment at this time."

Because the actor was previously convicted of DUI in 2004, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of four days in jail if convicted for this latest arrest.

Before being stopped by police, Sutherland attended the FOX Fall Eco-Casino party at Area nightclub where he was photographed on the red carpet. At the event, he was also spotted signing autographs for young fans.

Source: TMZ

Angelina Jolie to Meet British Foreign Secretary

Only a few weeks after returning from Iraq, where she met with U.S. troops and those uprooted by the war, Angelina Jolie will convene with British Foreign Secretary David Miliband in New York to discuss global diplomacy, British officials announced.

The foreign policy chief, 42, is said to be looking to soften the tone of global relations after Britain became involved in wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Associated Press reports.

"He will meet Angelina Jolie in New York for talks," said a spokeswoman for Miliband.

Jolie, 32, a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, is also due to appear on a revamped Web site for the Foreign Office.

The youthful Miliband, the son of WWII Holocaust survivors, was Britain's first blogging Cabinet minister in his former position as environment chief. He also plans to launch a new blog on Wednesday and is encouraging key aides to follow his example.

"The day when we communicated mainly by telegram [is] over," Miliband told the Evening Standard newspaper. "Communication has to be for the masses now, not just elites."
Source: People

Halle Berry enjoys the perks of pregnancy

Actress Halle Berry, 41, is enjoying the perks of pregnancy. People reports that model boyfriend Gabriel Aubry, 32, has been treating Halle to foot massages and satisfying food cravings.

Gabriel tells People at Macy's Herald Square in N.Y. for "The World of Calvin Klein" event that Halle has been having a few special food cravings:

She does crave pickles. Any bread. Doesn't matter, as long as it's salt and pickles.

He also told Access Hollywood:

She loves foot massages ... I do all of that stuff.

Luckily for Halle, Gabriel is not only a model, he also owns the Cuban restaurant, Café Fuego, in New York and plays the role of chef at home as well. Gabriel explained how excited he is to become a dad.

Just a new baby and a child in our lives is going to be amazing.

Halle and Gabriel expect their first child "sometime around spring."

Sarah is #29 on Maxim's Hot 100 List!

Hey! Maxim mag's Hot 100 list is now LIVE on Maxim.com and Sarah Silverman is number 29 on the list!



Here

Sarah Silverman - #29 on Maxim Top 100 List