#1- I actually think Perez is the best gossip person out there. With the exception of outing, which I am not a fan of, I think he is the best. He is relevant, works hard and every gossip blog wants to be him. Well, not him exactly, but you get the point. Although I like to think I do a great job on blind items, I am fully cognizant of the fact that Perez could kick my ass with his sources, should he choose to concentrate on blind items. I also do not think that Perez posted this knowing it was false. He knew it was a good story and if it was a heterosexual thing, I would have probably run with it myself.
So, we are supposed to believe this is Clay Aiken. Why? Because an informant tells Perez it is? I can go on a dating site right now and set up two accounts. One will make it sound like it is Jennifer Aniston, and the other Angelina Jolie. I can then send an e-mail or two which makes it look like they want to hookup. It is ridiculous, because no one would believe it. But, would you believe it if I made one of Jake Gyllenhal and another guy? Yes, because the perception whether true or not is that Jake is gay.Let's move to the IM chat.
First of all, Clay has changed screen names. It is not uncommon to use a different name from a dating site and also your Yahoo e-mail so we will say that could be legitimate. The only other thing that does not make any sense is that in the e-mails on the site, they determined that both were in Raleigh Durham, NC, but for some reason five minutes later on IM, they need to reiterate it. Now, the easiest way to set this part up is to have a couple of friends chat each other up and make sure they use the language that is the most damning. Short of that, one guy with two computers can do it just as easily.
Let us move to the clincher. The webcam pics.
If I am talking to Kate Hudson on a webcam, why do I need to have her hold up four fingers to prove it is her? Obviously there is someone there on the other end. How does it prove it is Kate Hudson if she holds up up four fingers?The four fingers is the key. In my blind items, I know the answer, and the reader does not. I can then arrange the clues however I want. If this was Lindsay Lohan on webcam and she was holding up four fingers, do you think we could construct a conversation that has her buying 4 grams of coke from a guy she met online?
Although it is a good hoax, that is all it is. In fact, it is almost identical to one from last March, where Clay was online and someone had webcam photos of him. The mind wants to believe the fourth photo is Clay because the first three have you hooked. But, in the fourth, where there is skin, there is no face, only a body.
Do, I think Clay trolls online for guys? Probably not. There are other more discreet ways to meet people. Do I think Clay goes online and uses a webcam? Absolutely.
You have good points.. but I still believe it. He's done this before, a few times (caught that is). So if it is fake, it's based on truth and is hilarious!
ReplyDeleteI think one of the guys who met him online before has his own blog and is selling towels with Clay Aiken's spunk on it.. classy huh?
Interesting. I agree that it's easy to fake the Clay thing. I can't see him trolling the internet although you never know. I also agree with you about Perez. Most gossip sites hate on him because they want to be him. He is the best at what he does. He actually breaks stories, rather than reporting what everybody else is reporting. ~ Stacey
ReplyDeleteWell, ET-you can lead a horse to water but you can't make 'em think.
ReplyDeleteYou tried, and you are right of course. Still-as evidence here-people will think what they want to, without listening to fact or logic! I am thankful for your sense of fair play.You changed my opinion for sure!
I don't think that guy is Clay Aiken, especially from the pictures. He looks similiar to Clay Aiken but to me it just doesn't look really like him at all.
ReplyDeleteThen again, I'm not a Clay Aiken fan, so it's not like I stare at him enough to know what he truly looks like.
- captain
I agree with your suggestion that it is a hoax. Why on earth would Clay do this again after what happened last time? I think he has probably learned his lesson re: discretion.
ReplyDeletePoor Clay! He can't even go online and have a little fun!
ReplyDeleteOkay - I just would NOT have pegged you as a Perez fan!! (sorry - that was the most shocking part for me on the whole story).
ReplyDeleteJust to clear up, I don't think the guy at the end of the post is Clay Aiken either. Just some poor guy who looks like him.
ReplyDeleteExcellent summation ET, but some of the comments here have just proved what Clay said in interviews last fall. It matters not what he says because people are going to believe what they want to believe as he already debunked the crap from last year in several interviews, one being PEOPLE magazine.
ReplyDeleteI too am shocked that you are a PH fan because IMO he is part of the downfall of journalism in our society in that what he "reports" gets pulled into the mainstream, not as gossip, but as fact.
Perez has NO right to out someone who is not ready to be out of the closet. Perez is an arrogant SOB that does this to promote his own career, not to promote Gay Rights or the recently outted career.
ReplyDeleteHas anyone else noticed how Perez will break any news story, force people out of the closet, but he never never never reports anything negative about Paris Hilton? He is a huge sell-out.
ReplyDeleteyeah i aslo believe that the clay things is a hoax, the guy is clearly in the closet, but this is just a scam. I disagree with ent lawyer about perez though, he used to be the best gossip out there but latley most of his post are just repeats of other peoples stuff or random hating on kirsten dunst or other celebrities. also now that he has reached the top of the blogger pile he so focused on his own minor celebrity that some other blogger will probably come along and knock him of the top.
ReplyDeleteAoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae So palese dnot copmilan aoubt my tpynig you know you can raed it
now i know you're a lawyer, entlawyer! that's a great dissection of that story. we can't, from the evidence, necessarily totally discount it, but somebody's gone to a great deal of trouble to make it seem true.
ReplyDeleteInitially it crossed my mind that the 'screens' we're seeing could be from anywhere and written by anyone.
ReplyDeleteI mean, look, if hooking up online is Clay's bag, fine, he's an adult. But I'm aware of how easy to hoax things like this are these days. Photoshop is a wonderful tool.
But to what end, EntLawyer? The game was clearly not extortion of Clay, and surely Perez can't pay an anonymous internet source enough for a tidbit like this to make it worth the amount of trouble one would have to go to to stage it. So where is the motive?
ReplyDeleteI am more stunned than anything that you have such positive things to say about PH who clearly has very poor integrity and is just damned mean. He regurgitates stories from other sites and is clearly more interested in his own celebrity than being a celeb gossiper. He is a boring sellout with his infantile drawings on all his photos. Disgusting tramp.
ReplyDeleteThe motive is easy. The faction of the gay community that has decided that Clay must be gay and is outraged that he has stated that he is straight have set out to mock and ridicule him until he breaks down and comes out of the closet. They did it to Lance Bass and Neil Patrick Harris with success, so they think that this relentless mockery and humiliation will force Clay out. The problem is that Clay isn't gay. All they might succeed in doing is to destroy Clay's career and reputation. They cannot force him to be gay.
ReplyDeleteOh, brother. Now that we've heard from the wacky "gays are only out to recruit and convert straights" faction, I'd like to hear from entertainment lawyer.
ReplyDeleteOT--"Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are"
ReplyDeleteOhmyGod I that is truly weird. It took me several words to realize that they weren't spelled correctly. But yet I was reading as quickly as usual. ????
Back on Topic:
ReplyDeleteI've read Perez before and if I'm truly bored (on weekends when hardly anyone updates) I'll read him a bit.
He used to be tolerable but I agree that "He regurgitates stories from other sites and is clearly more interested in his own celebrity" but most of the other sites aren't original either. At most (other than this site) there are only a handful of sites and pictures and then either links or re-writes of the same things.
Two reasons I don't read him daily anymore are 1) his refusal to write about Paris--I realize she's his "friend" but when the internet is blowing up with her shit hitting the fan for him to TOTALLY ignore it altogether is too ??? (I don't know-can't articulate it--but I'm sure you know what I mean) (2) ALL the pictures of his FUGLY face. I mean damn, I realize it's HIS blog but seriously other than PITNB who else puts that many pictures of themselves up??
There are other reasons to not read his blog and there are some that I agree with ENT about but basically it's just too much trouble to read.
Clay has stated MANY times that he's straight... I believe him. I'm not a fan or anything, but I always figured it was a hoax. Everyone and their cousin has a webcam these days... with Photoshop and all that, it wouldn't take much to put it all together. Someone who looks like Clay was bored and came up with this elaborate story... made some money off it as well. Too bad Clay's reputation has been tainted.
ReplyDeleteThe person on the webcam has man boobs. bleh
ReplyDeleteWell I hate to burst your bubble Mr. EL, but the shots are Clay, alright and very likely the IMs. I don't think you have followed him like some of his fans, or should I say former fans, who know that this is his pattern and his body.
ReplyDeleteClay does not have the best reputation for truthfulness and I would not want him to be my primary witness in court because he could be easily impeached. His active fanbase has shrunken down to only a few who haven't seen the light. I would love to defend this gay man because I believe he is going nuts with the fans who still believe he is straight and pure goodness, but he is what he is.
So what do you make of Clays Blog? he has called Perez(altough not his name directly) a lier. this is a small part of it ...
ReplyDeleteQUOTE CLAY
"It seems over the past few weeks, the tabloids and gossip mongers have had their hands full coming up with new and exciting "scandals" for me to be a part of. Yet, for all of their efforts to be on the "cutting edge" and the forefront of bull$#@& journalism, it seems that some of them may be running out of ideas and resorting to recycling and re-hashing some of their older tall tales. How sad!?" I really think Perez is sooo insistant on "outing" Clay because noone has been able to do it. No one has made him crack. Look how much attention he's gotten from lance and doogie. He wants to get Clay and I think he's desperate enough to fabricate it to do it. Heck,Couldn't Clay have been video-confrencing with the presidents comitee in Dec. as he was on tour at the time? people will do anything for money.. would they sell acouple of screen shots to Perez for money?
Vienna MOM I saw that roumour on one of those blogs that HATE CLAY. I didn't believe you then I don't believe you now. I can make up a story about my night with Kelly Clarkson and the lesbian encounter we had backstage at the michigan concert while her bandmates watched. in detail, with it sounding convincing too.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that you posted it through a screenname on the internet makes it no more true than all the other times you've posted it. This is the Internet of the new millenium and it's wrought with lies. it's easy and it's anonymous, it's easy to be brave and hateful hiding behind a computer and spread crap. Clay has gone on public record stating stories are false. If you can do the same without hiding your face then I might believe you.
Ah, but remember, even stating it out loud, with your face showing, ala JP doesn't make it true. I don't know...the guy's never said a word against the gay community, he's just doing his thing musically and trying to do some good things with a foundation for inclusion and UNICEF. Can't see what difference it makes gay, straight, whatever, if someone's doing their part. Self idenity is just that...self.
ReplyDeleteNo one may never see this, but I'll post the links anyway.
ReplyDeleteHere were the results from the fan's own investigation of the 1st tabloid webcams, later written up on the Post Chronicle site and debunked by Clay in People mag.
http://anti-fans-411.blogspot.com/
The second is from a fan message board in a forum where they post pics from Clay's concerts, appearances, etc. Scroll down to the 3rd pic. Clay is holding up 4 fingers. Many pics were taken by fans during the C'mas tour, Dec. 06, a month before Perez blogged his webcams. Clay often says and does the same things night after night, so how many pics could have been taken of him holding up 4 fingers?
http://www.getclayaiken.com/viewtopic.php?t=59&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=620&sid=5647233d5a363f17dff93e37d340880c
Thank you for your blog.