Al Gore Fed Up With Britney Spears & Paris Hilton Taking His Press

Al Gore gets a collective yawn when he tries the politics of fear on global warming.  But party girls Paris Hilton and Britney Spears every move is documented and reported on with vigor in the entertainment and mainstream press.  And Al Gore is fed up with playing second fiddle to the pop culture world.  And yes this is the same Al Gore than frenched his wife Tipper like it was Angelina Jolie and her brother James Haven at an awards show to create a buzz.

Al Gore Fed Up With Britney Spears & Paris Hilton Taking His Press

Gore criticized the "trivialities and nonsense" of celebrity gossip in the media and called on people to focus instead on issues like Iraq and climate change.  Gore, who is promoting his new book "The Assault on Reason," made the comments at a book signing in New York, where he was treated to a rock star reception by more than 1,300 cheering and screaming fans.

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"What is it about our collective decision-making process that has led us to this state of affairs where we spend much more time in the public forum talking about -- or receiving information about -- Britney Spears shaving her head or Paris Hilton going to jail?" Gore asked.

He lamented what he described as the "destruction of the boundary between news and entertainment" and said the United States was "vulnerable as a democracy to mass and continuing distraction."