Mention a possible career in public relations to teenagers – or even to 20-somethings and older folks–and visions of celebrities are likely to pop into their heads. In the public’s mind, it seems, the celebrity publicist has become the de facto face of our industry. So we were naturally drawn to a new book by NPR entertainment reporter Jake Halpern - Fame Junkies: The Hidden Truths Behind America's Favorite Addiction.

Just what causes even those of us in the corporate PR world to turn to Page Six of the New York Post, to tune in to Courtney Cox starring as a gossip magazine queen on FX’s Dirt, to secretly steal a glimpse at Joan and Melissa on the red carpet.?

According to Halpern, a combination of psychology, technology, evolution, and profit have conspired to hook just about all of us on celebrity news and culture.

And the rise of celebrity news only fuels more of the same. As noted by Jonathan Yardley in his Washington Post review of Fame Junkies, “One reason people are encouraged to chase the chimera of fame is that with the rise of the celebrity-obsessed media, the need for celebrities has increased exponentially and apparently will continue to do so. All those talk shows and feature writers need ‘a steady supply of telegenic actors, singers, cooks, talk-show hosts, and meteorologists to fill the increasing number of celebrity slots.’”

Take the word of one who should know - Bonnie Fuller, the gossip magazine maven, who says Halpern has penned a “provocative exposé on the origins of celebrity worship. His in-depth look at the public’s insatiable appetite for gossip is a fascinating read."

Yes, fascinating and all too revealing about America’s priorities – a culture where more people watch American Idol than the nightly news on the three major networks combined, and where teenage girls –given the option of “pressing a magic button” and becoming either stronger, smarter, famous, or more beautiful – overwhelmingly opt for fame.

And this culture is definitely affecting the overwhelming majority of PR practitioners who represent something other than celebrities. As Halpern also notes, “The circulation of the major news and opinion magazines (including Time, Newsweek, The New Yorker, and the Atlantic) increased by only 2 percent between 2000 and 2005, while the circulation of the major entertainment and celebrity news magazines (including People, Us Weekly, InStyle, and Entertainment Weekly) increased by 18.7 percent.”

And that’s the not-so-hidden truth.