Is Small Talk in New York Too Shallow?

Tatiana and Campion Platt

Tatiana Platt and her dashing architect (and former
model!) husband Campion.Photo: Patrick McMullan

If you are the kind of person who goes to parties in New York and occasionally ends up on Websites like PatrickMcMullan.com or NewYorkSocialDiary.com, chances are you've Googled yourself over the past year or so and noticed a personal profile you didn't set up on FameGame.com. It's a Website that tracks your social appearances on the Internet and ranks your stature — for example, Intel editors Chris and Jessica are on it. Chris is totally kickingJessica's ass, but someone like Kristian Laliberte stomps all over both of us.

FameGame is the brainchild of former AOL executive Tatiana Platt, who is profiled today in the Observer. And the social expert levies some pretty heavy allegations against New Yorkers. She hits them where it hurts — in their cocktail chatter. Says Platt:

"Here, when you run into people at an event, usually you’re talking about, ‘Oh, did you see Page Six today?’ Or, ‘Oh, did you go to that event last night?’"Platt used to live in D.C., and she claims that the small talk there is much more intellectual:

“Small talk tends to be a little more highbrow, a little more intelligent,” she said of the scene in D.C. “You know, you’re talking about the latest thing that President Bush did or the latest kind of national policy issue.”

Is this true? Can we New Yorkers talk about nothing but the latest party or trend? Or is it just that Tatiana Platt is hanging out with the wrong people — i.e., the people* featured on her Website?

The Fame Dame [Observer]
*Just so you know, we don't hang out with Tatiana Platt. But we do talk about "Page Six" a lot.

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