The Celebrity Media Bubble

President Obama posed for the cameras today atop the Great Wall of China, a major sightseeing stop during his diplomatic tour of Asia. Photographers captured the president walking down the last ramp by himself, a shot carefully planned by White House aides.

Not all celebrity shots are so well-choreographed. That’s what makes the job of the much-reviled paparazzi so difficult. And now, The Daily Beast writes that the celebrity media bubble has burst. In the post-Britney era, a typical celebrity shot sells for 31 percent less than it did in 2007, and higher-end shots are worth about half their previous value.

It’s hard to believe that just over a year ago, People magazine paid fourteen million dollars for exclusive photos of Brad and Angelina’s newborn twins. Now the American version of Ok! magazine is reportedly losing half a million dollars a week.

But paparazzi take note: hope is a thing with vampire fangs. A good shot of Twilight stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart kissing in public could fetch well over a hundred grand.

(Photo courtesy daveiam via Flickr/CreativeCommons)