TMZ is one of those celebrity gossip and listicle sites that I suspect readers around here probably scroll right past, even though it’s almost as old as the original blogosphere that eventually helped launch PJ Media. I suspect that’s about to change. Bigly.
Currently owned by Fox Entertainment (part of the Disney über-conglomerate, not the news network), TMZ seems a bit long in the tooth. Aside from the occasional scandal big enough to get people clicking, the site is far from the unstoppable clickbait machine it was 15 or even just 10 years ago.
Social media serves up the celebrity dish so much faster. In its heyday, readers could count on TMZ’s army of photographers and tipsters to deliver the goods, but the business model topped out.
Well, what’s there to do with that army of tipsters and photogs?
TMZ told them to aim for new targets: America’s usually well-insulated political class.
And let me tell you, so far the results are glorious. On second thought, don’t let me tell you — I’ll show you.
As best I can tell, TMZ’s new business model exposed itself (heh) on Monday with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) enjoying a little DHS shutdown time with his bubble wand at Disney World.
Lindsey Graham lives it up at Disney World during the partial government shutdown!
Take a look: https://t.co/MuKOLhjQX4 pic.twitter.com/RKX665BPCt
— TMZ (@TMZ) March 30, 2026
Graham also enjoyed Space Mountain because who wouldn’t? Not only is it a pretty kick-butt roller coaster, but it’s indoors and air-conditioned. Genius. But I digress.
For his part, Graham said he was in Orlando meeting a Trump official, and having done all he could on the Senate floor, added Disney World to his itinerary.
Is any of this Graham stuff newsworthy? Honestly, I’m torn on that one. But at 5.8 million X views (and counting), Graham and his bubble wand certainly piqued people’s interest.
Most of TMZ’s X feed is still the usual celeb stuff, but Laura Miers noticed that “Their politician posts get like 10,000x more engagement than their celebrity posts.”
This next item, I’m not at all confused about whether it’s newsworthy.
Exclusive: 30 members of Congress are in Scotland on taxpayers’ dime amid the shutdown.
Take a look: https://t.co/kn43aWI9nx pic.twitter.com/VBjtVRx9S7
— TMZ (@TMZ) April 1, 2026
In a follow-up post, TMZ said they’d been told this was a “long-planned, House Ethics approved trip to meet with foreign dignitaries.” On our dime, naturally. While I’m less concerned about what House members do while the Senate dithers, I’m glad TMZ is around to remind us what the mainstream media won’t: that “House Ethics approved” doesn’t carry the coin it once did.
I’d like to see a lot more like that. And if TMZ is serious about expanding its reach, they need to make their new effort truly nonpartisan. Not sure I’ll let my hopes get up too high on that count, however. If TMZ wants to be just another hyperpartisan outlet, they’ll likely get lost in the left-wing shuffle.
Still, Politico’s Riley Rogerson posted that “The Hill is bracing for TMZ,” and one congressional staffer told her they’re already having conversations in D.C. about “how to engage and prepare for your boss’s TMZ moment.” Another staffer told Rogerson they’re actually “super stoked” by TMZ, but that other congresscritters could be in for a “rude awakening.”
Maybe you find a gossip site like TMZ getting into this kind of thing a bit distasteful, and my initial reaction was just that.
But if the mainstream media — which long ago traded in its credibility for ideology and access — won’t do the “legit” legwork needed to expose Congress’s petty corruptions and hypocrisies, then maybe, in the immortal words of Melvin Udall, this is as good as it gets.
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