Patient Zero: E! Online’s Kristin Veitch

Although I should be working diligently on a uber-important, career defining project that is due in the morning, I find myself here…at my humble little site….writing about TV gossip. TV and blogging have become a bit of an obsession. And I blame two people for these vices. The first is my boy (yes you)…the one who encouraged me to blow off all work related responsibilities and put my snarky take on all things TV online. Thank You? And the other person responsible for my strained eyesight and carpal tunnel syndrome is Kristin Veitch. Veitch, who has been E!’s TV diva for the past few years, has taken my level of TV addiction to a new level. And it ain’t’ pretty.

I’ll never forget the day I stumbled into Kristin’s column (then called “Watch with Wanda”) on E! online. I couldn’t believe that there was someone out there, about my age, that was into TV as much as I was. She made it ok to care about my favorite TV characters like they were real people. I could fret about the status of Pacey & Joey’s relationship and not feel bad about it, because I knew Kristin cared too. Just a few months ago, mere hours before Alias’s Vaughn (Michael Vartan) was to be “killed” off the show, Kristin posted a message on her boards, letting us all know that she would be available after the show for support. She’s a TV addict, just like us.

And sista has the scoop. As a well known and respected television insider, Kristin’s gossip and dish is almost always reliable, because she’s getting the info straight from the set. Sometimes this can get Kristin in some hot water, as was the case when she recently got her hand slapped for perhaps sharing a little too much about a very popular show. It’s a delicate balance for Veitch to share what she knows with her loyal followers, and to respect the producers needs to keep these storylines quiet. Spill too much and you lose your backstage pass.

Who are these loyal followers that I speak of? They are the thousands of people, of all ages and sexes, that flock to Kristin’s column, her weekly live chats, and her message boards to discuss all the latest TV news. Kristin and E! online have created a real sense of community. During her live chats every Monday, perfect strangers, who know eachother only by screenames, greet eachother like old friends. During the chat Kristin takes questions and tries her best to answer as many as she can in the oh so short hour. In between Veitch’s posts, chatters are gossiping about their favorite shows, and speculating on upcoming storylines. New people join the chat every week, and although newbies must be reminded about the rules (thanks, shutuprob) they are welcomed with open arms by the veterans.

And what are TV addicts supposed to do in between Kristin’s Monday chat and her weekly column on Friday? It’s all about the boards people. The Watch With Kristin boards are by far the most popular of all E! Boards. For a little perspective, the WWK boards have ~ 3.5M views, while the next most popular E! message board boasts only ~208,000 views. The message boards are full of commentary and spoilers. Today, there are over 3,500 topics (or threads) being talked about. From discussions about your all time favorite shows, to whether or not McDreamy should’ve chosen his wife on Grey’s Anatomy, there’s a little something for everyone. Actually, nowadays, the message boards have become the hot spot for sharing show spoilers. Many of us have the inside scoop before Kristin (well probably not, but we spill it when she can’t).

But I don’t think those of us who are fans of Kristin Veitch care so much about getting the spoilers from her. We wouldn’t want her to risk her TV connections just to give us info that we could always get a week or so later from someone else. We rely on her inside connections to get us thismuchcloser to the shows and stars we love. And we visit her site and her boards to talk to our online friends in a place where couch potatoes can go without being judged.

And just minutes after Vaughn’s death, after wiping dry my teary eyes, I was online…looking to Kristin for support in my time of need. Thanks Kristin!