What is puzzling, though, is why there is so much demand for celebrity stories and pictures.

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First published on celebrity gossip website TMZ, the pictures soon made their way to newspapers and news sites around the world.

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In a media marketplace heavy on celebrity news, stories are interesting, but pictures reign supreme.

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For some reason, they expressed little enthusiasm for celebrity gossip, wacky sex stories or gratuitous pictures of skimpily clad women.

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The walls of her salon on a busy corner of Melrose Avenue are plastered with pictures of Valensi with some of her celebrity clients, including Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie, Tara Reid and a nest of Playboy bunnies.

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Celebrity publicist Max Clifford said the ruling would not make any difference to newspapers wanting to publish such pictures in the future.

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