Newsflash! Miss USA is no Katie Couric

The latest Miss USA, Rachel Smith, recently revealed how much she really doesn’t know at a Women in Entertainment Empowerment Network event, reports the New York Daily News. Speaking about her future plans, the seemingly-superficial Miss Smith said, “I always wanted to be a reporter — maybe some TV. Who knows? Some serious news — but some modeling, too.”

Resolute Rachel, who also described how she danced around in a hot pink Rocawear sweatsuit and her crown the night she won Miss USA, didn’t pontificate on how she intended to mix journalism with modeling. But the News reports that she was able to emphatically state, “I just don’t want to end up like Katie Couric. I want people to take me seriously.”

No problem, honey. According to a Couric representative, “If (Rachel Smith) continues to offer such profound insight, she will not have to worry about anyone taking her seriously.”

Hayden’s out, Lauren’s in
It seems like old times now that former “Laguna Beach” stars Stephen Colletti and Lauren Conrad are dating again. Soon after his breakup with “Heroes” unbreakable beauty Hayden Panettiere, Stephen hit the town with previous ex Lauren (currently staring in “The Hills”), reports the Star.

NBC News video Hayden dishes on ‘Heroes’ Sept. 24: ­The actress tells TODAY’s Matt Lauer about being 18, handling the media frenzy and what’s next for Claire in Season 2. Today Show Entertainment

The pair attended a promotional party for Hornitos Tequila at the very hot Hollywood nightclub, Opera. According to a Star spy, “Stephen and Lauren definitely looked like an item. They hung out together the entire time and at one point, Stephen grabbed Lauren and took her out to the dance floor, where they danced to the song ‘One More Time.’ They were laughing and flirting. They looked really happy and cute together.”

The couple has a long history together — both attended college in San Francisco before moving back to Las Angeles and returning to show biz. Following their first breakup, reports the Star, Lauren complained about her inability to meet nice boys. “Dating is not that easy. The type of guy I want to date is not the type of guy who wants to be on a reality show.” Only time will tell if going back in time will work out for Lauren in the future.

The serious side of Stephen Colbert
Before he made millions of Americans laugh as a correspondent on “The Daily Show,” and his own Comedy Central satire, “The Colbert Report,” funny man Stephen Colbert surmounted serious tragedies in his life. In a Parade interview, Stephen recounts how, as the youngest of 11 children, he lost his father and two brothers in an airplane crash on Sept. 11, 1974.

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Though it was a big family, his older brothers and sisters headed back to work or college soon after the accident. Stephen, who was only 10-years-old at the time, and his mother were left in the big house all alone. “The shades were down, and she wore a lot of black, and it was very quiet,” Stephen recounted to Parade. “She was a daily communicant, and many times I was too. It was a constant search for healing. My mother gave that gift to all of us. I am so blessed to have been the child at home with her.”

Stephen suffered through more difficult times, Parade reports. Changing schools in the sixth grade, “I was beaten up on a regular basis,” Stephen said. Soon, however, talent for his future career in comedy helped him get through it. “The beginning of my junior year, nobody knew me at school,” he said. “A year later, I was voted Wittiest, and people were happy when I showed up at parties.”

Dish on the fly …
Munich’s famed Oktoberfest is now Paris Hilton-free, reports the U.K. Sun. Paris outraged attendees at last year’s event when she showed up dressed in a traditional Bavarian dress to shill a brand of canned wine. This year, the government announced that promotions, “are completely prohibited by the new festival rules.” ... Mandy Moore knows how to fake real passion, reports OK! Guesting on the season premier of “How I Met Your Mother,” the singer/actress quickly overcame any awkwardness during her many romantic scenes with star Josh Radnor, who told the magazine that, “She went for it! She’s a good ‘fake’ kisser.” ... Bruce Willis may remain box office dynamite, but the “Die Hard” star couldn’t fight his way into New York City night club Socialista, reports the New York Post’s Page Six. Bruce and eight-person entourage were turned away from the door, while other guests were permitted to enter. “I guess they had reached their massive-ego quota,” a Page Six spy reported.

Tabloid Tidbits is compiled by Ree Hines and Helen A.S. Popkin

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