Vanessa on what it's like going from reading gossip to being gossip: "When I do interviews with other celebrities, I never ask questions I wouldn't answer. I don't want to pry in anyone's life. I try to reword or pass it on to another journalist or nix it altogether. You have to remember your audience, too -- 13-year-old girls watch TRL. But it's really hard for me to do what I do and keep my integrity and values and morals and ethics."

Vanessa on who she really is: "I'm strong, smart, and hard-working. I love the photos for this article, the whole Bonnie and Clyde theme. In a way that's what all this feels like. Whether it's my family, my friends, my man, or just myself -- we're battling this crazy world and trying to get through it with a smile."
Vanessa on her lack of privacy: "I don't have a private life. People don't realize how powerful the media is. It's a beast. It's there to build you up and take you down. It's kind of bittersweet, you know. Like right now we're doing an interview for a magazine that I love. You need to do press, but you don't ask for it to take over your life. I understand that when I go to work, the paparazzi will be there. But I don't understand why they need to be down my back when I go out of my apartment at midnight to get some ice cream. She went to Baskin Robbins and got two scoops of mint chocolate chip! Dunt dun duh!"

{Faded Youth}