Is Small Talk in New York Too Shallow?

Tatiana Platt and her dashing architect (and former
model!) husband Campion.Photo: Patrick McMullan
FameGame is the brainchild of former AOL executive Tatiana Platt, who is profiled today in the Observer. And the social expert levies some pretty heavy allegations against New Yorkers. She hits them where it hurts — in their cocktail chatter. Says Platt:
"Here, when you run into people at an event, usually you’re talking about, ‘Oh, did you see Page Six today?’ Or, ‘Oh, did you go to that event last night?’"Platt used to live in D.C., and she claims that the small talk there is much more intellectual:
“Small talk tends to be a little more highbrow, a little more intelligent,” she said of the scene in D.C. “You know, you’re talking about the latest thing that President Bush did or the latest kind of national policy issue.”
Is this true? Can we New Yorkers talk about nothing but the latest party or trend? Or is it just that Tatiana Platt is hanging out with the wrong people — i.e., the people* featured on her Website?
The Fame Dame [Observer]
*Just so you know, we don't hang out with Tatiana Platt. But we do talk about "Page Six" a lot.

How Brooklyn Became America's Music Capital 
The Times Journalist Too Big to Fail
Can NBC Be Saved?
Bloomberg's New Political Challengers