New York lambasts royal butler

There is only one thing Americans like better than a scandal, and that is someone else's scandal.

And there is something deliciously ironic about royal scandals in a country that was born out of thumbing its nose at King George III.

That interest is being fed by sections of the American media that is always on the lookout for a good gossip.

Let the feeding frenzy begin.

Cheapskate

The story of Paul Burrell and a raft of fresh of accusations is definitely making headlines, especially in saucy publications like the New York Post.

"The Queen of Mean," shouted their front page, a newspaper not known for sotte voce.

What was Butler Burrell's offence? Being a cheapskate!

Supposedly, word on the street in New York is that Mr Burrell is pretty tight with the hundreds of thousands of pounds that he is getting to tell all.

After moving four rooms of luggage, he reportedly left only a $10 tip for the staff at the posh Millennium Hotel on Times Square.

New Yorkers have very little patience for poor tippers. If you've got the green to stay at a $250 a night hotel, you're expected to share the wealth.

Pay per interview

And this "take the money and tell" routine isn't playing well with the press in the US either.

Mr Burrell was in New York to hawk his "What the Butler Saw" game show and also to do some interviews, which have reportedly netted him some more cash.

On the subject of paid interviews, US television network ABC is finding itself in the middle of a scandal of its own.

ABC will air Mr Burrell's documentary, "Diana's Rock," and a pair of interviews.

Rival networks are claiming that ABC paid in the low to mid six figures for the interviews.

But ABC News says it does not pay for interviews and says the deals for the documentary and the interviews were negotiated separately.

Lack of discretion

Again the New York Post has a few choice words for Mr Burrell.

"Here, we'd call him a rat," says a headline dripping with venom.

Americans thought butlers were supposed to be discreet and take the secrets of their employers to the grave.

"Whether you live in New York's Bensonhurst or London's Belgravia Square, blabbing for bucks simply makes you a rat," writes the Post's Steve Dunleavy.

Mr Dunleavy admits the scandalous allegations are terribly interesting, but he has few kind words for Mr Burrell.

"Simply put, the royal revelations are riveting, but 'the revealer', Mr. Burrell, is revolting."