Chicago Tribune: Destiny and doughnuts for Michelle Williams

Michelle Williams was searching for CNN on the TV Friday afternoon in her suite at the Hard Rock Hotel, more than 20 floors up from where she hosted her album release party the previous night. The 34-year-old singer and Rockford native wanted to check in on a news story that had just broken before leaving the room. It turns out Williams is a self-proclaimed “newsie.” She talks of news in the same manner some might talk about gossip, relaying the juicy details and her theories on what transpired.

“It’s probably not healthy,” said Williams of her obsession.

This may explain, in part, why she’s drawn to real-life-crime and courtroom programming. She calls the syndicated “Judge Judy” a guilty pleasure and raves about A&E’s “The First 48.” The latter is a docu-series that features homicide investigators attempting to solve a murder, generally in the first 48 hours that follow.