Welcome to the Upper East Side, a world of scandal, betrayal and best of all gossip.

Oops, did I say Upper East Side? I meant to say Champaign, Central Illinois hot spot for all the drinking, drama and gossip that is just too juicy to pass up.

A new Web site, JuicyCampus.com has incorporated the University into its online database, allowing students to post about anything – from where the party is to random questions that plague their minds and everything in between.

If this seems a little “Gossip Girl”-esque to you, you are not alone. That concern has been raised on the Web site.

However, Matt Ivester, founder and CEO of JuicyCampus.com, insists there is no connection between the Web site and the popular book series or television show.

Ivester said the idea came to him when he thought back to his college days. He remembers the gossip that circled his campus and thought it might be fun to have a place online to share that gossip.

Thus, JuicyCampus.com was born.

“It is a place for fun, light-hearted gossip to thrive,” Ivester said. “The Web site allows people to talk about stories that are controversial or unpopular.”

The Web site launched in October 2007 and has been growing steadily ever since.

“We have gotten more traffic on the Web site than we could have imagined,” Ivester said. “There has been a tremendous response.”

The popularity of the Web site sparked Ivester to incorporate 50 more campuses into the database, and Ivester said he eventually hopes to expand the site to include campuses nationwide. New features will be added soon, and further expansion is in the works, though Ivester declined to comment on his plans just yet.

Jessica Dust, freshman in FAA, has previous experience with Web sites dedicated to gossip and is not quite sold on the idea yet.

“My hometown has a site like this,” Dust said. “Everyone goes on and posts about everything and anything. If I hear something interesting that I want to know more about, I would go to the site and read about it, but it really depends a lot on what the gossip is about.”

Dust said she understands how it could be a good way to let people know about what is going on but she still does not like it.

JuicyCampus.com allows students to post anonymously or sign their names to their posts.

So far, the University’s forum is slow to start. Most posts are about the “hottest sororities,” the “hottest frats” and the “hottest professors.”

It seems as if the only concerns on this campus are about Greek life and various other random details about campus life.

For that reason, not all people feel there is a need for a Web site dedicated solely to gossip.

Nicole Gamboa, freshman in LAS, said she does not waste her time worrying about gossip.

“I think it’s stupid,” Gamboa said. “I think a lot of people don’t though and would use a Web site like this. Personally, I wouldn’t waste my time.”

While Gamboa does not use the Web site, some students do. For some, gossip is just too juicy to pass up, and as one anonymous student posted, “No one is above this.”

As of right now, the Web site has little function on our campus, but Ivester said as word spreads, he hopes people will surf over to his site and check it out.

Ivester said students can even read about what is going on at other campuses and bring those concerns to their own campus.

Though they bought flyers to advertise on Facebook, Ivester insists they are in no way affiliated with Facebook.

“Facebook is just a great way to reach college students,” Ivester said. “Since they are already online, we figured it was a good way to reach them.”

As of right now, the choice to make this Web site something worthwhile is up to the students. Only they can make or break the Web site.

You know you love me.

XOXO

(Note: For those of you who don’t know, that is how “Gossip Girl” signs off.)