Everywhere
1:05 PM
I’ve been back in my office for two and a half days. As is my customary lunch procedure, I park in front of the TV, flipping between CNN, Headline News, and ESPN. Yesterday and today I’ve been continually peppered with updates and coverage of the Anna Nicole Smith story and trial. Now, I like a story about attractive girls with technologically advanced features as much as the next guy, but c’mon already.
The only time Anna Nicole Smith had relevance is when I was going through puberty. Her qualities make her far from worthy of being on a News channel. If I watched E!, that’s one thing. I’d expect to see her. But when CNN or Headline News leads with her trial on their webpages and on their shows, enough is enough.
For some reason, I am frustrated by this. Maybe it is me getting older. I normally don’t send comments to people, but I got on Headline News’ site today and sent them this:
“Good day HLN,
I work from home, and each day I make my lunch and turn the TV on to Headline News. Today I turned you off. Astonishingly I ask, am I watching E! or a news channel?
Enough of the Anna Nicole Smith coverage. Please decide if you are a news group or not. She is not news, just a train wreck. Thanks.”
Our news media is walking a fine line. They want ratings. And a train wreck provides ratings. But this is not news.
What does this say about us as a society? It says we care more about a PR diva than we do about Iraq, hunger, poor people, diseases, and lots of other bad things. I think we get tuned out. I am the first to admit, sadly, that the stories of another bombing in Iraq does not stick with me like it used to. I’ve become desensitized. And I can see the stories of global warming are starting to slowly lose their power. And that stinks.
Why is it that the most important stuff is the stuff we tune out? Maybe because their remedies are so hard to provide. I don’t know. All I do know is that I could give a crap about where Anna Nicole Smith is buried. I do feel bad for her daughter, but she is screwed because she will always grow up wondering if the people caring for her love her for her, or because she will get the millions and millions from her mother’s great grandpa/husband’s money.
And that’s all I have to say about that.