The Marque Blog, on CNN's website, had an interesting post today about "mixing politics and entertainment." It was a short little piece about how the CNN elves apparently notice that the media and comedians have been relentless, if not ruthless, about poking fun and satirically imitating this year's election. Todd Leopold, the blogee, expressed that this mixing of "politainment" has "reached absurd levels this election season" ...Has this producer been clueless about his own network?
Obviously he doesn't seem to own up to CNN's own participation in foreplaying the "politainment" band wagon. It wasn't too long ago when CNN unleashed Kyra Phillips to dig up and follow through rumors that Sarah's youngest child Trigg, was actually her 17 year old daughter Bristol's. That tip, by the way, was based on no more than bloggers gossiping. And of course we all know the consequences of that investigation... another CNN field day when reports were found that Palin's daughter Bristol was pregnant with her own child! Even CNN's own reporters (i.e. Bill Bennett) got sick of it.
I rest my case... CNN has dived from having trashy celebrity news reports to now being the laughing stock of the news provider gene pool. If dramatic, rehab induced socialites, sexist political commentating, and sensationalizing Hollywood has-beens don't tickle your fancy... Apparently CNN now reports on the supernatural as well.
My last post regarded UFO sightings, but with CNN's latest discovery on Big Foot... at least they have the fur to infer "proof."
I don't think CNN has a very good perception of their viewing audience, or they wouldn't be feeding us Sci-fi nonsense and passing it as news-worthy.
So maybe celebrity news can get slow and old, even CNN can vouch that. But where does a major news network look to find a decent story to cover when Hollywood doesn't have much to offer that week?
They look up, of course. That's where the REAL ground-breaking news comes from. Actually, CNN looks to Stephenville, Texas first... then they look up... for none other than, ALIENS.
I don't even know how CNN could possibly let this story fly... and with a straight face nonetheless.
The voiceover of the news piece seemed too theatrical to possibly suggest that CNN realizes this story is crap, but why even bother airing it? It was a little under 2 minutes... There are a million other interesting things CNN can cover on the local or international front for 120 seconds than some extra-terrestrial sighting... What's next, Big Foot?
The CNN "ShowBiz" section of their line-up is a total joke.
It's like a cheap knock-off. They are trying to mimic the structure of E! News and Access Hollywood... and it just doesn't fly with me. First of all, implementing my overall point, CNN doesn't need an entertainment section because they shouldn't even focus on celebrity gossip, messy divorces, hot summer "hook-ups" or scandals in Hollywood town. It's just not what one would look for when watching CNN. That's precisely why we have other reality TV driven, fashion obsessive, salacious gossip channels on cable that do the job right. CNN containing a ruffle piece like "ShowBiz" is absolute nonsense. How is CNN expecting their viewers to take their news seriously when they parade ridiculous celebrity antics about how "TomKat" (aka Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes) are separating?
It just boggles me, the kind of message CNN is trying to send its viewers. Don't they understand that by having "ShowBiz" report on how wretched Britney Spear's family life is or how Peter Cook uses his cock... it demeans the CNN image? Is it worth the profits and the extra fickle viewers?
Maybe CNN needs a new PR representative to help Jeffrey Bewkes re-enforce their brand, as they claim to be "The Most Trusted Name In News." If that's the case, I'll be graduating next spring and would be open to negotiate terms of employment.
It’s a fact, the television business is out to make money… every business is. But at what cost? I understand that entertainment news can generate more viewer-ship, but I feel that CNN should not even bother tinkering with such frivolity. CNN used to be the channel my family and I would turn to for the latest, ground-breaking, usually bi-partisan, journalistic current events... But now, all I see is this:
They poke fun at celebrities with this segment, sarcastically targeting the mishaps of Britney Spears, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Kim Kardashian and Heidi Montag... But this segment only made CNN look immature and desperate for quick viewers. They threw away years of hard earned journalistic credibility for a few moments of entertainment limelight. CNN should understand that their viewers expect a level of professionalism when they watch this network. Insinuating gossip and trash talking coming from the mouths of respectable news reporters is very pathetic.
CNN has essentially added “advertising” elements to their broadcasts to increase viewer numbers and profits by reporting on entertainment issues and focusing on gossip when they should concentrate on more critical topics... Full time. The direction of reporting news has been skewed and needs to return back to its core foundations.
Jeffrey Bewkes... when are you going to focus more on the issues at hand instead of the money in your hands?
That is the title of yesterday's most popular viewed article on CNN's website. Out of all the conflict surrounding our society today, including but not limited to, let's say, the stock market decreasing, the state of economic recession we're in, and the upcoming election... the most popular visited article revolved around another celebrity driven, illegal drug abuse, predictable rise and fall of a has-been actress/singer etc etc...
Why should CNN even bother to cover such a story? Does it have any relevance to solving current situations or addresses issues at hand or even provide insight to anything pertinent and helpful to the public? No, it talks about Maureen McCormick's rehabilitation and "struggle" to fight the 'Marcia Brady' image. Really? Who cares?
CNN is feeding the nation crap. Entertainment news is like Kispy Kreme, filled with fluff and air... you know it's fattening and bad for your cholesterol, yet you still consume it. It's hard to resist when it seems so harmless. But in regards to CNN, it is harmful. CNN should seriously only limit their programming line-up with at most, 10% of Entertainment flippancy and focus the rest 90% on substantial issues. It's detrimental for society to be eating up crap for news. The news needs to penetrate and educate the mass public, not feed it Krispy Kreme.
I don't even want to touch on politics in this blog, simply because it will open up a whole new can of worms... But I will say this, CNN- along with other equally egregious networks such as FOX News and MSNBC, are stepping way past the line of professional journalism regarding this year's election. All these networks are so opinionated and biased that they are a definite, unreliable source for political news. I am dumbfounded by the angle these "respectable" news stations are approaching this election and the efforts they take to bash the other party. It's dirty, it's manipulative, and it's wrong. Television newscasts and journalism should stay true to facts and information; reporting on politics, economy, current events, and the society on a neutral standpoint as a means to educate the public, in order for the public to draw their own conclusions. That is how I feel the news should be. It's simple and it's ethical.
CNN should be more conscious of that effort. They herald themselves to be "The Most Trusted Name In News" but that is a blatant lie! Jeffrey Bewkes needs to adamantly re-evaluate CNN's programming to reflect that motto or chuck it. It pains me to think that CNN has not been living up to basic journalistic ethics. Instead, they dumb the audience down with entertainment reporting and while the viewers are still recovering from the loss of brain cells, CNN punches in unscrupulous comments about the Republican party, degrading the election, it's candidates, and the CNN network as a whole.
The video link above only goes to show how far CNN will take their obsession with reporting sensational entertainment gossip. They take serious candidates such as Palin and paint them in a malicious light, much like squabbling Entertainment magazines. Was it really necessary for Jack Cafferty to post ALL those comments about Palin on national television?
I wont say where my party dedications lie, but either way, I don't think it's right for CNN to have commentators that constantly demean candidates like Sarah Palin or Obama or even George W. Bush, because it makes our country look weak and disreputable in the eyes of the U.S. citizens and the International community.
CNN is no longer a provider of quality news representation. They are undergoing an identity crisis fueled by the larger modern social trend that is Pop Culture. CNN has morphed from a reliable source in international and national news reporting to slowly being saturated with "quasi-celebrities being quasi-entertaining" news coverage in congruence with the popularity rise of reality TV shows and celebrity gossip magazines.
Clearly, there is a demand for drama to be “real,” and CNN, by providing celebrity updates and sensationalizing other stories, is just another corporation meeting that demand. The unfortunate thing is that CNN is in a position to help fix this problem, to discourage America off its celebrity and “reality” addictions. Instead, it just pretends to be a legitimate news provider. To some extent, CNN is Us Weekly for those who refuse to read Us Weekly. CNN just feigns reputability in order to appeal to a slightly different audience.
CNN has this tendency to weave celebrity trivia with substantial issues as if attentive readers and viewers of current events and politics are interested in whether or not Rosie O'Donnell is leaving "The View."
I wonder if CNN even takes their constituents seriously anymore.
Death is a terrible experience for anyone and everyone involved, all the more reason why CNN shouldn't sensationalize the issue. Specifically, I'm talking about Heath Ledger's over exposed tragedy. I'm not saying CNN shouldn't cover the story entirely, but they should have been respectable of all parties involved, especially considering the family and child Heath left behind. CNN should have given the story a true reflection of how this 28 year old talented actor passed away, moments before his debut as the Joker in Batman's "The Dark Knight".
In fact, they should get their facts straight before tripping back and forth about allegations on drug abuse and sleeping problems.
I myself, have always loved Heath Ledger as an actor, from his starring role on "A Knight's Tale" to his award winning performance on "Brokeback Mountain," and I didn't appreciate all the media hoopla that CNN was bombarding the public with. Tuning into CNN at the moment of the incident, I witnessed the screen split into four sections, simultaneously penetrating the the mysteries of an actor's death. There was live feed of the building where Ledger was found, a gossip columnist speculating about the circumstances of his death, bullet points of vital information, and a news ticker. The bullet points changed from reporting suicide to accidental death.
And I love how the Larry King special on CNN involved the professional geniuses of "People" Magazine, "Access Hollywood", and Dr. Drew from the reality show "Celebrity Rehab" to analyze and report on Heath's death.
It is excessive. That is all I have to say. How much juice does CNN seriously think they can squeeze from this tragedy? Their website alone boasts 80 stories and news feeds about the death. The last update just being a little over a week ago, which is rather silly when considering the calamity happened on January 22nd 2008... almost 9 months ago. When is it enough?
Does everybody remember when the infamous Paris Hilton was incarcerated? She violated her probation and was caught driving with a suspended license... I'm sure we ALL remember that little piece of juicy gossip. How could we not? It was covered on all the major entertainment networks and programs such as E! News and MTV, as well as KTLA 5 and FOX News... But CNN too? In fact, if I'm not mistaken, CNN did the most extensive coverage on Paris Hilton's arrest, covering her every Pre-Interview move from the car to the CNN studio, walking towards and into the building, then finally "going up the elevator" to meet with Larry King to reveal her heartbreaking story of how she was in jail for... 39 days... It was very intense. So intense that Wolf Blitzer had to cut his interview short with Bill Cosby about inner city poverty to throw the attention towards Carol Costello, who apparently was covering the Paris-walking-towards-her-post-jail-interview story.
The interview itself re-enforced the importance of CNN's coverage of Paris Hilton's experience and revelations in jail, as one can see from the emotion and sincerity she displays with Larry. I'm sure the millions of viewers that tuned to see this $1 million interview can all agree that this hour was not a waste of brain cells and dendrites. Not to mention Paris' $300,000 follow-up exclusive interview with People magazine... a magazine owned by Time Warner (aka CEO Jeffrey Bewkes), which also owns CNN.
I don’t know about you, but I’m currently sick of watching television. Besides a few token TV series or shows that one watches purely for entertainment, the scheme of television programming is on a downgrading slope. There are so many reality shows on every channel, television news programs no longer educate the public without a hidden biased agenda, and what’s worse, celebrity news has in some cases, foreshadowed more serious issues on the home front and international level. We already have E! News, MTV, VH1, TMZ, Perez Hilton’s blog, and dozens of entertainment magazines that feature celebrity news and salacious gossip… There is no need for trivial news to leak into our “credible” news networks and I strongly believe that it is harmful for our society to be over exposed to so much frivolity.
I am a senior at Chapman University, soon to receive my bachelor’s in Advertising and PR. I have studied the art of persuasion and the sensationalizing effects of advertising, which has fueled my current disposition against certain television news networks. I observed the changes in the quality of such programming and I feel the necessity to articulate myself and educate others on the misdirection and biases of certain networks. I write this blog to address that very issue. I write to lobby for quality news reporting.
Due to my concern that major news networks such as CNN, are less focused on reporting newsworthy issues, I want to influence a change. I demand a statement, issued by Jeffrey Bewkes, the CEO for Time Warner (who owns the CNN network), which mandates the limitations of entertainment reporting to 10% of all CNN programming. I want the news line-up on CNN to reflect the importance of current issues in today’s society… Not to report on who Paris Hilton’s new “b.f.f.” will be.
