CNN’s Assault On Reason: New Reporter Hired To Cover ‘Britney And Michael Jackson’

[babylonsister]

And they have the temerity to call themselves the best cable "news" channel?

http://thinkprogress.org/2007/05/30/cnn-reason/

CNN’s Assault On Reason: New Reporter Hired To Cover ‘Britney And Michael Jackson’

Last week, Al Gore appeared on CNN’s Larry King Live and offered a stinging critique of the media’s obsession with “trivialities” rather than important issues that affect our collective future:

GORE: In a lot of the news media, the line between entertainment and news is now very blurred, and a lot of news organizations feel the need to run polls and conduct focus groups the same as politicians now. And so we get a lot more of Anna Nicole Smith’s funeral arrangements and Paris Hilton’s legal battles on her jail term than we get about how we can solve the climate crisis and how we can get our troops out of this civil war they are trapped in, in Iraq.

Confirming the central thesis of Al Gore’s criticism of the media, this morning CNN announced the hire of a new reporter who will “be covering things like Britney, as well as the Michael Jackson memorabilia”:

KIRAN CHETRY: Britney Spears, she’s blogging — that’s what they do these days, the celebrities — about her trip to rehab, about hitting rock bottom, and about what she really thinks her troubles are. … And joining us to talk more about that this morning is Lola Ogunnaike. … You’re going to be covering things like Britney, as well as the Michael Jackson memorabilia.

OGUNNAIKE: Yes, I’ve got the Britney, Lindsay, Michael Jackson memorabilia beat.

Watch it at link~

Full transcript:

GORE: In a lot of the news media, the line between entertainment and news is now very blurred, and a lot of news organizations feel the need to run polls and conduct focus groups the same as politicians now. And so we get a lot more of Anna Nicole Smith’s funeral arrangements and Paris Hilton’s legal battles on her jail term than we get about how we can solve the climate crisis and how we can get our troops out of this civil war they are trapped in, in Iraq.
And we have this huge onslaught of trivialities and four-and-a- half hours a day is the average amount of time Americans watch television. And so much of it is just sort of mind-deadening. And you know what I’m talking about. And that line between entertainment and news is really gone now in many cases.
* * *

CHETRY: Also, Britney Spears, she’s blogging — that’s what they do these days, the celebrities — about her trip to rehab, about hitting rock bottom, and about what she really thinks her troubles are. It’s certainly not alcohol and depression, she says. And joining us to talk more about that this morning is Lola Ogunnaike. Welcome, by the way, to the team.

LOLA OGUNNAIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thank you so much. I’m happy to be here.

CHETRY: You’re going to be covering things like Britney, as well as the Michael Jackson memorabilia.

OGUNNAIKE: Yes, I’ve got the Britney, Lindsay, Michael Jackson memorabilia beat.

CHETRY: Do you get to cover any normal people?

OGUNNAIKE: Yes, actually. But just not this week.

CHETRY: Well, we are so thrilled that you’re with us.

[mike_c]

1. "...the Britney, Lindsay, Michael Jackson memorabilia beat."

:rofl: I am so glad I unplugged the glass teat twenty years ago. Bread and circuses for Americans in the age of technology!

[tabasco]

3. Bread & circuses. Hiring mercenaries. Endless provincial wars.

Maybe we should just start speaking Latin.

Our fate will be the same as other failed empires.

It will be good when we see ourselves as just another country in the community of nations, not a superpower.

But that won't happen in my lifetime.

[KoKo]

2. Amazing. Notice how the shut down started when the Investigations started.

You could see CNN/MSNBC shift to more and more entertainment. The corporate Owners aren't even trying to disguise their support for Bush. Instead they are showing their hand and power by shutting down any mention of the investigations and trying as hard as they can to minimize the Civil War in Iraq.

They aren't afraid of "the people." They don't listen to their own online polls...then don't care if thousands contact them asking for real news. They don't care...because they own it all and are not showing us exactly what that ownership means. :scared:

[mike_c]

5. oh my-- that shift started in the 1980's and 1990's....

eom

[KoKo]

6. Yes, indeed it did. Let's hope this latest is the last throes before

some legislation brings other markets in to level the playing field.

[LibDemAlways]

4. Here in Los Angeles there is a half hour of

network "news" between 6:30 and 7:00 PM weeknights on the CBS, ABC, and NBC affiliates. Minus commercials and puff pieces, there's probably 10 minutes of rw slanted coverage of actual "news" - if that. At 7:00, ABC goes with an hour divided between Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune. The CBS and NBC affiliates present a full hour of info-tainment/tabloid crap - Extra, Access Hollywood, Entertainment Tonight, The Insider. It's probably much the same around the country.

We live in an era when the average American couldn't place Darfur on the correct continent much less know what's going on there. If people are vaguely aware that there's a Presidential election scheduled next year, it would be a stretch to assume that they could identify the candidates and issues. Most Americans would have no trouble identifying Johnny Depp, but would be hard-pressed to identify John Roberts. And apparently the shameless network suits insist on it. It's a national disgrace.

[MountainLaurel]

7. Oh my Maude.

When I was in journalism school, I used to joke that my dream job was to work for the "Weekly World News" as editor in chief for Elvis sightings. This isn't a heck of a lot far off.