Former Vice-President Al Gore makes a few comments about the failure of television to make society better.
"One morning not long ago, I flipped on one of the news programs in hopes of seeing information about an important world event that had happened earlier that day. But the lead story was about a young man who had been hiccupping for three years. And I must say, it was interesting; he had trouble getting dates. But what I didn't see was news.
This was the point made by Jon Stewart, the brilliant host of "The Daily Show," when he visited CNN's "Crossfire": there should be a distinction between news and entertainment.
And it really matters because the subjugation of news by entertainment seriously harms our democracy: it leads to dysfunctional journalism that fails to inform the people. And when the people are not informed, they cannot hold government accountable when it is incompetent, corrupt, or both."
Amen! I hope you're listening, Today Tonight.
Of course, Gore doesn't miss the opportunity to plug his own network, Current TV.
"I don't know all the answers, but along with my partner, Joel Hyatt, I am trying to work within the medium of television to recreate a multi-way conversation that includes individuals and operates according to a meritocracy of ideas. If you would like to know more, we are having a press conference on Friday morning at the Regency Hotel."
I dunno Al, it kind of loses some sincerity with the self-promotion thrown in.
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I hope you're listening, Today Tonight.
And Channel 10 News. I can't remember: Which important world news item was judged to be so much less important than something that Delta Goodrem did to warrant putting her onto the top story slot and the other item onto the third? I was so gobsmacked at this ridiculousness that I've blocked it from my memory.
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