The MSNBC Silliness

MSNBC has suspended (fired??) Keith Olberman for financially supporting the Democratic Party. And that is in furtherance of exactly what policy/standard? NBC has some standard that continues to pretend that its “news” channel, MSNBC, is objective?? That MSNBC? I suppose they are trying to make the “fair and balanced” (wink wink) Faux News Network feel badly. Oh, like Rupert cares what MSNBC thinks or does.
I thought, along with many other people, that NPR was stupid to fire Juan Williams for announcing to Bill O’Reilly that he is uneasy when he sees people in Muslim garb board a plane on which he is to fly. There may have been many reasons to fire Juan Williams (that he is a hack opinionator is tops on my list) but his commentary, however, stupid, wasn’t among them.
Now, I guess everyone is looking to Rupert to see whether he will make some gesture to pretend that his opinionators are not explicitly right wing republicans. The chances of snowballs surviving in hell comes to mind here.
Perhaps it is time for everyone to quit pretending that the “news” shows on TV (cable or network) are actually presenters of news, i.e. facts and stories about real events intended to inform the public about what is happening around the globe. We know there are shades here, or some kind of spectrum from left to right, with precious little in the middle, of programming about real news events. Mainly however, what we have on “TV news” shows, of whatever stripe, is opinion about what is happening, with the opinion more or less scripted by the owners. On the Faux News Network, the scripting is clear and up front—Rupert instructs his salaried minions what to say, gives them their bullet points and they mouth those points over and over again each hour. With MSNBC, something similar occurs, and the other “news” shows operate along similar lines, although less obviously than either MSNBC, or Rupert.
Let’s just call it a day on “news” shows, and everyone should quit pretending. First, there isn’t nearly enough actual news to warrant the absurd amount of coverage extant. Second, the opinionators are really much, much more annoying than any commercial currently playing on any channel.
Does anyone out there still actually believe anything they hear emanating from the “news” shows, especially but not exclusively the Faux News Network. Maybe we need a new title for these reality TV shows—something like the RUPERT THE MAGNIFICENT NETWORK. That way, we’d know what to expect—truth in advertising??
And elsewhere, The Wall Street Journal has decided that, despite all indications to the contrary, it will continue making believe it is a financial newspaper. hahahahaha . . .