MSNBC, the self-proclaimed cable news network for politics, has a series of hour-long shows devoted to analyzing (and often poking fun at) politicians, issues, and the daily news. They're a mix of serious analysis/commentary and outright entertainment or "politicomedy". Like the neologism? Now keep in mind, a viewer of MSNBC (or any of the other network/cable news shows) must always be aware of exactly where to place the show in question along that frequently fluctuating spectrum running from real journalism, through entertaining and provocative commentary, and finally to news-inspired farce. Let's put NBC's Meet the Press at one end and Jon Stewart's Daily Show at the other. Well, this leaves a lot of room in the middle, and to varying degrees, that's where you'll find many of MSNBC's news programs.
(One important feature of today's news biz that should not go unmentioned: There are certain stories which seem to have the power to disrupt totally the standard continuum. This isn't because of their epoch-making, profound significance; in fact, in a changing world, it seems to concern more their triviality. I'm speaking, of course, of the phenomenon of celebrity. So when it comes to Anna Nicole Smith, Donald Trump, Britney Spears, Don Imus, or Mel Gibson, all bets are off. The force of celebrity is like a black hole to the news biz: nothing can escape its gravitational pull. Even Barbara Walters has been turned into Rosie's lapdog.)
Consider MSNBC's show Countdown with Keith Olbermann. Olbermann knows the magic of wearing many masks. For the most part, he takes a rather lighthearted approach to summarizing current events and can engage in politicomedy with the best of them. His model seems to be David Letterman's well-tested shtick. For example, typical routine is naming "the worst person in the world", a title he often uses to label Bill O'Riley on FOX. And Olbermann is not above orbiting the celebrity black hole -- and seeming to enjoy it!
But, just when you don't expect it, he employs a different mask. Under the heading of making a "special comment", Olbermann becomes possessed by the ghost of Edward R. Murrow. (This tactic is especially fascinating and ironic given the recent movie Good Night and Good Luck which re-affirmed Murrow as a genuine icon.) Sometimes you need to invoke an icon in order to be iconoclastic, and that is precisely Olbermann's game. His special comments have been strikingly serious critiques of President Bush. In particular, Olbermann criticizes Bush for taking political advantage of 9-11 and mismanaging foreign policy, especially the war on terrorism.
Olbermann's performance raises an interesting question: Is there an advantage to cutting and pasting styles in order to communicate more effectively? If cable news has evolved into a continuum (or a mosaic of styles), does it make sense to use everything in the toolbox? I'm not sure about the answer. Olbermann hits the target, but after the next commercial, he'll make a joke about Paris Hilton, and somehow the moment passes...all is right with the world.
I guess what's really at stake here concerns the perception of the viewer, or more precisely, how that perception is (intentionally) crafted by the content and style of the presentation of the news. Olbermann's approach reminds us, even at times confronts us, that we're caught between two worlds: one world is deadly serious (9-11, war, genocide, poverty) and the other world is a farce that feeds off the deadly serious world. There's reality and then there's the dream, the escape from truth. The one can't exist without the other. And so it seems neither can we.
So looking at this little box that lights up with the news each day, we should not be surprised to see the same clashes, tensions, and dualities that we encounter as citizens in the larger box of the global theater. Olbermann is a fellow traveler here. Take a moment to think about your angst, but don't forget to dream and to laugh.
(One important feature of today's news biz that should not go unmentioned: There are certain stories which seem to have the power to disrupt totally the standard continuum. This isn't because of their epoch-making, profound significance; in fact, in a changing world, it seems to concern more their triviality. I'm speaking, of course, of the phenomenon of celebrity. So when it comes to Anna Nicole Smith, Donald Trump, Britney Spears, Don Imus, or Mel Gibson, all bets are off. The force of celebrity is like a black hole to the news biz: nothing can escape its gravitational pull. Even Barbara Walters has been turned into Rosie's lapdog.)
Consider MSNBC's show Countdown with Keith Olbermann. Olbermann knows the magic of wearing many masks. For the most part, he takes a rather lighthearted approach to summarizing current events and can engage in politicomedy with the best of them. His model seems to be David Letterman's well-tested shtick. For example, typical routine is naming "the worst person in the world", a title he often uses to label Bill O'Riley on FOX. And Olbermann is not above orbiting the celebrity black hole -- and seeming to enjoy it!
But, just when you don't expect it, he employs a different mask. Under the heading of making a "special comment", Olbermann becomes possessed by the ghost of Edward R. Murrow. (This tactic is especially fascinating and ironic given the recent movie Good Night and Good Luck which re-affirmed Murrow as a genuine icon.) Sometimes you need to invoke an icon in order to be iconoclastic, and that is precisely Olbermann's game. His special comments have been strikingly serious critiques of President Bush. In particular, Olbermann criticizes Bush for taking political advantage of 9-11 and mismanaging foreign policy, especially the war on terrorism.
Olbermann's performance raises an interesting question: Is there an advantage to cutting and pasting styles in order to communicate more effectively? If cable news has evolved into a continuum (or a mosaic of styles), does it make sense to use everything in the toolbox? I'm not sure about the answer. Olbermann hits the target, but after the next commercial, he'll make a joke about Paris Hilton, and somehow the moment passes...all is right with the world.
I guess what's really at stake here concerns the perception of the viewer, or more precisely, how that perception is (intentionally) crafted by the content and style of the presentation of the news. Olbermann's approach reminds us, even at times confronts us, that we're caught between two worlds: one world is deadly serious (9-11, war, genocide, poverty) and the other world is a farce that feeds off the deadly serious world. There's reality and then there's the dream, the escape from truth. The one can't exist without the other. And so it seems neither can we.
So looking at this little box that lights up with the news each day, we should not be surprised to see the same clashes, tensions, and dualities that we encounter as citizens in the larger box of the global theater. Olbermann is a fellow traveler here. Take a moment to think about your angst, but don't forget to dream and to laugh.
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