Facepalm

We're watching "The Now Milwaukee" on WTMJ and host Steve Chamraz just called Alexander Hamilton a former US President! WTH!! THESE are the people we turn to for information about the world around us. God help America.

TV News is a Joke

From JSOnline's Duane Dudek, commenting on the Slenderman story:

"The crime was "graphic, disturbing and hard to believe," said Meekins, as a WTMJ onscreen headline screamed "Slumber Party Stabbing" and later "Plot to Kill." Reporter Jermont Terry practically leaped off the screen describing the crime and sat on a bicycle while reporting that the victim was discovered by a bicyclist. WISN reporter Christina Palladino prefaced her report by noting "the people I talked to literally have no words" and then interviewed people who used words to speak on camera."

NY Times Magazine

While I'm thinking of it the best magazine in America is the NY Times Magazine (their Sunday supplement). It features intriguing and well written features, quick but insightful interviews, the "Ethicist" column by Chuck Klosterman, style and food coverage, and more. It also comes with a ~$20/month price tag, since you have to buy a Sunday Times to get it. I get my copies from my father, since I'm too cheap to buy a subscription, but it's well worth waiting a week or two to get my hands on an issue. If you've got the moolah, subscribe.

The End of Newsweek as we Know it

Newsweek has announced they will cease print publication on NY Eve after 80 years, publishing in the future only in a digital format.

Oops

Graphic seen on ABC Nightly News w/ Diane Sawyer: 'Choas reigns on Campus' (sic). Sctuff like that didn't happen when Peter Jennings was alive, let me tell ya.

Hypocrisy

2day Entertainment Tonight devoted a long segment to the intrusive & sometimes confrontational nature of papparazi. The example that compelled them to speak out? A cameraman who filmed Maria Shriver despite her request that she be left alone. ET delivered this spiel w/ a straight face & no sign of hypocricy - despite *playing (& presumably paying for) the Shriver vid themselves*. Gotta love the media.

Irresponsible

I think it's appalling that 'legitimate' media outlets like CNN and CBS are using gossip sites like TMZ as official sources and then running pieces with no legitimacy . . do I think Brittany Murphy died of drugs? Probably. But I wouldn't write a headline piece about it just because a quack on TMZ (who didn't know her or work on the case) said it "must have been drugs".