Rocci Fisch

May 31, 2011

SUNDAY MORNING TALKERS

…Candy Crowley devoted her whole State of the Union show on CNN to American war veterans.
…The theme of the show was "Serving Those Who Serve" and featured segments with U.S. Army Gen. Peter Chiarelli; Paul Rieckhoff of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America; Tim Tetz of the American Legion; Sen. Patty Murray of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee; and Dale Beatty of Purple Heart Homes.
…It was a good call and much more effective than just showing "bumper shots" of veterans going into and coming out of commercial breaks or ending the show with taps playing at Arlington National Cemetery, as many of the other Sunday morning shows did.
…The term "MediScare" was used on Fox News Sunday by Byron York of The (Washington) Examiner in discussing Paul Ryan's Republican Medicare plan with show host Chris Wallace and how the Democrats say it would do away with "entitlements" and therefore "scare" seniors about losing their benefits.
…LATER:… On Face the Nation House Majority Leader Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.) used the term again, accusing the Democrats of "MediScare" tactics.
…LEARNED (ON FOX NEWS SUNDAY)…"Taps" consists of 24 musical notes. Former U.S. Marine Tom Day, an advocate for playing live taps at military funerals (buglesacrossamerica.org) – not taped versions placed inside the bugle horn (and run by batteries) to give the impression that it's really being played (which is actually done due to a shortage of professional players ) -- revealed this and was featured as the show's Power Player of the Week.
…This same subject with was repeated Monday on ABC World News (with George Stephanopoulos sitting in for Diane Sawyer) by longtime correspondent Chris Bury, an excellent reporter and writer.
…Wonder who they got the idea from?
…If one (network/newspaper/Web site) does it, they all wind up doing it. The news business is very competitive, you know.
…Every show talked about Sarah Palin's 'One Nation' east coast bus tour and her (somewhat) upstaging of the annual Rolling Thunder motorcycle ride in honor of POWs (Prisoner of War) and MIAs (Missing in Action). (Remember the Vietnam War?)
…Thunder's spokesman Ted Shpak said the group didn't want her there and accused her of staging a publicity stunt.
…Palin dragged young daughter Piper, older daughter and publicity hound Bristol and husband Todd along on the trip. They all seem to have to put up with the mommy/wifey/politician's urge for the spotlight.
…HARKENING BACK.…To the old This Week With David Brinkley program: Christiane Amanpour said at the top of the show on Sunday, "First some late news since the Sunday morning papers." Those were Brinkley's words every morning in the news segment of his trailblazing Sunday morning talk show, which was started in 1981 by the legendary Roone Arledge of ABC Sports and News.
…Immitation the best form of flattery?
…SHE DOESN'T WEAR (CHRISTIAN) LOUBOUTINS. Amanpour had on flat shoes -- not high-priced spiked heels like Oprah Winfrey and Diane Sawyer wear -- in her interview with Republican runner for president Tim Pawlenty which was done in New York. (You could see her feet on the wide shot.)
…In a set-up piece before her sit-down interview with the former governor of Minnesota the two of them walked through the park. Sensible shoes she wore. All the better for a serious and practical news person. She might've slipped on a banana peel or something and that would be dangerous with a pair of _ _ _ _ me pumps on.
…Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, who dropped out of the Republican presidential race, was also interviewed by Amanpour on the program. He had a big rectangular bandage on his forehead right smack in the middle. It was explained that somebody slammed a door on him at the gym.
…Sounds like a rough house out there in Indy.
…New York Times…columnist Tom Friedman was on Fareed Zakaria GPS. He's another one who's always showing up on some talk show or other. He's all over the place.
…NEW FEATURE NOTICED.…On Meet the Press during the last interview segment (in this case, with Sen. Charles Schumer, (D-N.Y.), there appears on the lower-third of the TV screen a "Coming Up" advisory which shows headshots of the members of the show's roundtable discussion and topics (which are scrolled through) that will be discussed later in the program. They looked like ducks in a row.
…Reminded me of what they do on prime-time entertainment programs which show video, for example, down in the bottom of the screen of dancers to promote an upcoming Dancing With the Stars episode.
…The effect looks like Tinkerbell flitting around or something.
…More clutter to sift through that many find annoying.
…"Running for president is not American Idol," said David Brooks of The New York Times, on Meet the Press, in discussing Sarah Palin and whether she will run for president not.
…JUST ASKING.…Do you think Howard Kurtz (CNN's Reliable Sources) could talk any faster? He needs to slow down. The show's not a breaking news program, for crissakes. What's all the rush?
…This week's show covered politics and all the Republicans who are running or who are not running or who might run; then a one-sided segment on Oprah Winfrey (nothing but praise) and the "impact" of her talk show and her no longer doing it and all that baloney about her "living your best life" philosophy; then a nothing interview with a young guy named Chris Licht, the former executive producer of MSNBC's Morning Joe and now newly appointed VP of programming at CBS News, who talked about having a brain hemorrhage and who wrote a book about it (What I Learned When I Almost Died: How a Manic TV Producer Put Down His BlackBerry and Started to Live His Life) – sounds like a blog entry -- ; and finally an interview with CNN anchor Don Lemon who recently 'came out of the closet' and has a book out about it called Transparent.
…Lemon referred to "black box thinking", stereotypical beliefs that black culture and the black community hold which carry a negative connotation of homosexuality.
…Lemon…is very well-spoken.
…When the interview was done Kurtz thanked Lemon and Lemon said, "Thank you, Howie."
…I thought that was a little too familiar. Did Lemon call him that because they know each other and both work for the same network?
…He should have called him Howard.
…INCIDENTAL FACT. During Reliable Sources they advertised the Swivel Store organizer, a plastic shelving unit which fits inside a kitchen cabinet or elsewhere, holds 20 bottles of spices or pills or craft supplies or "garage clutter" and comes assembled. The space saver seems very clever and practical and from the looks of my cabinets I could definitely use one. ($19.99; 1-800-709-1184 or myswivelstore.com).
…John McCain took time out of his Memorial Day weekend to appear on Fox News Sunday and Chris Wallace was very appreciative and thanked him at the end of his segment.
…Another case of 'what Sunday is he never on a talk show?'
…You'd think he was running for president again.
…Harry Smith…substituted for Bob Schieffer on Face the Nation. He seemed uncomfortable at times on the set and looked down and read notes a lot during the interviews.
…Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and her long, curlicue hair was the second guest (Eric Cantor, mentioned above, was on first) on the show from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., and begged to differ with Cantor on the Ryan health care plan.
…NOTED.…She seemed non-committal about all the Republican candidate prospects for the presidential race. I wanted to hear what she thought about the whole bunch.
…UH…I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch) – The Four Tops on Motown Records, 1965.

rocci.fisch@gmail.com

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