I haven’t written yet about Friday night’s AC360°, partly because the underlying theme, unplanned as I’m sure it was, was violence. And frankly, I have trouble saying much about it other than to echo the disgust that civilized human beings feel when others are murdered, raped, beaten, repressed, silenced, etc., etc.
I know that, unfortunately, there will be other times when this is appropriate to say, but I am comforted only in the thought that a sub-human like Chester Arthur Stiles will be judged accordingly in terms of eternity. There is insufficient punishment for him here on Earth. Enough said ...
On to other topics ... I applaud Jayann and Dave Sepich for their tireless efforts to pass “Katie’s Law” in all 50 states, in honor of their daughter, Katie Sepich. The law would mandate that a DNA sample be collected from suspects arrested for violent crimes. Not doing this almost seems like a “crime” in and of itself. And if the individual is cleared, purge the information – after it’s been cross-checked for matches with any other crimes. How much intelligence does it take to figure out that simple of a crime-fighting technique?
It’s sad to hear about the receding of the Great Lakes – especially after having lived near the shoreline of one of them for a few years. Another symptom – however minor it may seem – in the growing list of changes taking place due to global warming.
But Friday’s program ended with a not-so-serious subject – inclusion in the Guinness Book of World Records – by someone running through as many plate glass window panes in a one-minute time span as possible. Say what?? Do you really want to keep risking the condition of your skull, spine, vertebrae, and other body parts to have your name appear in a book for some wild stunt that another lunatic will top in an alarmingly short period of time? I guess so ...
And one small “OT” note – if you have HBO, please watch (at least) the first 15 minutes of this week’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” – no, not for the monologue (although this week’s was pretty good) – but for the interview that Bill does with filmmaker Ken Burns. Ken’s latest documentary, “The War”, debuted on PBS this past week and will join his other films as a true classic. But it’s his understated, yet incisive and direct, comments about our current war - and other political topics – that shouldn’t be missed.
That’s it for now – if time permits, I’ll write more tomorrow about some other topics that are “on the radar”, as they say ...
Sunday, September 30, 2007
For a Sunday evening ….
Friday, September 28, 2007
“Hey … we’re back … on TV … who knew??”
- From last night’s program:
It seems pretty obvious that Anderson still feels a great attachment to this country, as it was his first international story during the Channel One days ... and it was the time spent in Myanmar (or Burma, as AC still refers to it as) where he realized that journalism was the path he wanted to follow ... (the screen cap below shows Anderson with rebel soldiers on his way into Myanmar ...)
Homeland Insecurity – Let’s face it ... the borders of the United States will remain as porous as they are right now until there is a terrorist attack on US soil that can be concretely traced back to deadly contraband, such as we saw on the video last night, making its way across an uninhabited portion of our border – either north or south – it obviously makes no difference. And what’s the answer? I don’t know – but I sure wish that the multi-billion dollar agency (i.e. – DHS) in charge of finding the answer would do so sooner rather than later ...
Bush and child healthcare – All I want to ask about this topic is this: Did anyone else happen to notice that the sound bytes of him “claiming” to support an expansion of child healthcare were all recorded during the last few months of the 2004 Presidential campaign??? Enough said ...
“Delta Dawn” - where does Anderson come up with this stuff?? BTW – there’s also a version of the song done by Helen Reddy ... if he had come up with that factoid, it would have been a scary moment ...
The “new” commercial breaks – I really do try not to complain very often about programming decisions, mainly because I assume that there are very highly paid (and hopefully experienced) people who are much more qualified that do so – but enough with the thoroughly annoying screen graphics, already ... here’s the list from last night:
- “Back in :60”
- “Back in :60”
- “Very short break”
- “Don’t go away”
- “Don’t touch that dial”
- “They pay our bills ... watch this”
- “Watch this ... it’s short”
- “Very short break”
- “Don’t go away”
If the length of the breaks, or the spacing of the breaks, or the number of breaks, is being experimented with, fine ... but – IMHO – these flashing “reminders” are almost insulting. Anyway – it’s just one person’s perspective ...
And a couple of quick notes for now:
PIP radio promos: (from ICN) - If you listen to a station that carries CNN Radio, you’ll be hearing one-minute promos from Anderson for the upcoming “Planet in Peril” documentary. The promos will air from September 24th until October 19th, and will be posted at the CNNRadio.com web site.
PIP i-reports: Even though this was posted specifically for the “student news” section at CNN.com, I would imagine that any submission with a legitimate question about the “Planet in Peril” documentary would be considered – whether you’re a student or not ...
Elton John Aids Foundation update # 1: (from www.afterelton.com) - The "Enduring Vision" event this past Tuesday evening raised over $2.25 million dollars for AIDS research!!
Elton John Aids Foundation update # 2: (from EW.com) - I've always liked Sharon Osbourne - a woman who genuinely loves someone as, well, different as Ozzy, deserves extra accolades. But after her gushing about the "Enduring Vision" emcee - I can add that: "We agree with you, Shar!!" Here's how it went: One of the night's honorees, Sharon Osbourne, used her time on stage to profess her love for the evening's host, CNN anchor Anderson Cooper. "Anderson Cooper, I love him!" she gushed. Alas, Cooper had already dashed off to host AC360, so he missed the shout-out. You can also check out the link to see a video clip of the Elton/k.d. Lang performance!
Thanks for visiting - updates posted as needed – have a terrific day!
Thursday, September 27, 2007
"Peaks and Valleys" ...
- From last night’s program:
Just a quick thought to start out – last night’s program was a perfect example (for me) of the range of emotions (short-term as they were) that one can go through in an hour’s worth of time ... I found myself frustrated, angry, cheering and disappointed – all in the course of (a little less than) 60 minutes ...
Frustration – why, why, why – hasn’t there been much more done to advance strategic protection for our vulnerable infrastructure – namely – electrical power plants, nuclear power plants (you think?), chemical plants, water treatment plants, incoming port facilities, railways – the list goes on and on ... there have been books written about this topic! Jeanne Meserve presented a very enlightening report about how our power grid system is subject to terror threats.
Anger – why are there still unapproved medications being prescribed – probably as I’m sitting here typing? We can eliminate bagged spinach, tainted pet food and lead-filled toys from store shelves within a relatively short period of time ... so why are there drugs still being manufactured and distributed that haven’t passed FDA inspection - after decades of FDA knowledge of them? I understood the explanation from last night about the issuance of NDC numbers, but there should be a second level of tracking to distinguish and separate the still-experimental level drugs from the ones that are approved!! Yet – whatever is said or whatever systems are corrected at this point – it’ll be hollow consolation to Jacque Gibson White and those in similar circumstances, who have lost loved ones due to this ridiculous lapse in oversight.
Cheering – finally – a Democrat has called out the hypocritical Republicans about their disingenuous indignation over MoveOn.org’s Petraeus advertisement. But why did it take Bill Clinton to do it?? The other part of Anderson’s interview with President Clinton was excellent as well – obviously, the Clinton Global Initiative will be successful for many, many years to come. In addition (courtesy of Bon Jour at the AC360° Yahoo group), Anderson attended the CGI Annual Meeting yesterday and was a featured panel moderator for a discussion of “The Most Effective Strategies For The Most Vulnerable Children”. You can get more info about it here and access Anderson’s CGI bio here.
Disappointment – CNN had been vigorously promoting Christiane Amanpour’s interview with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for several days, only to have it cut down to virtually nothing. The disappointment from both Christiane and Anderson was readily apparent and completely justified. For some twisted reason, maybe it was a form of “payback” towards the US media for what occurred at Columbia? Since he has returned to Iran, am I now allowed to say “good riddance??”
- Question for the day:
How many brain cells does it take to prevent you from smoking a joint when you’re about to be sentenced on federal dog fighting charges?
Answer: Apparently more than Michael Vick has ...
- “Justice Scoreboard”:
Celebrities in jury trials: 4 (Spector, Jackson, Blake, OJ)
Los Angeles Superior Court: 0
And for a little fun – I had no idea that Anderson Cooper was an interpretive dance master – and yet he was rejected – how can that be?? This is from Tuesday night’s Elton John Aids Foundation Gala – “An Enduring Vision” - via the NY Daily News: The evening was emceed by CNN anchor Anderson Cooper, who said he was looking forward to Elton performing with k.d. lang.
"I offered to do some interpretive dance," said Cooper. "But after a brief audition, I was told my services wouldn't be required."
Turning serious, Cooper went on: "I talk to young gay friends in New York, and some of them seem to think the AIDS problem is a thing of the past. The reality is that it's getting worse, not better."
And one more “plug” – the nominations for the “CNN Heroes” recognition will end this coming Sunday, September 30th. Anderson will be hosting an all-star global tribute for the most outstanding viewer-nominated heroes on December 6th. You can access a nomination form via the link here.
Thanks for visiting – updates posted as needed – have a terrific day!
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
“Justice at last …”
** From last night’s program:
I was so glad to hear about the two convictions against Warren Jeffs. Based on the initial tone of reporting when the jury started deliberating, I had doubts. But it was refreshing to hear the jurors, who were interviewed live on 360°, repeat over and over again that they kept referring back to the applicable law in reaching their verdicts. It’s also refreshing to see an important example of the justice system working in the manner that it’s suppose to.
It was good to see Reza Aslan returning to the program – he hasn’t been on in quite awhile. And there aren’t many Middle Eastern analysts that can explain events and relevant background information as precisely as Reza, nor give context as understandably. For example, from last night’s transcript:
COOPER: "Joining me now is Reza Aslan, author of "No God but God".
How did this play internationally? Because, I mean, many Americans found it, you know, satisfaction in seeing the Colombian president -- Columbia's president basically, you know, stick it to Ahmadinejad. But internationally, how did it play?
REZA ASLAN, AUTHOR, "NO GOD BUT GOD": Well, I mean, it played right into Ahmadinejad's hands. I mean, this is exactly what he is so good at doing.
Don't let the, you know, plain clothes and the simple language fool you, Anderson. This guy is very sophisticated in manipulating the media.
And I think that the Columbia address and, particularly the way that Bollinger introduced him which, quite frankly, was inappropriate in many ways, true, yet inappropriate. Really...
COOPER: Why is it inappropriate, because you think it's rude?
ASLAN: Well, for two reasons. One, because it is -- it is rude, and it allowed Ahmadinejad to essentially take the moral high ground by saying, in effect, "In Iran, we don't treat our guests this way."
But secondly, because in referring to him as a dictator, you're giving this man far more credit than he actually deserves. This is a completely powerless person. He's not in charge of the army. He's barely in charge of the budget. He makes no foreign policy decisions whatsoever. He's not part of the intelligence apparatus in Iran. He can't suggest or pass any laws.
He has no power. He's a completely powerless figurehead. And to call him a dictator is really to give him far too much authority.”
And if you have an opportunity, read the book “No God, But God” from Reza – it was highly recommended to me and I agree that it’s well worth the time.
Another book that – maybe surprisingly(??) - seems to be well worth the time is “The Nine” from Jeff Toobin, and we had another very enlightening installment from it last night on the program. I remember the somewhat recent Supreme Court decision about Affirmative Action (and how close the vote was), and what was discussed as far as the future of the Court’s make-up should cause every voter to take notice. The imminent replacement of more than one Justice during the next Presidential term is one of the few “single issue” topics that should serve as at least one measuring tool to determine which candidate should get your vote in November 4, 2008.
I hope that the “Planet in Peril” documentary just completely shreds all of the competition in the ratings, notwithstanding the much greater cause that it serves in so far as providing education and enlightenment of the pressing issues of global warming, species loss, deforestation and overpopulation.
The initial reports last night about Buddhist monks in Myanmar defying government orders against assembly didn’t sound good, and today’s updates about violence against the protesters will probably (or maybe hopefully?) be covered more in depth on tonight’s program, although it already sounds like a full hour!
Thanks for visiting – updates posted as needed – have a terrific day!
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
"War of Words" ...
(I know this is the same as last night's preview, but I think it got pre-empted because of other events. Anderson did specifically mention last night, though, that this segment would air tonight - or at least it would be on the schedule for tonight!)
Before I comment on last night’s program, let me get the not-so-good news out of the way first -
Is this where we say "there's always next year?" Actually, CNN did win one statue last night - for "Outstanding Live Coverage of a Breaking News Story – Long Form" - for their election night coverage, which Anderson co-anchored. The complete list of winners can be found here.
From last night’s program: Until Sunday, I didn’t even know that Iran’s President was scheduled to speak at Columbia University. I knew about the UN speech, which must be allowed, if only due to the fact that we are the home of the United Nations. But to invite him to speak at Columbia, only to have the University president give a less-than-courteous introduction? Therefore, giving Ahmadinejad an even larger platform from which to spread his lies? I agree with last night’s 360° guests – Fawaz Gerges and Karim Sadjadpour – that the “audience” for Ahmadinejad isn’t here in the US – it’s the Muslim countries that are watching how far he can go. And that the animosity expressed within that setting by Peter Bollinger – even as justified as it is – helps to fuel Anti-American sentiment throughout the world.
Anderson also talked with Christiane Amanpour about her upcoming interview with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Wednesday’s 360° - I really enjoy listening to AC and CA (no pun intended with the initials) – you know it will be an intelligent, engaging conversation.
There was an update on the Warren Jeffs trial, and last night they appeared to be close to a verdict. This morning’s news is that one juror has been replaced with an alternate, and deliberations have started all over again.
I’m very pleased that Anderson interviewed Jeff Toobin about “The Nine” last night – on the show – and not just at the Union Square Barnes & Noble earlier in the evening. And unless I misunderstood what was said, there should be another interview “installment” tonight.
Update # 1 - Warren Jeffs found guilty on 2 counts
As reported at 4:25 EDT on The Situation Room, Warren Jeffs has been found guilty on both counts of rape as an accomplice; the sentence for each conviction ranges from 5 years to life in prison. I'm sure this will be covered extensively tonight on AC 360° - stay tuned!
Monday, September 24, 2007
Quick News & Notes for a Monday ...
Today’s Buzz ...
** Tonight on Anderson Cooper 360°:
** OT (sort of) ... Campbell Brown's new program to debut in February ...
When it was first announced that CNN would be debuting Campbell Brown's new show in the 8:00 PM ET time slot in November, and then she'd be off on maternity leave for six weeks starting in December, it seemed a bit odd to me.
So now we have word that her show won't debut until February (timing is everything!), and that "Out in the Open" with Rick Sanchez will continue until that time.
I still somehow don't have a sense that this will end up being a long-term "win" for CNN ... obviously, NBC didn't think that she'd fit in even during a FOURTH hour of Today, so I don't understand what her appeal is for a primetime audience? With all due respect, haven't we been through this scenario before? (Reference: Katie Couric ...) We'll see ... you can read about it here.
** I know that the next YouTube Debate isn’t until November 28th, but time flies ... have you submitted a video question yet? And remember – NO SNOWMEN!! Mitt Romney doesn’t like snowmen. I don’t know what Governor Romney has against snowmen ... but seriously, in one regard – the factoids that you uncover about a candidate through this process are sometimes unsettling, snowmen-phobia notwithstanding, but then again, you want to know them before you cast your vote, right? Because it’s much more important to know that most of the Republican candidates (including Romney) initially tried to weasel out of this debate, citing “scheduling conflicts”, but also - possibly (??) - because they’d have to answer questions directly from constituents who may or may not be supporters – or contributors. Things that you go hmmm ...
However, according to our (highly unscientific) poll question from last week – it’s not going to matter much – as everyone who voted thought that the Democratic nominee will win the 2008 Presidential election!
Thanks for visiting ... updates posted as needed ... have a terrific day!
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Weekly Wrap-Up
The Week's Wrap-Up Buzz ...
From Friday’s AC 360°: It was disappointing, but not totally surprising, to see a report that there was some backlash to the previous day’s rallies for the Jena 6. A noose has absolutely no place anywhere – and it’s not a “prank” – ever. I hope that the belief that civil rights must be protected isn’t deterred by those who – and I’m being very diplomatic here – hold an opposite viewpoint. We, as a society, simply can’t allow regression back into a time of “tolerated” discrimination. I don’t remember who coined this phrase, but it’s one that I find myself referring to more and more these days:
And as for the Jeffs trial, I think I commented on Thursday that I didn’t think there would be a conviction, and after Friday’s report from Gary Tuchman, I’m more certain of that outcome. What a travesty that’ll be.
And what’s the deal with Rudy Giuliani answering a call from his wife during his NRA speech? I think I’m with Soledad O’Brien (who was filling in once again) – it was ‘staged’, although I’d never be able to figure out why? First, it’s just plain rude. And second, as Chris Matthews asked on his weekend show, “Who’s in charge here – Judith or Rudy?” And as a quick aside, Chris also welcomed back Andrew Sullivan as a panelist (yay!) and congratulated him on his recent wedding, as we also did at the AC360° Yahoo group a few weeks ago!
This is my favorite pic from this past week – if you can come up with a winner of a caption, post it on the blog (or you can e-mail it to me directly) - before next weekend – and if it’s extraordinarily funny or witty, I’ll send you a copy of the "25 Hours" Daily News insert from April 2005 with the article entitled, "In The Office with Anderson Cooper":
And – speaking of 25 Hours – if anyone reading the blog is the winner of any of the AC charity auctions from last week – congratulations! And thank you, thank you, thank you - the auctions went much better than I expected – and you’ve helped to support the ACORN Recovery Program in New Orleans!
Just one very quick "OT-type" note - about Thursday night's "Colbert Report" - for those who saw it - will you ever be able to look at a jar of mayonnaise the same way again?? AND - "Barry Whiter"??? Are you serious??? It's all more fun than should be allowed ...
Thanks for visiting – updates will be posted as needed – have a great “rest of the weekend” (or beginning of the week, depending on when you're reading this)!
Friday, September 21, 2007
Maybe Theraflu doesn’t always work??
Today’s Buzz ...
** Tonight on Anderson Cooper 360°:
** From last night’s program: Well, we had an MIA namesake anchor last night, but that’s OK – unless this was pre-planned time off, I would imagine that it’ll be the same tonight, and that’s OK too – colds happen and recovery is needed – so we had Soledad O’Brien filling in! And what a relief to have a comparatively “OJ-free” hour of news ...
Not sure if anyone else was in this situation, but there were “Jena 6” demonstrations even in California yesterday! All very peaceful, I might add – but I guess it’s really sinking in for me as to the extent of this event. I’m debating about whether to blog more about it over the weekend ... but nonetheless, I wish I could have watched more of the “live” coverage. The reports and interviews last night on 360° were good – even though it was mostly “after-the-fact”. If you saw the “Judgment in Jena” SIU report and would like to comment, please feel free to do so. I was able to listen to a few minutes on satellite radio, but I’ll have to check out my recording sometime tomorrow.
A quick “plug” for the upcoming Ken Burns film to debut on PBS this Sunday, September 23rd – “The War”. It’s about World War II and is unique because in all of the battle scenes, dramatic historical footage and photographs are combined with extraordinarily realistic sound effects to give the film a visceral sense of immediacy. Also – in this current day and age where the realities of war have many times been sanitized or ignored in order to advance certain political agendas, this film will hopefully “bring home” the physical and emotional trauma that is inflicted upon those who serve in battle. Check out the PBS web site (here) for more information.
Also – the AC charity auctions on eBay (see Monday’s post for info) will be ending tomorrow (Saturday) – it looks almost like a bidding war on a couple of the items – and I hope it continues – because this is to raise money for the ACORN Recovery Program in New Orleans!
AND – GOOD LUCK to the AC 360° staff this coming Monday night (September 24th) – they’re up for two News & Documentary Emmy awards (Outstanding Live Coverage of a Breaking News Story: Long Form – Sago Mines and Outstanding Individual Achievement in a Craft: Lighting Direction & Scenic Design – High Rise Crash). And Anderson is part of a group nomination in the same category (Outstanding Live Coverage of a Breaking News Story: Long Form – Election Night), and since these are the only two nominations in this category, it’s an automatic CNN win! You can see the full list of nominees here.
Last minute update before posting – Anderson has a busy week ahead – he’ll also be hosting “An Enduring Vision” for the Elton John Aids Foundation on Tuesday night (September 25th) in NYC – you can read more about THAT here as well!!
Thanks for visiting ... updates posted as needed ... have a terrific weekend!
Update # 1
Anderson to be an Edward R. Murrow Award presenter on October 15th ...
From the Radio Online site: The Radio-Television News Directors Association (RTNDA) has confirmed its lineup of presenters to honor the winners of the Edward R. Murrow Awards and the RTNDA/UNITY Awards on October 15 in New York. Awards presenters include: Anderson Cooper, CNN; Natalie Morales, NBC News; David Muir, ABC News; Michele Norris, NPR; and Harry Smith, CBS News.
Among those accepting awards who are expected to make brief remarks are NBC News president Steve Capus, who will accept the network's award for Overall Excellence, and CBS producer Michael Radutsky, who worked with the late Ed Bradley on the Duke Rape Case story for "60 Minutes," which is being honored in the News Documentary category.
RTNDA's Edward R. Murrow Awards, now in its 37th year, honor excellence in electronic journalism. In all, 52 news organizations are being honored with 79 awards out of an initial pool of 3,150 entries from 580 news organizations. You can check out the list of 2007 National Winners here.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
MMMMM …. Theraflu
Today's Buzz ...
** tonight on Anderson Cooper 360°:
Not that being “doped up” on it is any excuse for lapses in judgment of what constitutes a quality news program ...
I don’t think I can say much about last night’s program that hasn’t already been said (by myself or others) ... it had much more repetitive OJ coverage, with the same cast of shady characters, than a lot of people would have preferred ... but they are outweighed by those who tune in for it ... as was even mentioned at one point. Thank heavens for some perspective on this debacle from Jeanne Moos last night!!!
And there was a Jeffs trial update – which is, honestly, another story that got just a bit more air time than I would have preferred. Again - not that it shouldn’t be covered and exposed for what it is, but I keep coming back to the word “proportionally”. That said, it almost sounded like the case against Jeffs isn’t strong enough to produce a conviction, which would be astounding, but juries are completely unpredictable.
Which briefly reminds me – I should correct one portion of my entry from yesterday – the deadlocked Phil Spector jury won’t (yet) be allowed to consider a lesser charge of manslughter, but will be able to hear additional defense and prosecution arguments.
Did anyone watch the Cafferty Files special last night? It was just as enlightening as I anticipated ... good interviews with Senator Hagel (can he be drafted to run for President?) and Whoopi Goldberg – and a concise “reminder” from Candy Crowley’s segment about exactly how next-to-impossible the current two-party political system has made it for a third party to become viable in the United States. That’s just wrong ...
A quick “OT” program note for tonight – Bill Clinton is the guest on The Daily Show, and Jeff Toobin is the guest on The Colbert Report. If you watch TCR, you know that Jeff will be so flummoxed (or laughing so much) by the end of the five minute interview that he won’t know which way is up ...
Back to 360° for a moment – the screen cap below is a little ironic – Anderson is laughing while there’s a picture of OJ in the background ...
And the second news break was too funny – Erica just calls it like she see it - about Marcia Clark and about the thought of an "Anderson makeover" (you go, girl) ...
Update # 1
Anderson has joined the growing list of Benefit Committee members who are working on an event called "Stand Up For Heroes: A Benefit for The Bob Woodruff Family Fund", which will be held on November 7th during the New York Comedy Festival. The event will feature performances by Lewis Black, Bruce Springsteen and Robin Williams. As you probably remember, Bob was severely injured during a roadside bombing while covering the Iraq War in January 2006. The Bob Woodruff Family Fund assists service members injured while serving in the United States Armed Forces. Special emphasis is placed on the "hidden signature injuries" of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan – traumatic brain injury (TBI) and combat stress injuries including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). You can read more about the event, the BWFF and how to donate here.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Another day, another OJ (hour, that is …)
Today's Buzz ...
** tonight on Anderson Cooper 360° (subject to change):
** About last night's program: Considering that there will be probably another 30 – 45 minutes devoted to this topic on tonight’s 360° because of today’s scheduled court appearance, I wanted to further comment on my concerns from yesterday. It’s not that I don’t think this story should be covered – I’d just like to see it done in proportion to the relevance of the other events that arguably should be covered in the course of an hour long news program.
It’s no surprise that this latest saga now has all kinds of questionable characters coming out of woodwork. I’m not an attorney or a police officer, but how could the Las Vegas police grant immunity to someone like Thomas Riccio so soon in the proceedings? And what about this less-than-reputable licensing agent (Mike Gilbert) who helped OJ scam his way into millions of dollars through cash-only memorabilia sales? Wouldn’t it be so ironic at this point if OJ managed to weasel his way out of all of these pending felony charges, only to be finally jailed for tax fraud by the IRS? Wasn’t that the way that gangster Al Capone was finally taken down (if I’m remembering the “Untouchables” movie correctly)?
Anyway – I’m also baffled as to why this “tasered” student is getting so much coverage. I’m hearing that it was all some kind of pre-planned publicity stunt. The tape that keeps getting shown over and over seems suspicious. Oh well – just “don’t taser me, bro” – right??
And justice is once again in the balance – the Phil Spector jury is deadlocked and will now be able to consider a lesser charge of manslaughter.
Remember to watch the Cafferty Files special tonight at 8:00 PM ET!! And tomorrow night at 8:00 PM – check out a new SIU special – “Judgement in Jena” – you can read more about it here – “CNN's Kyra Phillips gets to the heart of a racial crisis gripping a small southern town. A can’t miss hour of justice in black and white.” I know that I wouldn’t have been as aware as I was about this issue as soon as I was – without the 360° coverage – it was one of the first programs to bring this story to light.
And in that same line of thought – Anderson gave what seemed to be a typically humble speech yesterday when accepting the Mickey Leland Humanitarian Award – you can read more about it here – I’ll see if any more can be found – and I know that (relatively) no one will see this, but in response to one item in the speech - without any question whatsoever and without any doubt whatsoever – Anderson’s stories DO make a difference – which is probably why some of us bristle so uncomfortably when he’s obligated to spend inordinate amounts of time on totally and completely useless coverage of, well, too many topics to list here. Enough said (for now) ...
And – not to leave on a completely “down” note – but I’m staging my own tiny protest by posting no screen caps from last night – although I WILL go back and get one of the bears in the hammock for later – they were just too cute!! But here’s one for something that I’m definitely looking forward to!
Thanks for visiting – updates posted as needed – have a terrific day!
Update # 1 - another day, another conference ...
Anderson will be presenting the "Planet in Peril" documentary at the CMJ07 Music Marathon & Film Festival in NYC - it runs from October 16th thru October 20th - here's the CMJ press release and you can read more about the marathon here as well.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
OD on OJ …
Today's Buzz ...
** tonight on Anderson Cooper 360°:
** From last night's program: OK – it’s a little early to be making that kind of pronouncement, but I sense a disturbing trend to this latest criminal saga. I’m still not sure I understand why this story warranted about 45 minutes on 360° last night ... other than the “breaking news” about a third suspect being arrested, I didn’t learn anything new. If someone else did, please feel free to share ...
And Jeff Toobin once again makes a statement that I bristle at – not that he’s wrong (per se), nor can I disagree with it, but it aggravates me to no end. He kept commenting on OJ’s “charm” and “charisma” ... and OJ has the network of friends that (unfortunately) supports that statement. And it’s still beyond my comprehension. Many times, when you see a certain person – sometimes a celebrity – isn’t there a particular descriptive word or two that instant pops into your mind? Well, for me, whenever anyone refers to OJ Simpson – that word is “murderer”. I can’t help it. I still remember waking up on the night of Sunday, June 12, 1994, right at the end of the local 11:00 PM news and hearing the “breaking” report of a possible murder at the home of Nicole Brown Simpson – and having a very bad feeling about whatever had happened.
I’m glad that Anderson interviewed Daniel Petrocelli last night. He has worked so hard for so long to seek some semblance of justice within this mess. And while I disagree with the Goldman family’s decision to publish “If I Did It”, I’m glad that Kim Goldman was interviewed as well.
Anyway ... moving on ... I hope that 360° stays with the plan of updating the McCann story tonight. Especially since Randi Kaye has been working so diligently to gather the latest information – she had a segment shown on AM this morning as well.
Also – I wanted to give a “plug” for the Jack Cafferty special that airs tomorrow night – an hour long version of the Cafferty File segments that he does on The Situation Room each weekday. I like Jack for telling it like it is – there simply isn’t enough of that and there should be so much more. I would much rather see an hour of Jack every night instead of Campbell Brown, but that’s IMHO. I’m also looking forward to reading his new book. You can check out more info about tomorrow’s program here.
Thanks for visiting ... and thank you to everyone who has sent me good wishes about the blog ... updates will be posted as needed ... have a terrific day!
Update # 1
If I had a shred of artistic talent, I could create caricatures as good as this one - courtesy of SuBee and posted at Flickr - you can link to her caricature slideshow (she has one posted of Larry King also) here:
