Variety's Brian Lowry writes a great review of John King's new show on CNN, but first, TCG has to vent: WHAT LIBERAL ALIEN PLANET IS CNN ON? WHO BUT LIBERALS THINKS THAT TEDDY KENNEDY'S WIDOW IS NEWSWORTHY? OF ALL THE PEOPLE TO HAVE ON THE PREMIERE OF HIS SHOW, WHY INVITE HER?
I am sure that Mrs. Kennedy--she was Vickie Reggie, good feminist that she was, until recently--is a perfectly nice person, but of all the possibilities, she was hardly the top newsmaker. But to liberals, still carrying the torch for Camelot, 47 years after JFK's death, there's always the occasion to have a good cry over the Kennedy legacy. And CNN is in that category.
That was my review. Now to Lowry's review, which was headlined, "John King, USA:' Oh Magic Wall, Make it Go Away":
“Like his election night reporting, King's show remains overly enamored with "magic wall" gimmickry, as if touch-screen technology is going to impress viewers or convince a younger audience that cable news is hip. Ditto for the cute titles given to various segments ("The Clash," "Play-by-Play") -- which are really just ways to dress up partisan hacks swapping talking points -- or the comedy bit that closed the hour. "We're gonna have a lot of fun on this program," King said. If we want fun, dude, we'll watch "The Daily Show" -- which you seem determined to serve up fodder.”
“King would be more tolerable if his down-to-Earth political reporting was smarter, but it's simply not. The big "get" Monday was an exclusive interview with Ted Kennedy's widow, Vicki Kennedy, which had its moments in the context of the healthcare reform vote. But the highlights pretty much ended there.” . . .
“King replaces Lou Dobbs, who was both controversial and a pompous windbag, triggering protests against the network. But the channel still feels that it has to wrap "news" in what the late basketball coach-turned-commentator Al McGuire used to call "French pastry," and winds up looking foolish in the process.”
“As I've said before, Fox News execs doubtless sleep better at night knowing that CNN's corporate feet are riddled with bullet holes. And those of us who would appreciate a smart alternative on CNN without a clear ideological skew will have to keep looking.”
That's kind of a dig there, at CNN suits, most obviously, Jon Klein. Good thing that Klein has moved on from TV, now that he is taking on Facebook.
