Aaron Sorkin is taking a beating this week, and it’s probably a well-deserved one. He is, as Cajun Boy writes, a dick of staggering proportions. There’s some part in most of us that wants to stub a cigarette out on his superior goddamn face. His new show is not faring well at all with critics, although I appreciated and enjoyed the pilot, and as I mentioned on Twitter, I would appreciate the “Newsroom” reviews calling Sorkin smug and sanctimonious more if the critics weren’t so smug and sanctimonious about it. There seems to be a race out there by some critics to see who can out-Sorkin Sorkin while reviewing Sorkin’s show. It’s pathetic.
What’s perhaps missing in all the copy devoted to Sorkin’s new show, however, is the importance of what Sorkin is trying to say (reasonable minds can differ on the success of relaying that message), and that’s that news journalism today, well, it blows. Obviously, with 24-hour news networks, with the Internet, and Twitter and Facebook, and f**king push notifications on our phone, news information has never been easier to consume. Honestly, it would take a Herculean effort of obstinance to remain as dumb and uninformed as a lot of people somehow manage to be.
The problem is not with the access and availability of news; it’s the way it’s packaged, force-fed with an agenda attached. People don’t want objectivity in the news; they want their news loaded with an opinion with which they can agree. Take the Supreme Court decision on Arizona’s immigration law, a clear slaughtering of the statute that was nevertheless heralded as a defeat of Obama by Fox News. Because that’s what Fox News viewers wanted to hear. And it’s no better for the left. If Obama’s health care law is struck down tomorrow, I’m sure that MSNBC will find a way to spin it in a positive light for their viewers. They’re not interested in reporting the news; they’re interested in making their viewership happy even if that means bending the truth or making sh*t up.
Meanwhile, CNN — poor dull, bland, CNN with its half-hearted devotion to objectivity — is getting massacred in the ratings. This month, CNN registered its lowest ratings in over 20 years. It’s down 35 percent from last year alone, averaging less than half a million viewers during prime-time (compared to the 1.7 million viewers Fox News receives during prime time). Viewers don’t want bland newsmen like John King (whose primetime show was just cancelled); they want PERSONALITIES. Loud, obnoxious, overbearing, yell-y PERSONALITIES that agree with them. We don’t watch the news to stay informed; we watch the news to have our opinions validated.
If Edward Murrow were alive today, he’d be last in the ratings. Hell, so would Tom Brokaw because Tom Brokaw didn’t yell. He was reasonable, and you know what? Television viewers hate reason, unless of course, reason on that particular day aligns with their political beliefs. And whether you like “Newsroom” or not, hate Sorkin or not, I’m glad that someone is at least addressing the problems with the news media. Who else is going to do it? The news media? They’re too busy fighting for ratings.
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We need a new 9/11 to save CNN
I cannot wrap my brain around how Sorkin is the devil all of the sudden. Like he wasn’t a dick before or that his writing wasn’t holier than thou. Everyone loved it when it was The West Wing or The Social Network.
And if Edward Murrow were alive today, I’d shoot him because he’d be a zombie.
I should say around because alive would mean he’s not a zombie…fuck it. I’m my own worst enemy.
I can’t remember all the things I typed when I was drunk…
Its the Internet. As soon as enough people like something, it sucks. A lack of originiality is a fair criticism of Sorkin’s work — the only thing different about the characters in WW, Sports Night, Studio 60 and Newsroom are their names — but a lot of this criticism feels pulled from the “we cant just enjoy anything” school of thought.
People liked it on the West Wing because well, big things were at stake, and people need to be holier than thou when the country is at stake.
Its annoying when people treat a sports show, a comedy sketch show, or a news show on that level of importance. Its fucking TV.
The media’s reaction to The Newsroom reads like an Onion headline.
“ELITE JOURNALISTS ARE NOT SHALLOW DIPSHITS SAY ELITE JOURNALISTS.”
I copied this off twitter a few days ago, now I can’t figure out who from, but I like it: “I finally figured out how to offend journalists. Become the world’s greatest screenwriter and then do a show about journalism.”
I do believe that has something to do with it too. Those media types don’t seem to like to be dramatized.
Almost as much as internet folks don’t like to be ridiculed in the public stage.
i agree with you Dustin – smug, sanctimonious tv critics are pathetic! unlike your post here, which singlehandedly spells out and solves every single problem with the media in America! nice work!
I think I speak for everyone here when I say we really look forward to another five hundred bitchy comments from you about how much you don’t like this site.
Man, you’re really making the most of your life, aren’t you?
pretty sure i never said i didn’t like the site. i’ve been reading and enjoying it for years. still do in fact!
Oh so then your just another troll…
Who was it that lost their CNN morning show because they actually reported the news and it depressed people? F*cked if I can remember.
Maybe low ratings are badge of honor in this game.
Soledad O’Brien. That’s when I quit watching CNN, after they fired her. There was another guy on at night — pre Anderson Cooper — who was also fired for the same reason. Mild-mannered, really smart, and hell if I can think of his name (NOT LOU DOBBS).
I think she’s back though. She was interviewing that Arizona sheriff the other day about the immigration changes and looked like she wanted to talk to anyone but him.
It’s worse than trying to figure out who coached the Columbus Blue Jackets four years ago.
“here was another guy on at night — pre Anderson Cooper — who was also fired for the same reason.”
Miles O’Brien? He works for Frontline on PBS now and he’s great.
I don’t give a crap about any network’s ratings. I just don’t want to watch a show about news shows. Been done to death.
I want to see a show about a psychic dog detective in Victorian London.
We’ll call it “Jack the Terrier.”
And he can answer back to his dullard human counterpart with quips like “YA THINK!?” or “Don’t be ridiculous Cromwell, everyone likes me!”
Maybe the dog detective’s psychic powers only work when he eats a clue and then shits it out the other end. When his partner asks him how he solved the crime, he can simply say “Alimentary, my dear Watson.”
BOOM. Call Hollywood.
There seems to be a race out there by some critics to see who can out-Sorkin Sorkin while reviewing Sorkin’s show.
Well put. I love that the same critics shitting on the back-and-forth banter were probably splooging their pants over it 10 years ago. I enjoyed the hell out of the Pilot.
The best way to view Sorkin is as a brilliant writer with one glaring weakness: his pretentiousness. It doesn’t hurt most of his stuff, but sometimes he makes things that are too insufferable to sit through. The Newsroom definitely looks like the latter.
That being said, I find I have a natural affinity for just about anyone who is subjected to the interweb’s Two Minutes Hate. Sorkin may be a dick, but he’s really talented dick who has contributed alot to the culture…which is more than I can say for most of the media and the snarky feminists on tumblr.
We want Sorkin on that wall. We need Sorkin on that wall.
Also: Emily Mortimer makes my pants fit funny. Really a classy, underrated beauty.
Cannot have Brokaw without the Letter “L”-
[www.youtube.com]
Or this one:
well, he certainly saved facebook.
This reminded me of Dan Rather on the Daily Show talking about how he basically got fired because he uncovered Dubbya’s AWOL incident when he was in the Air National Guard and CBS didnt want to do the story.
[www.thedailyshow.com]
No he got fired because the story was a hoax.
Supposedly
Doesn’t help that CNN fractured themselves into several stations (Including HLN). Unless the focus was totally different on the offshoots there was no point in splintering your audience.
FOX does benefit from being not so “fair and balanced”. If you want fair and balanced, you can turn to any local or evening news. If you want lopsided, they’re the whole game.
Somehow this is that “Girls” show’s fault. I just know it.
If you watch cable news, I don’t respect your political opinions on principle.
The Newsroom was a decent show built around one spectacular scene. The scene, which they gave away in the preview, is an alarmingly realistic perspective on America. Interestingly enough, it greatly contrasts the America cable news would have you believe exists.
I’m not sure they can build a show around that one scene, but dammit if they aren’t going to try. I would prefer that Sorkin continue to allow the Daily Show to critique cable news, at least it’s funny.
While I agree that news today generally sucks, I have to say it wasn’t that great in the past. It was always biased and always used to push someone’s agenda. The reason we remember guys like Cronkite and Murrow is because they were head and shoulders above everyone else.
There are 3 main differences between then and now:
1) A shit load more sources
2) Much more in your face commercialism (it was always there, it is just in overdrive now)
3) We can see behind the curtain now
CNN is all I really watch >_>
CNN definitely seems to be the middle ground, but what I feel like they are missing is reporting/interviews where some CAN scream and yell, but instead of arguing for a side, just says” that was a bullshit canned response, answer my GD question’ and does it to both sides. Alternatively, they could just show that Crossfire episode where Jon Stewart calls Tucker Carlson a dick on a loop and I’d probably watch that a few times a day.