white house
Was President Bush a good television President? -- VIDEO
Now, before you raise your pitchforks in a move to skewer me as a "liberal journalist," I just want to clarify what this item will be about. This is not an article about the job President Bush has done over the last eight years. You all have your differing opinions (which should be vented on politically-based sites) about how good or bad he did when it comes to policy. What I am going to talk about here is more of an image issue than a job performance one. We good? Good!
I'm going to ask a simple question: Was George W. Bush a good television President? Let's face it, the way that any famous person, whether they be Hollywood star or politician, is prepped for the TV cameras can make or break that person. Take the example of the Kennedy-Nixon televised debate in 1960. While many people have said that Nixon 'won' the debate on his statements, they also say that the way he looked in front of the cameras made voters uneasy about him and, eventually, cost him the election.
NBC settles on David Gregory for Meet the Press
They passed the torch on NBC yesterday. After weeks of speculation, it wasn't either Ted Koppel or Rachel Maddow that received the choice assignment. Nope. It's David Gregory who'll take over Meet the Press -- effective immediately. On Sunday morning's broadcast, interim host and NBC anchorman emeritus Tom Brokaw made it official by officially letting the world know it was a done deal by presenting Gregory on air. Apparently, some at NBC were miffed that this information was leaked last week, spoiling the big surprise today, but really, there wasn't much suspense. Joel wrote about it. The selection of David Gregory is a safe, solid and somewhat staid choice.
Election Night: Fox News (Part 1)

FOX NEWS - AMERICA'S ELECTION HQ. Not dramatic enough? Maybe we could spruce it up a bit. "Fox News - For Election Coverage that's Guaranteed Right!" Even some of their analysts were reluctant to think that the country could go to the left of center.
Fox News Channel is a part of the new media, running streams of election data along the bottom, including a static corner box tracking projected electoral votes. We get two different bits of election data next to that, changing about every 7 seconds. Above that is an Alert bar with text data "Fox News Projects John McCain has won Kentucky." And, of course, they kept it scrolling through the commercials, too.
Streisand and Freeman among 2008 Kennedy Center Honorees
When I read the release today announcing the artists who will receive the 2008 Kennedy Center Honors -- actress/singer/director Barbra Streisand, actor Morgan Freeman, singer George Jones, choreographer Twyla Tharp, and musicians Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey of The Who -- my first reaction was, "It's about time!" That was mostly about Barbra Streisand finally being named. Streisand, who's been recognized with every major show business award (two Oscars, multiple Emmys and Grammys, a special Tony, Peabody awards, an AFI, more Golden Globes and any other performer, and lots more) has been overdue for this one. It's been a glaring omission in her resume. Of course, the catch with the Kennedy Center is that you have to be there to get it.
Truth: Impossible - Chef Robert Irvine caught in a web of lies
You'd think by now that people would know better. Embellishing a resume, adding credits that are the work of a vivid imagination rather than hard work... they're bound to be unearthed someday. Especially if you're a success. The latest prevaricator caught in a series of lies is Food Network's British chef Robert Irvine. In a scathing expose by the St. Petersburg Times, the star of Dinner: Impossible, has been caught with egg on his face. Make that more like egg salad. Multiple claims by Irvine, including creating Princess Diana's wedding cake, cooking for White House dinners, being knighted by the queen, and more, have turned out to be tall tales.Lil' Bush -- An early look
Lil' Bush debuts on Comedy Central tomorrow night, June 13, at 10:30 p.m. This is an early review.
I've mentioned before that, outside of South Park and the occasional rerun of Duckman and The Critic at 4:00 a.m., Comedy Central hasn't offered much in the way of animated programs. No offense to fans of Drawn Together, but I've always found it cloying and grating. Freak Show, which I cut a bit more slack because it was made by comedic folks I admired, was still not as good as it should have been.
Frontline investigates the press in the march to war
Back in 2003, were you wondering why the mass media was beating the drum to war in Iraq? I sure as hell was. I was so confused as to why Tom Brokaw would go on David Letterman and advocate a war, and I was stumped as to why the New York Times continued to plaster reasons for war all over its front pages.Frontline is going to explain it all in a four-part investigative series that I cannot wait to see. Starting next Tuesday (Feb. 13th), the PBS program will investigate the way the Bush White House planted confidential tips in the media and then used subsequent media stories as evidence that America had no choice but to invade Iraq. The first hour "untangles the snarl of events" that show how the Bush administration won approval for the war from the public and the media. The second half of the program, on Feb. 20th, investigates just how much the press can reveal about the government's "war on terror" without putting the nation's security in jeopardy. The other two hours, on Feb. 27th and March 27th, look at the future of journalism in the U.S. and at journalism around the world.
The Daily Show: February 5, 2007
"Am I Hot Or Not?": The high-pitched voice gave me a good chuckle. I'd like to imagine that Punxsutawney Phil is really thinking all that in his little groundhog head. "I speak the truuuuth!" Oh, and The Daily Show is really pushing those Jimmy Dean Chocolate Chip Pancakes & Sausage On A Stick jokes. I'm starting to wonder if they're getting paid by Jimmy Dean to advertise that "food" by pretending to hate it... when, in fact, it's delicious and addictive. Senior White House Correspondent Dan Bakkedahl also stopped by to say something. My ears tuned out because, as of late, Bakkedahl-talk sounds like Peanuts adults... but less funny.The Daily Show: January 22, 2006
With the aid of Roget's monosaurus (ha!), Bush has prepared yet another stirring State of the Union! That montage of the president's past addresses was amazing. And by "amazing", I mean "kind of depressing".Senior Political Analyst Jason Jones talked about what Bush meant about the average American's sacrifice: peace of mind. When that robot unexpectedly turned around and started talking, I was surprised that Jones didn't know what to do. The Daily Show should hold improv workshopping for all of their correspondents, heh.
To boldly go where no (congress) man has gone before - VIDEO
There's an episode from the fourth season of The West Wing where a temp work comes in to work in Josh's office, and she's wearing a Star Trek pin. Donna notices it and tells Josh, and Josh tells the worker that she can't wear it while she's working in the White House. The woman doesn't understand and gets upset. At the end of the episode, Josh explains to the woman that he's a Star Trek fan, too, and he'll even try to get a Star Trek holiday declared by the government. But while she's working there, she can't wear it, and the woman understands.
I thought of that while watching the video after the jump. It's from January 10, and shows Congressman David Wu (D-Oregon) talking about the war and how the people in the White House are Klingons, not logical Vulcans. But they're not like the "real" Klingons of Star Trek, because they've never fought a real battle.
As he warns: "Don't let faux Klingons send real Americans to war!" There's a bumper sticker waiting to be made
On the 1st day of Festivus, TV gave to me
... a great TV momentI remember. It was the evening of April 29th, and I had opted out of attending a major social event to watch, of all things, C-SPAN. Honestly, it felt a little pathetic. Well, not "a little". It felt really pathetic. Little did I know that I, sitting in front of the television with my laptop resting on my tacky pajama bottoms, would soon be witnessing something remarkable.
The Daily Show: December 6, 2006
"Majority Power": There was a little more talk about Bob Gates' confirmation hearing ("You had us at 'We're losing'!"). I failed to pay much attention because I kept staring at Jon's disturbingly skinny tie. Yes yes, minor things like that still bother me. Jon used to look so sharp!Yuletide War Correspondent John Oliver talked about another war we're fighting... the War on Christmas. Well, folks, it's all over, because Wal-Mart is going to start saying "Merry Christmas" again. Oliver and Santa could have gotten into that kiss so much more. I watch The Daily Show for hot correspondent-on-holiday figure action, so y'better not disappoint me. Sideline Correspondent Rob Riggle also popped up... not in front of a green screen, surprisingly. I snorted really loudly when he called that guy Moshe Goldstein.
DVD Review: The West Wing - The Complete Series
I was trying to figure out how to review this set. Should I even mention how great the series is (brilliant cast, brilliant writing, brilliant direction, blah, blah, blah)? And then I figured, no, I'm not going to review certain episodes or the series as a whole. Everyone knows how good the show was, and if you're a fan you already know all that stuff, so you really want to know how the rest of the set is and if it's worth upgrading from the individual sets to this new set.Real Time With Bill Maher preview - VIDEO
Tonight's episode of HBO's Real Time With Bill Maher will air live from Washington, D.C. His guests will be National security expert Richard Clarke, Robin Williams, MSNBC's Chris Matthews, Florida Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, and Senator Lincoln Chafee. We know they'll touch on all of the topics in the news this week (the war in Iraq, Mark Foley, next month's elections), but Maher ends the show with a special D.C.-centric set of "New Rules," his very funny (but often wise) series of observations about, well, just about everything. Check out a special preview video of Maher's D.C. rules after the jump.My favorite line, about certain Republicans: "I know it's D.C. and I know it's hard out there for a blimp, but it's time to come to grips with the fact that there's only one woman in town who finds you two attractive, and she's banging Carville."
The Daily Show: August 8, 2006
BP shut down one of their main pipelines, after finding that it was dangerously corroded (higher gas prices on the horizon, kids). Correspondent Rob Corddry elaborated on the situation, live from Alaska and wearing a hard hat. "I feel a little silly walking around with a shiny dome where my hair should be." Awww. Bald joke. Rob had a little trouble explaining the pipe line so he left it up to Alaska Senator Ted Stevens... "It's a series of tubes!" However, Rob had no problem talking about the sealing process, which involves actual seals. Baby seals, preferably. The baby seals are forced into the holes in the pipe line. Really back-breaking work... Meaning they have to actually break the backs of the seals. The audience reaction to this was really funny, especially to the Photoshopped picture of a baby seal stuck in a pipe line. Big laughs for Rob.TV Squad Hot Topics
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