Welcome Back, Me

After a long (and unintended) break from reading magazines and generally living like a normal person, I was looking forward to diving right back in and checking in on what the kids were reading. So far, though, I am regrettably 0 for 2 in the game of Reading Things That Don't Suck.

First was Philip Weiss's pseudointellectual, failed attempt at justifying his either past or future adultery. Second was Emily Gould's over-the-top melodramatic exploration of her personal life while working for Gawker. (Best/worst line: "Instead, though, I kept moving blithely closer to the spoon." And no, it isn't better in context.) I should say that I actually kind of liked what Gould did while she was at Gawker, and I don't begrudge anyone their desire to write about their personal lives online, but look, if you're the kind of person who's going to betray your significant others' privacy, you're going to do it with or without a Typepad account. You may convince Gerald Marzorati that it's all wrapped up in some "larger political or ethical or philosophical concerns," but you're not fooling the rest of us.

Back to my pile of magazines. Here's hoping things get better.

Hiatus?

Er, so it turns out that this really long day I've been experiencing has actually been, like, three weeks. Oops?

But! In a few days, things will appear here again. They will blow your mind.

The Case Against CBS News

Troy Patterson makes a scarily good case for closing the whole division. I can't tell you how television reviewing works, but to be fair, it seems to me that you need to do more than watch a couple episodes (or, in the case of one or two shows, apparently just one) before you slam them.

A few points I would add. First, it's irrelevant to Patterson's argument, but so much of what's wrong with the Evening News is the lousy production. Couric's got a heavy hand in the process -- and maybe she should take more control, though her precarious position at the company makes that pretty much inconceivable -- but she gets more flack than she deserves when you consider how much is attributable to stuff as simple as the awful copy she reads.

Second, if I were to get into the weeds on 60 Minutes, I think you have to note that the show's biggest stories these days involve major interviews with people who've just written some sort of book about Iraq or their experience in the Bush administration. Not only does this involve pretty much zero reporting, but it means that 60 Minutes frequently just functions as an adjunct to people's book tours.

Finally, yes, The Early Show is awful, so much so that it's consistent misfortunes have become a mild source of amusement for me, kind of like watching the Washington Generals get clobbered again and again. But it's all relative. The real question is, Can Patterson make a case that the Today Show and Good Morning America are significantly better -- deeper or more sophisticated -- than CBS's morning show? Highly doubtful.

Cross-Promotion

I love that Rick Stengel's defense against the accusation that Time stole its cover concept from The New Republic is, unashamedly, "No, actually we ripped it off from the NBA." Turns out they take their editorial cues from corporate ads. Much better!

Those Military Analysts

This is a must-read but also, upon brief reflection, not really surprising at all. I lost count a while ago, but this is another item to add to the list of ways in which cable networks have, wittingly or not, been used to disseminate administration propaganda.

Halperin and Davis

I guess instead of writing about McCain campaign manager Rick Davis's shady past as a super-lobbyist, Mark Halperin thought the readers of Time would best be served by a tour of the man's desk. This is the text of the piece, but it doesn't quite give you the flavor of what's in the magazine; you're missing the half-page picture with bubbles identifying, for instance, Davis's three-hole punch. (He punches his own documents sometimes!)

I get that this could be a cute little web video or something, but a full page in the print edition? Really?

Positivity

Yesterday I posted this and this at the other blog, which might lead you to believe I'm pretty negative. Not true!

Unfortunately, it's often easier to write critical items than laudatory posts, so let me take this opportunity to flag a few pieces I've read recently that were actually very good: Garry Wills on Obama and Lincoln; Hendrik Hertzberg on political misspeak; and Brad Plumer on tensions in the labor movement. Read them and learn stuff.

The Proletarian Pose

Joe Scarborough too.