Western civilization did not exactly end last night as Katie took to the anchor chair. But the changing of the guard did represent another kind of cultural change.
As of yesterday, network TV has proven it no longer feels the need to pretend that its nightly news broadcast is sober stuff, populated by earnest men and women with serious reporting backgrounds and working blow-dryers.
It was not just Katie’s legs. Or her clothes. Or her unnervingly high-pitched and overmodulated voice, more appropriate for a weather girl in Tampa than a national broadcaster. It was all these things together – and more. —Andrea Peyser —She Looked Like a Little Girl Who Had to Go Potty (New York Post)
Ouch. I’m far too impatient to watch TV news, especially now that I have DSL at home. But blogging this catty critique was irresistable.
Another corner building. Designed and textured. Needs an interior. #blender3d #design #aesthetics #medievalyork #mysteryplay
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And as someone who lives in Tampa, I'll take Katie wearing any color anyday! The women and men covering the weather down here are NOT easy on the eyes! Just adding my own catty 2 cents. :)
The crack about wearing white after labor day was a riot! But I just don't get the mean-spiritedness of the whole Couric attack; seems like a patriarchal backlash to me. All news anchors are flouncy and poofed, even the most macho, so why all the attention? And besides, all of this is a distraction from the CBS buyout of Couric, which simply is crass target marketing: the TODAY SHOW is/was among the most watched TV programs by adult women in the country, aside from Oprah. CBS, the network of retirees and people without a sense of humor, desparately wants them.
I caught the tail end of Couric's debut. She was stiff, true, but it was kind of refreshing and enlivening. If it gets more citizens to watch the news and take a stronger interest in current events and democratic choice-making, even if the package is all watered down nonsense compared to 'real' news like -- what? blogs? the NYT? -- then I'm happy.