4.26.2005

drink!

When you're too busy to blog, who ya gonna call? ALPF! Here's a funny piece I never would have seen, from a twice-yearly review of Canadian journalism published by students in their final year of J-school at Ryerson University in Toronto.
Is The Comedy Network not doing it for you? Do you like the laughs but wish it had more politics, more current events, more outrageous personalities? Are you okay with lots of yelling, loud music, and flashy graphics? Then I have great news for you; Canada's getting another comedy station: FOX News.
Fox News's special love for Canada has not escaped their notice:
Rose thinks Canadians will tune in out of curiosity and, except for a small, far-right minority, will only keep watching because of the station's entertainment value. He says he can't see FOX News having any kind of impact on Canada's political slant. Adds the Globe's John Doyle: "It's always a mistake to underestimate the shrewdness of Canadian viewers."

Doyle, who frequently travels to the United States and has watched a lot of FOX News programming, recommends that Canadians check out FOX's most popular show, The O'Reilly Factor, hosted by Bill O'Reilly. "Most Canadians will find his views pretty damn funny." He thinks viewers will especially enjoy O'Reilly's hatred for Canada. "He seems to be obsessed with it," Doyle says. In fact, O'Reilly hates Canada -- with its liberal drug laws and gay marriage -- so much that he has threatened to call for America to boycott its northern neighbour.
Don't miss the Bill O'Reilly Drinking Game!

Allan and I have been known to play drinking games while we watch the Red Sox. We substitute take sips (or maybe gulps) of wine for shots. (Hey, we're old, and we watch baseball every night.) Pre-game, we decide on three of the many over-used expressions from the NESN play-by-play guy to drink on. Can't do this too often, I'd always be asleep by the 7th inning. "Outstanding!"

16 comments:

allan said...

"Down by way of the vino!"

Rognar said...

I don't watch FOX News because I can't justify paying the $2.50 a month it would cost me to get it on my cable package, but I do check out FOX News online every day. I like to know what's being said about Canada down in "Upper Mexico". I have concluded that there is no way Canada will ever get a fair shake from those people. Every time some inconsequential politician, journalist or bureaucrat says something derogatory about the US or the president, it's big news on FOX. But when we do something good for America, like send troops to Afghanistan or take stranded passengers into our homes on 9/11, there is no recognition whatsoever. Screw 'em!

laura k said...

"I have concluded that there is no way Canada will ever get a fair shake from those people."

Canada and everyone else. Fair is not a concern over there.

"Screw 'em!"

I wholeheartedly agree!

sleepybomb said...

i cannot watch fox news without getting a case of screaming migrains! i'd rather stop drinking than to drink and watch fox. and i ain't gonna quit drinking. in fact i haven't turned on that nasty station packed with lying, manipulating bush administration shills in about, i dunno how long has this nightmare been going on now, 5 years? and now they got that airhead biotch coulter on the fux news network. one more reason to avoid like the plague. or a hangover.

laura k said...

Thank you thank you thank you!!

I also never watch that crap - for the same reason I don't stick needles in my eyes.

"That airhead biotch" is often referred to here as "that crazy woman". There are some posts about her somewhere in the archives. Don't forget to visit Stop Ann Coulter.

Anonymous said...

I've never much cared for FOX to begin with ... to me, their news is on the same level as the rest of their programming (The Simpsons being the rare exception, of course).

Is CNN really much better? All they've ever been is a spokesperson for whoever holds office.

Not like the Big 3 are any better. Each has its own corporate obligations. And each has been involved in mega corporate mergers in the past decade. Hard to provide decent war coverage when you're owned partially military suppliers like Westinghouse (CBS) or General Electric (NBC). Gotta be hard to have good coverage on anything that may not sell when owned partially by megamedia Disney (ABC). Mix in the rest of it all and the people are lucky they get any news throughout the hourlong adcast at 6pm.

Either way they are stuck. That is until PBS finds the money to set up some sort of public broadcast a la the BBC or CBC (and find a way to unfreeze hell at the same time).

So I guess it means we're stuck laughing at, rather than learning from, those broadcasts. Some days I wonder just how intentional that is ... you know, the power of the subliminal message amidst the rapidfire imagery ... thinking A Clockwork Orange here ... and the conspiracy theorist in me doesn't think that's too far off.

And I haven't even had a drink yet (only 4:35 here, gotta wait another hour and half)!

laura k said...

Wait a sec. I am the first one to criticize CNN and network news isn't far behind, but come on! Is CNN really much better? YES. A resounding, unqualified yes. Have you seen Fox News? It makes CNN look like NPR.

One might even believe Fox News exists to make CNN look liberal.

I agree network news is woefully lacking, and there's no doubt about the corporate influence that's not supposed to exist. But for my money, the worst of network news is better than the best of CNN. And among the three networks, there are big differences in coverage.

PBS actually does have a news broadcast, has had for decades. It used to be called the MacNeil-Lehrer Report, now it's The News Hour with Jim Lehrer. (Though viewers still obstinately refer to it as MacNeil-Lehrer.) PBS also runs the BBC news, so that's a nice touch.

Now how about that drink? It's tea time here, I'm working on my mug of Irish breakfast, yum.

Rognar said...

CNN is certainly more critical of the current administration than FOX News. For example, Lou Dobbs is always busting Bush's chops over trade policy, illegal immigration and border security.

Anonymous said...

I like Jeff Greenfield on CNN. Some of their anchors are OK, but the cable news channels and the networks are owned by mega corporations who only care about the bottom line. I watch them to get an overview of the news, then look to other media for the real story.

Has everybody entered the Fox News renaming contest? They need a new tagline because "Fair and balanced" just isn't cutting it. Details at the Fox Blocker site (which I learned about from L-girl).

Crabletta

laura k said...

"...but the cable news channels and the networks are owned by mega corporations who only care about the bottom line."

Yup. Profit is profit is profit. News is what fills the space between commercials, it's true. I do think there's a difference between them, if only a matter of degrees.

But your method - the mainstream media to get the headlines, then independent media for the rest of the story - is very wise. My guess is it's what most of the blogosphere does.

I didn't know about the Fox renaming contest! Or else I saw it when I first found that FoxBlocker site and it fell out of my swiss-cheese-like brain. I'll go check it out.

Anonymous said...

Oh do! Do check it out! I want one of us to win. I think I suggested "feral and unbalanced" and "fairly unbalanced." I may have also supplied variations on those two, substituting "imbalanced" for "unbalanced."

The point is that they're awful, horrible people. I check them out sometimes just to see if they're still awful and guess what? They always are. I should find such consistency reassuring, but I just don't.

Case in point - remember that story a few moths back about the family who was murdered in NJ? Fox's intro suggested the murders might have been the result of "Christian persecution." Funny that I didn't hear anyone else mention that possibility - except maybe the Freepers. Religious persecution is a very real danger in some parts of the world, but US Christians being murdered for their beliefs? I doubt it. Come see when you've been thrown to the lions, Bill O'Falafel.

Crabbi

Anonymous said...

ALPF Here..
I actually watched my first few minutes of FOX News at my folks house yesterday... Man it is pretty damn funny, yet scary to think many Americans believe that dribble!!

I'm glad to see the NDP is actually weilding some power on Parliament Hill. Gotta love Canadian politics... When a party with only 19 seats out of 308 gets a say!!

http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=554ba912-738c-4cd2-8f33-6abd95128d79

laura k said...

Crabby: On yeah! I remember "feral and unbalanced" - it's brilliant! I'll check out the contest this weekend. I doubt I can top your entry, but I love your thought about one of our little circle of friends winning the contest.

ALPF: Whoo-hoo! An actual post from you instead of only a link. Very interesting re the NDP, all the power-brokering going on. Parliaments are much more interesting than Congress. I've been following the story with great interest.

Anonymous said...

You're right, I forgot about Jim Lehrer. This age of flash-graphic-news coverage leaves cash-strapped shows like his behind, unfortunately, which is sad because he is quite good. Give PBS a the budget to compete (ie attract viewers with sets and clip montage) and you may have something to inspire hope.

L-Girl, et al, I'm sorry, but you just won't shake me on CNN. Lost faith during the Clinton era with the Monica, Kosovo and OJ sensation-fests. Almost made forget those things were real and not TV-movies-of-the-week. Now they're doing it with MJ and Iraq ... it's like a bad action flick: all sex, explosions and no plot, with the main character emerging a hero no matter what his past. I just can't call that kind of coverage news.

Maybe if they'd pick up Tim Russert, I'd learn to like it a bit. Meet The Press is one of the few television "news-ish/indepth reporting" shows that will take on all sides, and in an intelligent manner (unlike Chris Matthews, for instance). Strange given it's NBC, but hey, I guess miracles do happen.

And yes I have seen FOX News (free on the sat), and yes I laughed hard in between bouts of WTF screech fits. Almost like watching W5 up here ... ugh.

Anonymous said...

ALPF again
We have our own "Ann Coulter" here in Canada...

http://www.torontofreepress.com/2005/marsden042605.htm

----------------------------

Here is another
(I gotta start doing some work)

http://www.macleans.ca/topstories/news/shownews.jsp?content=w042677A

laura k said...

G: Re CNN, I totally, totally agree. You are right. Just plain right.

I guess the difference for me is CNN just kind of runs by me. If I'm on the treadmill at the gym, I can watch it (closed captioned with music on headphones!) and it's just kind of there.

Whereas I can't watch Fox for 10 minutes because of their facsist point of view and all the screaming (visually and vocally).

ALPF: Thanks! Now get some work done. :)