Posts Tagged ‘ABC News’

More on Angler: Barton Gellman has been getting great traction for his book, Angler, about Dick Cheney‘s vice presidency. And for good reason. As Tim Rutten quotes in his positive review: “In Cheney’s estimation, a president’s authority was close to absolute within his rightful sphere.”

O.J. And The Media. 2gether 4ever: Rutten has a decidedly less glowing review of how the media have fared since the first O.J. Simpson trial and the way they are conducting themselves now. “There’s nothing to be said about TMZ other than the fact that the people who run it are the informational equivalent of pimps and panderers. But what to make of Entertainment Tonight, which has a reasonable reputation, and of ABC News?”

Google Me Sometime: Google Inc. showed off G1, its iPhone rival, “a mass-market device with a sharp touch screen and slide-out keyboard that brings the experience of mobile Web surfing closer to that of a personal computer.”

Morning Cup of Schadenfreude: Brought to you today by E. Scott Reckard who writes: Suggesting that Broadcom Corp. co-founder Henry Samueli deserves to go to prison, a federal judge Monday rejected a deal with prosecutors that would have given the Orange County billionaire probation for lying to regulators about his role in an alleged $2.2-billion stock-option scam.”

Top That Cup Off For You? Per Michael Rothfeld: “Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who rode into power on a wave of voter angst in the first recall of a California governor, now finds himself a target for removal as his own popularity is declining. The state’s well-financed prison guards union, the California Correctional Peace Officers Assn., is bankrolling a recall effort against Schwarzenegger.”

Another Cup In the Future? We’ll see: “The first test of Sarah Palin, untethered (to the campaign or a prepared text), will come later this week when she sits down with ABC News anchor Charles Gibson for an interview in Alaska. It will air on Thursday’s evening news.”

More on this breaking story. For now, here’s the press release:

Baker Joins E! From Us Weekly, Where He Most Recently Served as Editorial Director for the Magazine’s Web Site, Usmagazine.com

Los Angeles, CA, February 4, 2008 — E! Entertainment, the global leader for entertainment and celebrity news, has hired industry news veteran Ken Baker as Executive News Editor. In this role, Baker is charged with obtaining and reporting entertainment and celebrity news and information for E!’s various news outlets, including E! News, Daily 10, Eonline and E! News Now. The announcement was made today by Jeff Shore, Senior Vice President, Production for E! and Suzanne Kolb, Executive Vice President, Marketing and Communications for E! and Style, to whom Baker will report.

“Ken’s outstanding relationships within the entertainment industry and track record for exceptional reporting make him the perfect addition to our news organization,” said Jeff Shore. “E! is the leader in entertainment news and Ken will play a key role in ensuring we continue to deliver the most reliable, up-to-the-minute entertainment news and information across our E! Everywhere platform 24/7.”

Baker, who holds a master’s degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, got his start as a newsdesk assistant for David Brinkley, Ted Koppel and Sam Donaldson at ABC News in Washington, D.C. After working as a newspaper reporter, Baker entered celebrity journalism as a staff correspondent for People magazine. The author of three books, including his Oprah Winfrey featured memoir Man Made, Baker in 2000 joined Us Weekly, holding the title of Senior Writer, Bureau Chief, West Coast Executive Editor and, most recently, Editorial Director of the magazine’s web site.

Variety’s Michael Learmonth delves into the murky underworld of celebrity interviews, specifically Paris Hilton’s unpaid path to Larry King. Looks like mastermind Kathy Hilton, acting on expensive bad advice from Michael Sitrick, sought to start a bidding war between Barbara Walters and anyone, everyone else. Needless to say, the plan backfired.

ABC News wouldn’t have actually paid for the interview, as that would be wrong. Instead, the show “licenses” photos, home videos, and any other junk the celeb has lying around–Steve Irwin’s widow got such a deal.

As former GMA producer Lisa Sharkey (so aptly named for a morning show booker) said about the Hilton deal gone wrong:

It may change the ability of celebrities to profit from their mistakes.

And we wouldn’t want that.

ABC News (the American Standard of news ) continues on the tabloid trail. FBLA received an email from Natalia Labenskyj alerting us to Ralph Fiennes’ possible sexual addiction. After his romp in an airplane john, he could be either cheeky or compulsive. Dug up from nowhere, sex expert Don Dyson, of Widener University in Chester, Pa. tells us:

The problem that we have is that in the U.S., we judge sexual behavior harshly

Not as harshly as we judge stupid-ass, made-up “news” stories. Maybe Amanda Congdon can dress up as a stewardess and show us exactly what happened.

ABC News is pumping out the “news” stories the way Oscar Meyer makes hotdogs and from the same sort of materials.

Forensic pyschiatrist, Michael Welner, takes some wild guesses with a story headlined:
EXCLUSIVE: What Killed Anna Nicole Smith?
and then works through a list of questions that all seem to be answered by the phrase

accident, suicide or homicide

He also drags in Marilyn Monroe and Ted Binion but leaves out serial dieter Elvis Presley (and with that hair, he must be a fan). And being a well-trained network television expert, he answers the question:

Is it relevant to know about her psychiatric history? Or is that just old news?

Very relevant, according to Dr. Welner, thus leaving the door wide open to further speculations that add to ABC News’ slide into tabloid journalism. Maybe Amanda Congdon can dress up in some Guess jeans and act out some “re-creations” of Smith’s life.