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January 11, 2005
The stacked-deck, split-scream boogie...
John Avlon hopes the cancellation of Crossfire will lead to a reevaluation of "split-scream" journalism. And he believes this is something the American public wants:
There is an untapped market for a real alternative to the split-scream phenomena, a desire for compelling figures who can punch both left and right as equal opportunity offenders-keeping a sense of humor while respecting the audience's intelligence.
I agree, but where's the proof? I don't have any proof either, except for this notion in regard to print journalism: The one thing the newspaper industry hasn't tried in its efforts to retain and gain audience is taking that audience seriously, e.g. giving readers depth over schlock and political utility over entertainment.
Let TV entertain. It's a much better medium for it. And that's why I am not optimistic about the cancellation of the odious Crossfire. TV won't replace it with something more substantive, especially when the audience appears to prefer a species of split-scream even more odious than Crossfire: the stacked-deck split-scream rant, in which one side is always the winner and we know who going in.
Can you imagine watching a sporting even with a predetermined outcome? I'm not talking about an event with a heavy favorite--I'm talking you know the winner because it's been determined before the "contest" event begins.
Well, that appears to me to be the new split-scream model, which means our civic discourse as presented on TV is getting worse and not better.
Posted by acline at January 11, 2005 2:56 PM | | Spotlight