April 22, 2008

A Nomination For The Scariest Quote Of The Year

From the NY Times article "Politicians as Comics: A Sideshow on Pop TV" by Alessandra Stanley, April 22, 2008: "Elitism is to the 2008 campaign as communism was to 1950s politics: a career breaker. And pop TV is the antidote, a free platform to rub shoulders with viewers who only glancingly pay attention to the news. Making nice on a cooking program or game show is the macropopulist equivalent of knocking down pins in a bowling alley in Altoona, Pa., or belting down Crown Royal whiskey in a bar in Crown Point, Ind., only better: the setting, be it Rachael Ray’s kitchen or Howie Mandel’s array of suitcases on “Deal or No Deal,” is as familiar as home to millions of viewers. None of the presidential candidates want to be seen as snooty or overeducated, which must be why on Monday all three provided taped greetings to wrestling fans watching 'WWE Raw' on the USA network." Read the full article It reminded me of the Meet The Press interview with Cosby below, although the connection to the quote above is not perfect. My point is that, to court the first time voters of the next election (a.k.a. the kids Cosby discusses), candidates will be required to align themselves on some level with the increasingly stupid culture which those voters celebrate. Yes, I'm aware that general stupidity and anti-intellectualism are nothing new, but you have to admit that the way they are marketed as something to aspire to is far more powerful than ever before.

2 comments:

stexe said...

I was blown away by our president's surprise appearance on what must be the dumbest game show since "let's make a deal". The irony and insult of the situation is well articulated here.

Lance Ehlers said...

I estimate that we are no more than two game show generations away from Smash TV.