"Clarity" continued...

In Bill Bradley's most recent book, The New American Story, it is reported that in June 2004, CNN, Fox News, NBC, MSNBC, ABC, and CBS collectively ran fifty-five as many stories about Michael Jackson as they did about the genocide in Darfur. In 2004, ABC covered the crisis in Darfur for a total of 18 minutes. These statistics are clear evidence that 24 hours of news is a lot of time, that the news networks have plenty of air time to report the stories their producers feel will draw the biggest audiences in the key demographics.

It's a damn shame.

I believe that the desire to attract the biggest-paying advertisers is what is driving these news networks to report fluff stories -- stories that are supposed to draw the young, middle class consumers that advertisers crave.

I believe that 24 hours of news is too much, that the 24-hour news cycle entices news networks to focus on providing reactions to breaking news, rather than thoughtful analysis of current events. And I believe that unless the way people get their news changes, humanity will continue its movement away from feeling and thoughtfulness and toward numbness and ambivalence.

Two Things

1. On Monday night, former NBA star, senator, and presidential candidate Bill Bradley graced the Daily Show's hot new set with his presence. He was personable, idealistic, honest, and down right inspiring. So inspiring, in fact, that I on Tuesday I went right out and bought his new book, The New American Story. It tells the "old" story, that is, the story that the conservatives have been telling the nation since the mid '60. Then Bradley dissects the story, and piece by piece points out the flaws. I'm already a good bit through it. It is great. I recommend it to all of you, regardless of your political views. It's well written, optimistic, and truth seeps from its pages like jelly from the sides of your PB&J.

2. Kurt Vonnegut passed away last night at the age of 84. He was my favorite writer. He still is. RIP -- and I hope his passing serves as a reminder to everyone to reread (or explore for the first time!) Slaughterhouse Five, Breakfast of Champions, Galapagos, Cat's Cradle, or any of his other masterpieces. His writing has done more for me in terms of providing accessible, understandable perspective on war, environmental destruction, and human nature than a half a dozen high school and college history and sociology courses ever could.

In case you're wondering, the literary connection between these two topics was completely accidental. But see, everything is interrelated!

And on that note, why not include one last piece of literary advice? Check out BookMooch, a revolutionary way of sharing and discovering new books. I've been using it for a few months, and every experience I have had has been stellar. It's a great way to get connected with other literature-loving folks, empty out your bookshelves, collect some new titles, or contribute to worthy charities like Books Through Bars, which provides reading material for incarcerated individuals.