I guess the same question holds for all morning newscasts, but it seems the TODAY show has gone from being a newscast to nothing more than a string of puff pieces tied together with 3 minutes of news at the top of the hour.
I have my television as my alarm clock in the morning and for every half hour, it seems they have almost nothing but segments like “how to pick safe toys for your kids this Christmas season”, “make up tips for the holidays”, “how to make sure your pets stay healthy”, “good dental hygiene is important” - and while all of those stories would make for nice reading at the doctor’s office waiting room, they have nothing whatsoever to do with news as I define news.
I mean, it is not like there is nothing to report on these days - I think there is a war going on somewhere, a bunch of people are running for President, the environment is going to hell in a handbasket (although they did do the North and South Pole stories a few weeks ago that were interesting) and there are other topics like the economy, health insurance, foreclosures, infrastructure, and, and, and…
Is it just me or has the early morning “news” turned into the early morning “Cosmo Magazine” edition of frivolous features?
The show has grown like a cancer to occupy four bloated hours on the schedule. Thankfully, that gives it more time for features on how to avoid cancer and feel less bloated.
Ivylass, how long has it been since you actually watched the Today show?! It’s Meredith and Matt now. Although Mere only does the first two hours (and yes, it -is- currently bloated up to -4- hours - ye gods, that’s way too much!). They tend to keep the “serious” news in the first half hour now (7-7:30 AM EST); beyond that, it seems to be mostly “infotainment” type news. I do like the cooking segments, although often they run out of time and have to fly through the last few dishes. Recipes are usually up on the website at least. Boy, did that butternut squash lasagna look good today, btw!
I was referring to Katie Couric and Brian Williams doing the network evening news…in half an hour.
I’m normally out the door by 7am, so I don’t watch the morning shows, but when I do catch them, it always irritates me that they seem to rush the “guests” through the Shiny New Electronic Toys or Organic Makeup or Tools Women Can Use segments. If you’re not going to devote the time, why have them on at all?
I watched a twenty-minute clip from 1959 or so at (what was then) The Museum of Television and Radio, and I recall the clip containing seven minutes worth of a weather report and eight or nine minutes of the camera being pointed at the audience outside.
Based on that, I’d assume that they’ve always wasted time on puffery.
All the morning big broadcast news have been puffy for quite some time, but every so often they manage to do some real news. Anne Curry went to the actual South Pole last week in ABC’s nod to Green awareness.
To the first part, a huge :smack: from me! laughs You’re right though, they do zip through the national news pretty quickly.
I too am usually out of the house well before 7 AM, so don’t get to see the show very often, but it irks me too that they seem to rush through some segments – particularly the ones that are the most interesting to me! I do get to see the Weekend Today show, though, which is 2 hours on Saturday and only an hour on Sunday, so no overloads at least, but they still rush through some segments.
All the morning “news” shows are pretty bad. I’m a little more familiar with the Today show because that’s the one Mom likes to watch. But I agree, they’re pretty much all either insipid fluff or obvious scaremongering. The only thing that makes Today a little more tolerable for me now is that Katie Couric is gone, but even that move wound up pissing me off because I was actually starting to watch the evening news again when CBS had Bob Schieffer in the chair. (My hatred for Couric could be its own pit thread.) At least I’ve got NewsHour and Countdown for real news during the week.
Puffery, stunts, and concert performances. I gave up on this show awhile ago and switched to watching cable. At least there I know that I can find news or entertainment.
I watch the Today Show each morning. I prefer it over the other morning shows. And while it might be mostly entertainment it does include news, weather, and pieces that are interesting to its viewers. I’m a fan.
Hey, there’s actual news sometimes. Matt Lauer recently interviewed that creepy Peterson guy, not Scott, the new one. Oh, and Today earned it’s keep with that Tom Cruise interview. Matt, Matt, Matt … you’re glib. Priceless.
I don’t know why I bother with TV news anymore. By the time I get up, make coffee, and shave, they’ve finished the 1 minute they devote to real news, and are talking about the dog show that’s coming to town this weekend, or the latest iPod gadget, or some new movie that’s coming out soon. (I’m convinced that they get paid under the table for most of their [del]promotional videos[/del]“news stories.”) I rely on the internet for almost all my news.
Can’t really say I’ve watched the Today show lately but why exactly is it now four hours long? I can’t imagine the affiliates were happy to give up another hour of programming.
Of course there’s a building there. It’s located at 7th Avenue and 44th street on the southeast corner. It’s called Times Square Studios. The studio you can see from the sidewalk is called The Subway for obvious reasons. The main set is upstairs.
I used to shoot G.M.A. While they are about fluffery, there are times when the news department gets a serious interview in. They have the luxury of time in the morning show that the evening news half-hour will never have.
It’s Meredith and Matt now. Although Mere only does the first two hours (and yes, it -is- currently bloated up to -4- hours - ye gods, that’s way too much!). They tend to keep the “serious” news in the first half hour now (7-7:30 AM EST); beyond that, it seems to be mostly “infotainment” type news. I do like the cooking segments, although often they run out of time and have to fly through the last few dishes. 
Recipes are usually up on the website at least. Boy, did that butternut squash lasagna look good today, btw!