Lost In The Big Blur

Personally, I don't think it will help her. She's no Katie Couric (though given my connection to NBC News, I've got an obvious bias), and Saturday morning is no launching pad to stardom. CBS was just trying to make a splash by naming her. Molinari and an as-yet-unnamed coanchor will replace cartoons. That means the big winners in this story are American children. Now maybe they'll go outside and play instead of watching more TV.

On the show ""Politically Incorrect,'' host Bill Maher joked that Molinari took the new job because she ""wanted to make a difference.'' That's a deep joke, plumbing the depths of a peculiar Information Age predicament. Appearing on TV is becoming its own political end: I blink, therefore I am; I'm perky, therefore I help people. This is a world where ""communicating'' is more important than what you communicate, where words are mistaken for deeds and images are magically transformed into accomplishments. In preparing for her new job, Molinari canceled all her political appointments and began the process of stripping herself of discernible political views, which are considered unacceptable for an anchor. The reason, of course, is that viewers (read: voters) might object, and ratings (read: polls) might fall. It's all a big blur. End decades of Molinari-family conservatism on Staten Island? Sure, if it means a TV contract.

So my wife, unfortunately, is on to something. Teddy Roosevelt's ""arena,'' with its blood and sweat, can now be found on television. The protagonists are journalists, busy interviewing each other. The politicians are mostly bit players, desperate for self-validating air time, obscure beyond their states. Daniel Webster - call your agent.

© 1997