NBC Gets Right With President

I was somewhat disgusted by the spectacle of Ann Curry, upon whom I have a slight crush, sucking up to Jenna Bush on the Today Show this morning.

Ann Curry

Ann is a pro, though, a description that also applies to prostitutes, so I shouldn’t have been surprised to hear her say more than once during the “EXCLUSIVE!” interview that she would be so proud of Jenna if she (Ann) were her mother. Ostensibly, Ann said this because Jenna has written a book in which she professes concern for disadvantaged people in Latin America,* but actually it was probably corporate penance required of NBC for allowing Bruce Springsteen to say bad things about Jenna’s dad last Friday.

This, in part, is what he said:

. . . over the past six years we’ve had to add to the American picture: rendition, illegal wiretapping, voter suppression, no habeus corpus, the neglect of that great city New Orleans and its people, an attack on the Constitution. And the loss of our best men and women in a tragic war.

This is a song about things that shouldn’t happen here happening here. So right now we plan to do something about it, we plan to sing about it. I know it’s early (in the morning), but it’s late. So come and join us.

What a dilemma for NBC! The Boss has a new record out and he’ll play in the street for you to promote it (Yay! Big ratings!), but you have to let him talk, and then he goes and shoots off his mouth like that (Boo! Controversy!). There goes your access to the White House. David Gregory never gets called on in a news conference again!

But then two days later Jenna wants to promote her book, and presto! Problem solved! Just have Ann get a lip lock on Jenna’s butt, and fawn over her for not one but two interviews on the same episode of The Today show. I think my link at the top contains video of these extremely sappy interviews, but I’m at work, where there is no such thing as streaming video, so somebody please let me know what you find.
OK, seriously, I understand that these morning talk shows exist primarily for authors and movie stars and political figures to promote their books, movies and selves to us, but really, aren’t you supposed to just toss them softball questions? I mean, come on, Annie — let Jenna promote her own book! You don’t have to do it for her.

Whatever. But congratulations to Springsteen for speaking up the way he did. I’m dismayed that more of us aren’t doing it.

In other aging rock star news, apparently Genesis has gotten back together and staged an elaborate paid rehearsal in Cleveland in preparation for their real shows here in L.A. Check Blue Girl’s blog for many obscure insider observations on this.

_________________________________

*Please note that I do not doubt Jenna’s sincerity. But if she says she’s not running for President, get your “Jenna in 2016” posters ready.

Share this:

12 Replies to “NBC Gets Right With President”

  1. Jenna’s sincerity about what? Despite whatever really mean things I could be tempted to say about her daddy, SHE’S a nothing, a nobody, a puff of smoke in the shape of a female, and how could I EVER give a shit what society asslickers may have to say about her or she to them?! WHAT?

  2. I can kind of see why you have a crush on Annie. But, she’s awfully sappy most of the time with everyone. You’re probably right though that she bent over backwards to get back on track with *the right people — the patriotic people* of the land.

    Blech.

    Good on The Boss for saying what he did. Tom Watson was walking to some shindig that morning and stopped to listen to Bruce play a couple of tunes. (I yelled at Tom here, if you want to read about it.)

    You think my Genesis opinions are obscure? Pshaw! They’re totally mainstream. Even the dork at The Plain Dealer agreed with me. Didn’t you think his write up was lazy and lame? How come he gets that job?

    Are you a Genesis fan, Larry? Even though I didn’t particularly love the show, I wish I could fly out to La-La-Land and see them again. I just love them.

  3. Ron – I don’t doubt that she is sincere in her concern for poor people, or whatever it is she wrote her book about.

    Blue Girl – Ann Curry bent over backwards? Don’t tease me like that! Like all crushes, this is one I have for the Ann Curry in my mind, which may not be the real Ann. The one in my mind typically wears a garter belt under her stylish news anchor suit, and would go along with a fantasy I have involving her, me and the Today Show news desk. Whatever the real Ann Curry was doing with Jenna Bush this morning on TV, I thought it was disgraceful, and all the more so because my fantasy Ann objected strenuously to it, but was coerced by venal producers into such ignominious pandering.

    But yes, your Genesis comments (on your own blog!) seem obscure to me. Just the song titles put me off, as I don’t recognize any of them. It’s hard to think that the soundtrack of your life has absolutely no meaning to someone else, I guess. There is music I thought was as important as oxygen, and most of the people I know today are unaware of it. If these vital works are just recordings that some like, some don’t and some just ignore, then maybe everything is meaningless.

    And speaking of meaningless:

    Justin Timberlake, 26 ($46,000,000)
    Britney Spears, 25 ($150,000,000)
    Beyonce Knowles, 26 ($315,000,000)
    50 Cent, 31 ($440,000,000)

  4. You could tell I was talking to myself?

    lol.

    I don’t live with a Genesis fanatic, so I had to get it out somewhere. And Billy Pilgrim’s just as into them as I am. Or close. I’m not sure anyone is as into them as I am.

    The Skimmer said he was psyched to see so many comments yesterday morning on that post so he could read what everyone had to say about the concert, and he was like, “It was mostly YOU!”

    lol.

    Mr. Bringing Sexy Back is only worth 1/3 of MisFitney?

    Surprising.

  5. My favorite part is when Ann says that although Jenna doesn’t wear a uniform, that being the child of a politician, “is a kind of service.”

    Yeah, be careful Ann, equating being a famous kid with being shot at in Iraq.

  6. vikkitikkitavi – You’re right – that takes the sucking up, which is irritating, to the level of “stoopid,” “obsequious,” and “disgusting.” As I said in my post, Ann is a pro, which, in television, means she’ll do anything.

    But this is really throwing cold water on my… crush.

  7. Bruce did/said that? Good on him! I have the new CD (yes, the day it was released, thanks to a friend who works closer to a CD store than I do) and will listen to it today. And! I have a ticket for one of the concerts in my fair city in two weeks. He rocks my world, always has. And I love that he isn’t shutting up about politics.

  8. Narya – Springsteen followed my protest song lead in 2005 with his Pete Seeger album. Now, like me, he returns to the stage and his musical roots. Of course, his return is somewhat more triumphant than mine, but copycat nonetheless.

    But I’m thankful that guys like him and Neil Young (to name but two) are using their bully pulpits.

  9. I listened yesterday (nearly twice), and it rocks. Almost time for me to prepare for the concert. Which (I can’t believe I’m admitting this) I do by lining up all his albums on my iPod in a single playlist and playing them in order (though I leave out some of Lucky Touch) and/or finding some playlists from concerts in cities before mine and lining up the tracks on a playlist. Because I am an incredible dork.

  10. I can totally relate to your Ann Crush, Larry. Is funny, but I’ve not seen a minute of the Today show in years, then that morning I happened to turn it on. It returned the favor for about 2 seconds, ’til I way too quickly caught the drift of the interview. {ugh!}

    Ya know, whenever you hear some snot-nosed kid, even a likable one! (which Jenna isn’t, IMO), saying how good they are and, thus, how good their parents are, you’ve just gotta figure that they’re really the worst, and unfortunately all too common, kind of human being; one who doesn’t know what the hekk Good actually is.

    None the.., thanks for the image of Ann’s lips locked onto snotty’s arse. The worst of me really liked that a lot!

    ;-}

Comments are closed.