KENT NINOMIYA
Cellular Phone Scam - Kent Ninomiya
How many cellular phones have you owned in your lifetime? If you're like me you have no idea. When I got my first cell phone in the early 1990's it was the size of a brick, cost $500 and the calls cost 75 cents per minute. I felt cool carrying it around but was afraid to make calls fearing an outrageous bill. Fast forward a decade and a half and cell phones are like pants. Quite literally everyone has them. In fact I don't know a single person past puberty who doesn't have one. The once pricey phones are now given away "free" when you sign a contract and call minutes are conveniently packaged in monthly bundles for you. It would seem that we've made progress with cellular phones... but have we? Sure they're smaller and do cooler things, but we are paying more than we ever realized we would for something nearly all of us didn't have nor need 20 years ago. Cell phones are now a necessity of life. Even the eccentric families who don't have TV's have cell phones. The cellular phone companies realized that the key to raking in money was volume. Like the drug dealer on the corner, they started giving away the phones for "free" knowing you would be back for more and willing to pay for it. You see... cell phones are every bit as addictive as drugs and much harder to quit. You are encouraged to use them more and more with the minute bundles. When you don't think about the minutes that are ticking away, it's easy to forget you're paying extra for the convenience of a cell phone. Before you know it, a family is paying more than one hundred dollars a month on a cell phone bill. Multiply that by, well everybody, and you have a very lucrative business. Now the only thing the cell phone companies have left to do is fight over market share. They fight hard over that too. Once you are on the hook for a contract you can't get out without paying an outrageous penalty. Have you ever noticed that the cell companies push two year contracts but the free or discounted phone they gave you only lasts about a year and a half? It has happened to me and countless others I know more times than we can remember. When you call to complain they tell you the warranty expired at a year but they would be happy to give you a brand new phone... IF you sign a brand new 2 year contract. THIS IS THE SCAM! It is my hypothesis that the phones are deliberately designed to last less than two years so the cellular phone companies can trap you into renewing your contract. What do you think? Kent Ninomiya
Super New Screen - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - Did you see CNN's new touch screen contraption during Super Tuesday coverage? It's pretty cool. More importantly it is an increadibly useful tool. It instantaneously breaks down specific districts with real time numbers of election returns. In the hands of an effective and knowledgeable political broadcaster like John King, it gives viewers valueable insights into the shifting vote counts as they come in. It makes an unprecidented neck and neck Super Tuesday contest even more exciting. There are still a few bugs in the system, but I suspect that has more to do with operator comfort with the technology. Just watch. All the major networks will feature one of these by the general election. Kent Ninomiya
MSN Yahoo Merger - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - The proposed merger of MSN and Yahoo is very good news for the internet world. Yahoo and Google use very different techniques in their searches. You can get very different results from the same search on the two engines. There is a vital need for both to survive lest we become a 100% Googlized culture. That wouldn't benefit any of us. Take the deal Yahoo. Kent Ninomiya
Bad Use of Hi Def - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - Mixed Martial Arts are exploding on the scene. The undisputed king of the genre is the UFC. They deserve to be where they are. They endured while the league struggled with lack of interest, economic viability and lawmakers who wanted to shut them down. Like a true MMA champion they survived it all to thrive. Even though I am a martial arts purist, I confess to enjoying the UFC. I don't watch their reality show because I don't care about the private lives of the fighters, but I like watching these amazing athletes show off their skills. They are professionals and highly trained. Unfortunately, wherever there is success there are cheap imitators. Several inferior leagues have popped up trying to cash in on the UFC's popularity. Some of them are downright sad. For example, I was watching HD Net Friday Fight Night. It was worse than amateur hour. The fighters are pathetically bad. Some are downright fat. They look like they just put down their beer and pried themselves off the couch to fight. Predictably most of the fights last just a few minutes since they have no skills or conditioning. The winners then have the nerve to parade around like they've vanquished Mohammad Ali in his prime. I saw one guy with a 1-6 record win and act like he was the champion of the world. I witnessed another guy with a 6-5 record act like a punk taunting his downed opponant. The worst part about watching it on high definition is that it's crystal clear how pathetic the whole scene is. It made me wish I had an old blurry black and white TV. Kent Ninomiya
Strike Changing TV - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - The two month old Writers Guild of America strike threatens to change every aspect of our media. That includes TV, movies, Internet, and much more. All indications are that both sides are digging in for a long fight. The union would not give exemptions for awards shows like Peoples Choice and Golden Globes. They promise to take a hard line on the Academy Awards next month as well. The studios aren't blinking. They have canceled dozens of writers' contracts suggesting they are willing to concede the fall line up. Ordinarily networks are ordering new shows this month but nothing is happening now. The Directors Guild of America just agreed to a tentative three year contract. The studios hope to hold that over the writers and force them to make concessions on the issue of revenue on digital entertainment. For now neither side is budging and it is laying waste to the industry.
As stockpiled TV shows are drying up, favorite programs are going into annoying reruns or disappearing altogether. Reality shows are becoming more popular and successful. This is tragic for lovers of sitcoms and well written dramas. Nightline is enjoying a ratings resurgence at the expense of late night talk shows that disappeared for a while. Many viewers are turning off the TV for other forms of entertainment. Video game and DVD sales are up. The Internet is seeing a remarkable increase in activity. If this continues for months what will be left of television? That isn't clear, but whatever it is, it will be drastically different than it was before.
When baseball went on strike in 1994 they lost a significant chunk of their fan base. It took MLB a decade to regain fan trust and flourish again. Likewise TV may see changes that take years to undo. It may also lose forever many of the programs and genres that were once adored. The way we entertain ourselves may never be the same again. Kent Ninomiya
Cal Electricity - Kent Ninomiya
Who's the Frontrunner now? - Kent Ninomiya
Should She Lose Her Job? - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - Should someone lose their job and career for saying the wrong thing? Is it right that years of unblemished service be wiped out by a single off hand comment? The answer is... it depends. Last Friday, Golf Channel anchor Kelly Tilghman said young pro golfers trying to catch up to Tiger Woods should "lynch him in a back alley." Naturally this comment sparked outrage since Tiger Woods is part African American. The anger further intensified as Tilghman was allowed to appear on the air all day Saturday as if nothing happened. She issued an on-air apology Sunday and said he apologized directly to Tiger Woods, however she remained on the air that day. The Golf Channel issued a statement saying "we regret if any viewers were offended by Kelly's choice of words."Tiger Woods is apparently taking the high road and not making an issue out of it. Woods' agent is quotes as saying "It is a complete non-issue. Kelly and Tiger are friends. It might have been a poor choice of words, but there was absolutely no ill intent whatsoever."It is entirely reasonable to assume that Tilghman did not mean to offend anyone and is not a racist. It was most likely a slip of the tongue and she did not realize the context of the word "lynch" when she said it. So then, what should be her "punishment" if anything? The Golf Channel is obviously concentrating on intent. Since she has no ill will then it's a simple matter of apologizing. The fact that their viewer base is primarily white and not overall offended by her remark anyway also limits their motivation to dole out any punishment. To some this makes the Golf Channel seem apathetic and racist. Other groups out there are horribly offended and want Tilghman's head. It doesn't matter to them that Woods himself says he's not offended and is willing to drop the matter. They want to make an example out of Tilghman as if punishing her will stop others from making slips of the tongue in the future.I have worked in television for more than 20 years now. Many comments have passed my lips that came out differently than I intended them. When you talk for a living on live television you sometimes say stupid and inadvertently offensive things without realizing it. Is that a punishable offense? One time in San Francisco I was chatting on air with my co anchor about a man who found several stolen Oscar statues in a trash dumpster. His reward for returning them was an invitation to the Academy Awards ceremony in the next day or two. I commented that I hoped he had time to find something nice to wear since the Academy Awards are all about what people are wearing. The man happened to be African American. One viewer was greatly offended by my comment and wrote a letter accusing me of being a blatant racist. He said I claimed African Americans are too poor and stupid to dress themselves. I have quite honestly never had that thought in my life and was not thinking about the man's race at all when making the comment. I was talking about clothes. Despite this the viewer was irate. I personally expressed my regret to the viewer if my comments offended him and explained that I did not mean what he believed I did. It did not satisfy him and he continued to be angry and convinced I was a racist. Nothing I could say or do would satisfy him. He just wanted to be offended.I have also been on the other side of misspoken words. I was hired to be a primary anchor at a television station in Minneapolis and partnered with an African American woman. The general manager who hired me was a visionary. He was willing to create an all minority main anchor team in an overwhelmingly white market. When asked about this, he said when it comes to anchors it didn't matter the color of their skin or the "slant" of their eyes. Columnists and Asian American groups around the country took it upon themselves to be offended by the "slant" comment. Some called for the general manager's firing. They didn't bother to ask me if I was offended. I wasn't. I knew this man to be honorable and brave. He took a huge risk hiring me and was in no way a racist. His words came out wrong. That's all. The story diminished what should have been a hugely positive story about the landmark all minority anchor team in Minnesota. Those who were so offended missed an opportunity to focus on a positive accomplishment by being petty and negative.The bottom line here is that words are powerful, but they're just words. A sum of a person's character and accomplishments can not be reduced to a single inadvertent comment no matter what it is. If there's a pattern of offensive behavior or words, that's different. If it's a single off hand statement then it should be judged in the context under which it is said. Making a big deal about an innocent statement harms the movement for equality. If the mainstream sees minorities as over sensitive and unreasonable then they will ignore legitimate complaints. Likewise, the mainstream needs to understand that offensive comments do harm us all and use these incidents as opportunities to focus on removing them from our lexicon. There is work to do on both sides. Kent Ninomiya
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Hillary Surprise - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - Despite news pundit forecasts of her political demise, Hillary Clinton defies the so-called experts and wins the New Hampshire primary. Her 3% squeeker victory is just the latest dip in this already thrilling roller coaster ride of a primary election season. The swings are amplified by the all news channels making grandiose predictions about outcomes. They were all wrong. The polls predicted a double digit loss to Barack Obama. Political commentators declared that Hillary was on the ropes and had to completely retool her campaign if she wanted to survive. Clinton did retool her message a bit on the day of the New Hampshire primary but it was far from a complete refit of her strategy. The bottom line here is that predicting politics is like predicting the weather. Forcasters are so often wrong that people don't even notice or hold them accountable for their predictions. Now that the race for the Democratic nomination is hot again they will have much more to talk about. They will have much more to get wrong too. Kent Ninomiya
No Win Situation - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - What is an innocent man supposed to sound like? Do we know? If I asked what a guilty man sounds like I'm sure I would get all sorts of answers, but an innocent man is harder to identify. This is the no win situation facing Roger Clemens. No matter what he does he will look and sound guilty to many just because he was accused. This is the gross injustice inflicted by our media culture. While the courts are supposed to assume innocence until guilt is proven, it is the opposite in the media. Public perception is always to assume guilt. The tragedy is that even if a celebrity is later proved to be innocent, people generally don't remember that. Roger Clemens seems to realize that he is ruined no matter what he does. Still he is releasing statements, holding news conferences and suing his accuser. He is doing what he can to clear his name even though he realizes it will never be enough. Celebrity is an unforgiving double edged sword. It will slice you a path to the front of the line then cut you down where you stand. In my career I've witnessed countless lives ruined by unsubstantiated accusations. I do not know if Roger Clemens is guilty or not, but I will strive to give him the benefit of the doubt while due process is observed. I do this even though I know my media colleagues wont. I urge my fellow journalists to consider what they do on a daily basis. Our job as journalists is to uncover the truth and report the facts. Giving false impressions by repeating unproven accusations as fact is wrong. Let's do the right thing. Kent Ninomiya
Oprah vs unions - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - Perhaps the most shocking thing about Barack Obama's Iowa caucus victory is that he did it without the support of major unions. Unions are supposed to be the backbone of Democratic politics. Both Hillary Clinton and John Edwards got union backing. They benefited from union money and manpower yet trailed Obama when the votes were tallied. This is no small feat. It could be an omen of things to come. If Obama does well in New Hampshire without union support a panic among union leaders could follow. Everyone wants to back a winner, especially unions. Support for Clinton and Edwards could quickly shift to Obama. If he could win Iowa with unions working against him, what could he do with unions working for him? Kent Ninomiya
Oprah wins Iowa - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - Barack Obama wins a convincing victory in the Iowa caucuses squashing his closest rival Hillary Clinton down to third behind John Edwards. So how did he do it? No Obama supporter has a higher profile than Oprah Winfrey. Oprah openly endorses Obama giving him valuable air time on her uber popular show. Considering Oprah can make a best seller out of any book she says she read, it's safe to assume she has the potential to make a president out of a guy she says voted for. It demonstrates the unprecedented power wielded by this media Goliath. Oprah started out as a news reporter, moved on to local talk show host, then syndicated goddess. If Obama wins the white house she can add "kingmaker" to the list. Is there any way to quantify the "Oprah factor?" I'm not sure, but there is little doubt that Oprah's support of Obama helped his numbers in Iowa. Let's see what she can do for him in New Hampshire. I will be curious to find out whether there is a direct correlation between Obama appearances on Oprah and his poll numbers. Kent Ninomiya
Iowa caucuses
Kent Ninomiya - It is on! In just a few hours the Iowa caucuses begin. A few hours later we will know who is out of the starting blocks first in the race for the white house. Will it be Clinton or Obama or Edwards? Will it be Romney or Huckabee? Those are the front runners in the polls anyway. Others include New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, Senator Joe Biden of Delaware and Representative Dennis Kucinich of Ohio for the Democrats, and Arizona Senator John McCain, Representative Ron Paul of Texas, former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani for the Republicans are on the ballot. The spinning is already beginning. The winners will declare it a mandate. The runners up will declare victory as well. The losers will declare Iowa irrelevant and bank on New Hampshire next Tuesday. The news media is eager to eat all this up. They are mobilized and ready in Iowa tonight. It's like the playoffs for political reporters. The deck gets reshuffled after the Iowa results are announced and journalists will have a fresh batch of stories to pursue. That's a relief after making stuff up for the past year. This election is also wide open so there is no clear favorite yet. Time to roll up your sleeves and get to work. This should be fun! Kent Ninomiya
the right to say no - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - The media is making a big deal about Chelsea Clinton refusing to grant an interview to a 9 year old girl. I find this completely irresponsible. Chelsea Clinton is not running for President. She has every right to refuse interviews. In fact she never gives interviews and makes that clear to everyone. Granting an interview to this girl would only invite more requests. None of us know what it is like to have a father who was president and a mother running for president. None of us except Chelsea. She has done her best to have a normal life under the most abnormal circumstances. Part of that is denying interviews. There are those who will say she is fair game because she is campaigning for her mother. I would agree if she spoke to other journalists. Chelsea has been consistent in her refusal to talk. She was also very considerate to this little girl and even smiled for this picture. So why demonize her? It is far more tabloid than journalism to suggest Chelsea did anything wrong. Despite what many journalist think it is every one's right to say "no comment." Kent Ninomiya
From Maggie Haberman at the NY Post:
Chelsea Clinton doesn't do interviews, no exceptions - including for a 9-year-old reporter.
Fourth-grader and Scholastic News "kid reporter" Sydney Rieckhoff learned that lesson when she walked up to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's daughter after an campaign event in Iowa.
"Do you think your dad would be a good 'first man' in the White House?" the kid queried over the weekend.
But 27-year-old Chelsea, whose refusal to answer questions has drawn attention on political blogs in recent days, declined to answer.
"I'm sorry, I don't talk to the press and that applies to you, unfortunately. Even though I think you're cute," Chelsea said.
Chelsea has been stumping hard for her mom - but she is adamant about not answering questions.
Sydney's mother, Robyn Rieckhoff, didn't seem dismayed by the brush-off.
"I like [Hillary's] position on family values and health care. And I think it's time we have a female president," she said.
And Sydney, who has interviewed a range of different presidential candidates this election cycle - and even posed for pictures with Bill Clinton - told Fox News she wasn't offended by Chelsea.
"She was extremely nice," she said.
Happy New Year - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - I would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year! I hope your 2008 is fullfilling and fruitful. Let's all treat each other well and work toward peace and harmony. Kent Ninomiya
lists - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - It's that time a year again. The turn of the new year always brings two things to TV. They are: talk of new year resolutions and retrospectives of the previous year. Both inevitably involve lists. Top 10... top 100... etc. These stories appeal to the list makers in all of us as well as tap into the nostalgia we feel when reminded of things we witnessed but forgot about. Even resolutions, which on the surface seem to be forward looking, are really nostalgic. They are way to toss out half hearted promises to correct a previous wrongs. Even an apparent look forward is really a look back. I have another theory about the lists. They are an easy way to fill TV time in a traditionally slow news week. Rehash the file video, do a few man-on-the-street interviews and you have a bunch of fresh looking stories... even if they're not. Don't get me wrong. I don't comdemn the practice. In fact i'm making my lists now. Kent Ninomiya
the importance of context - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya. The assassination of Benazir Bhutto is predictably throwing Afghanistan into turmoil and further destabilizing West Asia. What was not so predictable is the relative apathy demonstrated by network news organizations. None of the big three network news anchors bothered to return from their vacations to cover the assassination and fallout much less travel to the region to field anchor. I can only imagine that they concluded it just wasn't important enough to the American audience. The reality is... the story is important to Americans... they just don't realize it. Few would argue that the war in Iraq impacts us all. We spend billions of our tax dollars there and our soldiers are dying in a conflict with no apparent end. What happens in neighboring Afghanistan impacts Iraq. Any withdraw or peace in Iraq would involve our reluctant friends in Afghanistan. Supporting Benazir Bhutto was our government's attempt to bridge the gap between Pervez Musharraf's hard line authoritarianism and our democratic ideals. The Bush administration hoped to plant a democratic seed in Afghanistan that would take root and someday spread to neighboring Iraq. She was quite literally our only hope. There is no one else of her stature or influence who could have pulled it off. Many of our government's democratic dreams died with Benazir Bhutto. The assassination may have doomed us to a longer and more bloody involvement in the Iraq war. Add to that the mystery of who killed Bhutto and why... and you have a intriguing story that impacts us all. So why didn't the networks dispatch their top dogs to the scene? I believe that it is the job of journalists to put stories in context and explain why people should care. Most Americans believe Benazir Bhutto's assassination has no impact on them. We should help them understand why it does. Kent Ninomiya.
anchoring dangers - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya. On Sunday night a man drove his minivan into the street side studios of WLS-TV during the 10 pm broadcast. No one was hurt but the anchor practically wet his pants when the minivan crashed his show. Police suspect the driver did it intentionally. My surprise isn't that the incident occurred, it's that it hasn't occurred more often. Since the Today show pioneered street side studios decades ago, stations all over the country have tried them. They're fun and allow fans a peak at how the news is put together. However, there are a lot of crazies out there and most of them have access to guns and cars. Considering how close they can get to live television broadcasts and the fame associated with disrupting them, why don't more disturbed people try? I worked for WLS for five years at a time before they installed the ground level studio. Even then we were all very concerned about security. Working the streets of Chicago is a dangerous thing. You drive around in giant vehicles with circle 7's painted on the side. Everyone knows who you are but you don't know who the psychos are. You learn quickly to keep your eyes open for trouble. Security guards at WLS take their jobs seriously and are always ready to deal with troublemakers. As a result incidents are rare, but they can't do much about a car hurling toward the building without warning. So again, I am surprised things like this don't happen more often. Maybe it's time to add cement barriers outside studios similar to the ones around government buildings. Just a suggestion. Kent Ninomiya
Merry Christmas Everyone! - Kent Ninomiya
Since I can't send a Christmas card to everyone, i'd like to use this blog to hand out my best wishes to all of you this holiday season. Thank you all for your support and interest. May you have a happy and fruitful new year as well!
Take care,
Kent Ninomiya
Christmas message - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya. I'd like to pause and take a moment to reflect on this holiday season. As I get older I gain a greater understanding of the importance of Christmas as a family experience. Young adults tend to discard the ritual of family gatherings and togetherness for independence. However, once new children enter the equation the holiday regains it's place. Christmas is all about the children and how their faces light up when they open their gifts. That look is the parents' gift. There are also important lessons in Christmas. Delayed gratification is perhaps the most torturous of the lessons for kids. Waiting to open gifts is both painful and rewarding for them. Gratitude is another lesson. That's a tough one. With the bounty of gifts before them it's hard for children to think about others. They just want the presents. It's the parent's job to link the two together. It's not always an easy task. Of course the most important lesson of all is family. The act of doing everything together is what Christmas is all about. So enjoy the holiday everyone! Merry Christmas! Kent Ninomiya.
Internet fit for a queen - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya. Queen Elizabeth II will give a Christmas Day speech over YouTube. In just two years YouTube has gone from nothing to world wide legitimate communication medium used by royalty. Wow! I remember a few years ago, a general manager telling me that he didn't want to put resources into the station web site because it would compete with our on air product. Huh? What legitimate television station doesn't have a state of the art web site today? In many ways the public didn't take the internet seriously. It has revolutionized the way we exchange information. On the other hand the internet has not taken over our world as many predicted. Remember all those dot com businesses that failed? We are not living our lives on line after all, and the internet did not kill television. Instead it's turning out to be a bridge of convenience. It's something used in tandem to television not as a replacement. These days the internet is seen as a great cross promotion tool. It's more of an interactive link for the one way medium of TV. Who can imagine the ways it will grow from there? Whatever happens it will be unexpected and fast. Kent Ninomiya
(AP) Just call her Queen e-Lizabeth. The 81-year-old British monarch launched her own video site on YouTube Sunday, featuring old news reels and film snippets of daily royal life. Buckingham Palace said Queen Elizabeth II keeps up with new ways of communicating with people and was hoping to reach a wider, and younger, audience through the popular video-sharing Web site.
The palace began posting archive and recent footage of the queen and other royals on the official Royal Channel on YouTube on Sunday, with plans to add new clips regularly.
The queen will use the site to send out her annual televised Christmas message, a tradition that she began 50 years ago.
"The queen always keeps abreast with new ways of communicating with people," Buckingham Palace said in a statement. "She has always been aware of reaching more people and adapting the communication to suit. This will make the Christmas message more accessible to younger people and those in other countries."
The royal page — which bears the scarlet lettered heading "The Royal Channel - The Official Channel of the British Monarchy" — features a picture of Buckingham Palace flanked by the queen's Guards in their trademark tall bearskin hats and red tunics.
Palace officials said the queen's Christmas message this year will urge people to care for the vulnerable and those excluded from society. She will also pay tribute to the sacrifices made by the armed forces.
The queen chooses a different theme for each annual address, the one occasion in the year when she writes her own speech without government advice.
In a preview of this year's speech, the monarch is seen standing in Buckingham Palace, watching black and white footage of herself delivering her first televised broadcast.
Dressed in an apricot colored dress, the queen can be seen walking into the palace's opulent 1844 Room, which is filled with lights and production equipment, and preparing to start her address.
The speech remains confidential until it is aired, both on TV and radio, on Christmas Day.
YouTube, which allows anyone to upload and share video clips, was founded in 2005 and bought by Google last year.
dominos - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya. The dominos are falling in the entertainment industry writers strike as more shows return to the air.
From New York and Richard Huff at the NY Daily News: Jon Stewart's The Daily Show and The Colbert Report return to Comedy Central - Funnymen Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert are going back to work at Comedy Central whether they have writers to come up with jokes or not. "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" and the "Colbert Report" will resume production Jan. 7, the network revealed today.Comedy Central follows NBC's "Tonight Show" with Jay Leno and "Late Night" with Conan O'Brien in announcing they'll go back to work even if the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike remains unsettled.
Kent Ninomiya. This could be just what the negotiations need to get going. It will be interesting to see how funny these guys are without a staff of writers behind them.
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Media circus - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya. Jamie Lynn Spears is not just another teenage girl who got pregnant. She is one of the highest profile teenagers in the public eye and one of the supposedly squeaky clean front people for the Walt Disney Company. As a result, when she proved she was as vulnerable as any other teenager in America our society felt a collective slap in the face. Spears portrayed an image that parents pointed to when they wanted their kids to follow a good example. Disney prides itself as a safe haven for childhood. A revelation like this throws long held beliefs into chaos and Disney scrambling for damage control. Could one unexpected pregnancy do all this? In this age of media power you bet it can. So what happens next? The media will tear Spears apart and micro analyze her every move until the birth and afterwards. There will be an initial negative reaction to her but the anger will subside as people will be morbidly curious about the baby. In the end it may prove the axiom that there is no such thing as bad publicity. Jamie Lynn's sister Brittany has sure had her share of bad press but it only seems to help her career. This may be just the thing to bridge Jamie Lynn's childhood career into adulthood. American media culture is just that warped. What at first seems like a career death blow often turns out to make a career. Kent Ninomiya.
(AP) Nickelodeon is considering a special for its young audience about sex and love following the news that 16-year-old "Zoey 101" star Jamie Lynn Spears is pregnant.The television network has made no announcement about the future of "Zoey 101," its popular program aimed primarily at youngsters aged 9-14. Filming for the show's fourth and final season has finished, and episodes are scheduled to begin airing in February.For the special, Nickelodeon said it's talking with Linda Ellerbee, the veteran newswoman who has stepped in frequently in the past with shows on talking to children about difficult issues in the news. She's done shows about same-sex parents, AIDS, the Columbine shooting and President Clinton's impeachment scandal."I think it's important that something be done," Ellerbee told The Associated Press on Thursday. "But I think it's important that it be done in a measured way, and not just to feed the beast of news stories.A Nickelodeon spokesman, Dan Martinsen, confirmed the discussions but said no decision had been made.Spears, the younger sister of pop star Britney Spears, told the OK! celebrity magazine this week that she was pregnant. The father is her 19-year-old boyfriend, Casey Aldridge. She said she plans to raise the baby in her home state of Louisiana.Nickelodeon has made no comment beyond a supportive statement for its star: "We respect Jamie Lynn's decision to take responsibility in this sensitive and personal situation. We know this is a very difficult time for her and her family, and our primary concern right now is for Jamie Lynn's well being."The company has received a mixed response so far from its viewers, and the news has launched a public discussion about how parents should deal with it."This is a great opportunity for parents at this moment to talk to their kids about this — more important, to listen to their kids about this," Ellerbee said.Rather than focus strictly on Spears, Ellerbee said she's considering producing a broad discussion about how people know they're in love, when is the right time to have sex and what are the value systems of their parents and friends. It could air as soon as next month."Right now what Nick is trying to do — and what I am trying to do — is figure out what is the best thing to do for kids," she said.One television critic, David Hinckley of the New York Daily News, wrote Thursday that to end "this sordid moment" with a lesson, Nickelodeon should pull the plug on "Zoey 101.""If Nickelodeon keeps Jamie Lynn Spears because her product sells, it runs the risk that a valuable message it has spent years crafting could shift from `trust us' to `whatever,'" Hinckley wrote.Although Nick executives are still discussing the future of "Zoey 101," it's considered unlikely that it would shelve the final season. The third season ends Jan. 4 with a cliffhanger episode about whether Spears' character continues to attend a boarding school in California or moves to London with her parents.Executives at Nick's rival Disney Channel public relations crisis this summer when Vanessa Hudgens, the 18-year-old star of its "High School Musical" franchise, posed for nude photos that were leaked to the Internet. Hudgens apologized, Disney stuck by her and the issue quickly faded.
baseball fallout - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya.
The release of the Mitchell report reveals an unfortunate side effect of news. Lives and reputations are tarnished and even permanently destroyed with a single spicy headline. While news organizations move on the next day to the next story, those affected are left to deal with the fallout for years or even the rest of their lives.This happens even when the headline is a mere accusation not supported by any proof or due process of law. This happens to people who have decades of positive accomplishments to their credit and no previous blemishes on their record. This happens to people who are completely innocent of the accusations and have no way to defend themselves other than to say they didn't do it. Of course that doesn't matter in the court of public opinion. In fact, often the more someone denies something the more guilty they look.The public tends to believe what they hear and blindly accept TV news reports as fact. Many Americans still believe Saddam Hussein attacked the United States on 9-11 because it was suggested to them early on. It doesn't matter that subsequent reports contradict this. Many Americans believe Barry Bonds tested positive for steroids and that there is overwhelming evidence of his guilt. This is not true. We still don't know what, if any, solid evidence prosecutors have linking Bonds to steroid use. However, since we have heard so much about Bonds and steroids, people assume his use of them is fact when it is not.Now we have the Mitchell report. Many are wondering why it is being released now since the supposed evidence contained in it is years old and talks about many players long retired. It is suggested that it is more about prosecutors' political agendas rather than cleaning up baseball. Regardless of the motivations, the collateral damage is clear. The Mitchell report names names. Big names. The likes of Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte. The report sites the testimony of a single individual, a trainer who worked with Clemens and Pettitte, who claims to have injected them. Once the report was released and the media reported it, Clemens and Pettitte and everyone else on the list were damaged forever.It doesn't matter that many of them were never accused before of steroid use. It doesn't matter that the individual claiming he injected Clemens and Pettitte is making a deal because he is being prosecuted for crimes himself. It doesn't matter that the accused were never arrested, charged or confronted with any tangible proof they committed a crime. A lifetime of exceptional accomplishments instantly evaporate with a single unsubstantiated accusation. Immediately there is talk in the media of suspensions, bans and rejection from the baseball hall of fame for the accused. Pettitte says he was injected with human growth hormone to help in the healing of an elbow injury, not to improve performance. He says this was done years before MLB banned the substance. If this is true then he did nothing wrong, but will that matter to a public already condemning him?You didn't even have to be on the Mitchell report list to feel the wrath of irresponsible media reports. Albert Pujols was the subject of intense media coverage about alleged steroid use in St Louis where he plays. Never mind that Pujols isn't even on the list. Oops! News outlets can apologize and move on, but the damage is done. Many people will only remember the accusation and assume there is truth to it. It wont matter that a correction was reported later.If it turns out that Bonds, Clemens, and Pettitte are innocent will there be the swarm of media coverage on that equal to that which accused them? Of course not. It will be buried on a back page or B block and no one will remember it anyway. It truly is a shame that our celebrity culture loves to tear down its heroes more than it enjoys lifting them up. Perhaps it makes us feel better about ourselves when the beautiful and famous have bigger problems than we do. Does it pull us up to drag them down? It is sad commentary on the state of our society. Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya thank you
Kent Ninomiya.
Thank you to everyone who wrote to me with words of support. I am back and new posts will appear on my blogs starting tomorrow. Thank you for your backing and patience.
Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya.
I want to thank everyone who wrote to me concerned about my family emergency. I appreciate your words. Just know that it is not a matter of life or death. I am just taking care of some business. My blogs will be updated in the next few days.
Thanks again,
Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya.
I regret to report that due to a family emergency there will be no posts on this blog for the next several days. I apologize for the inconvenience. New posts will be back by next week.
Thanks,
Kent
news challenges - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya.
One of the most difficult challenges in the day to day news grind is making a boring everyday story into something fresh, interesting and new. New programs are produced every day even if nothing happens. Stories must be filed every day even if there's nothing new to tell. It is your job to make it new and interesting. After you've reported a few years a lot of stories will look the same. My least favorite repeating story is the weather. Every station in the country where there's snow sends a reporter to cover the first snow of the season. At least one that is, often it's team coverage. Reporters are sent to the hardware store to interview people buying snow shovels even though most people already have shovels. Reporters are sent to supermarkets to witness people stocking up on food even though they never do. Reporters are sent to the mechanics to inform people how to winterize their cars even though the only thing they say is change your oil and tires. Viewers roll their eyes at weather coverage. So why do we do it? Because it's easy and we're lazy. If you want to be a truly great reporter you must take this boring story that's been dumped in your lap and make it live. Tell people something they really want to know like if there's a shortage of snow blowers or how long they'll have to wait to get their repaired. Find an interesting angle like student drivers trying to get their licenses during bad weather. Provide some news you can use like how commute times are impacted or where the most accidents are in bad weather. It's up to you to make your story stand out. Don't just phone it in. Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya
dealing with tragedy - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya. An unexpected obstacle that young journalists face is the difficulty dealing with tragedy close up. Everyone has a different tolerance for this. In general the more sheltered a childhood you had the more arduous this process will be. It is quite a bit different seeing a murder victim in person than it is on TV. You can't just turn down the volume of a screaming mother anguished over the death of her child. The smell of death and the taste of violence linger with you long after you leave a scene. Young journalists must be prepared for this. TV news is not all glammor and nice hair. We seek out tragedy. If you can't handle this you should do something else. I know many people who left the business for percisely this reason. They took the tragedy home with them and it ate them up inside. If you can't leave it at work then it will consume you.
A man opened fire yesterday at an Omaha mall killing 8 people. On the surface this may appear to be a big story. The sad truth is that events like this are somewhat commonplace in America. They are so common that most of us who don't live in Omaha will forget it ever happened in a few weeks. It's so common that I couldn't tell you how many stories like that I've covered in my career. Is it 40, 50 , 100? I have no idea. Mass shootings are all about the body count. Virginia Tech was a big deal because so many people died. This Omaha mall shooting was barely noticed. Does that make the deaths any less tragic? Of course not, but media attention devoted to the event is directly proportional to the body count.There was a mass shooting I covered in Los Angeles I remember well. A man walked into a grocery store and shot up the place before killing himself. When police went to his apartment they found his dead parents on the bed. Apparently he murdered them two years earlier and left them there. He told neighbors they moved away and nobody bothered to check. I have no idea why they didn't smell the bodies. By the time the cops got there the parents were skeletons. I remember this story so vividly because of the sordid details, not because of the people who died in the supermarket. It's unfortunate but true.
Kent Ninomiya
big stars big money - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya. Here's an article that is bound to make you wonder why you're wasting your life doing what you're doing. Forbes released their list of the top money makers 25 years old or younger: In addition to his collection of All-Star MVP and Rookie of the Year titles, LeBron James, the likable forward for the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers, can cram another honorific on his crowded mantelpiece. King James -- as he is known by his army of fans -- tops Forbes' 20 Under 25 list of the Top-Earning Young Superstars, thanks to the $27 million he banked between June 2006 and June 2007. That paycheck could be the low-end of James' earning potential. James, who turns 23 on Dec. 30, is primed to outpace Los Angeles Laker Kobe Bryant, 29, as the highest-paid player in the NBA this year, thanks to a rich new four-year $60 million contract that has the Cavs paying him $13 million his first year. Endorsement deals with Nike, Coca-Cola and Upper Deck, among others, easily eclipse his on-court salary. Those kinds of lucrative endorsement deals landed athletes in the top four slots of the 20 Under 25 list. Reggie Bush, 22-year-old running back for the NFL's New Orleans Saints, nabbed the No. 2 spot with $24 million, followed by comely tennis ace Maria Sharapova, who pocketed $23 million (only $3.8 million from winnings). The world's highest-paid female athlete, Sharapova edges out golf phenom Michelle Wie, who occupies the No. 4 spot with $19 million. Rounding out the top five are former kid stars turned boho fashion icons Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, who earn $17 million apiece, largely from their 'tween merchandise empire Dualstar. The petite duo parlayed their instant fame as child stars on ABC's late '80s hit series "Full House" to peddle straight-to-video kid flicks and tchockes to their loyal fanbase. That operation matured into a massive retail venture with billion-dollar annual sales that peddles $12 jumpers at Wal-Mart to $795 leopard print coats at Neiman Marcus. Forbes' 20 Under 25 list of the Top-Earning Young Superstars examined earnings from June 2006 to June 2007. We included salaries, winnings, endorsement deals and royalties. No deductions were taken for taxes or management fees. Two of the list members aren't old enough to vote. Thirteen-year-old actress Dakota Fanning banked $4 million, and commands as much as $3 million for major films. Disney's Hannah Montana star Miley Cyrus, 15, earned $3.5 million on the heels of a successful new album. (She's poised to make much more now that her tour, which kicked off in November, has become the hot concert ticket of the year.) The top-earning actor on the list, "Harry Potter" alter-ego Daniel Radcliffe, 18, earned $15 million. That's more than performers twice his age, like Jennifer Aniston and Sandra Bullock, who earned $14 million and $10 million, respectively, made over the same period. The Potter franchise catapulted Radcliffe's co-stars Emma Watson and Rupert Grint to the list with $4 million apiece. This summer's fifth installment, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," was the second highest-grossing film of the year (edged out by "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End"), raking in $938 million worldwide. The trio are already filming the follow-up, "Half-Blood Prince." Singers Avril Lavigne ($12 million) and Carrie Underwood ($7 million) made the cut on the heels of their mega-successful album releases. Lavigne scored a massive international hit with "Girlfriend," the first single off her album "The Best Damn Thing," which she recorded in eight different languages. And though Underwood, the fourth season winner of "American Idol," debuted "Some Hearts" back in 2005, the album demonstrated serious staying power on both the country and pop charts. Troubled actress Lindsay Lohan eked out a spot on the list, having earned $3.5 million largely from roles in middling films like "Georgia Rule" and "I Know Who Killed Me," plus print campaigns with Miu Miu and Jill Stuart before her latest stint in rehab. The question of Lohan's current insurability has no doubt dampened her earning potential going forward. Regardless, the larger question remains: With a resume pockmarked by box office duds, is Lohan even worth the bother?
Kent Ninomiya. Still, I think most people 25 and under would be happy to take Lohan's paycheck.
opportunity - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya.
If you are a student eager to get into journalism, there is a wonderful opportunity unfolding before you. 2008 is a presidential election year. Media outlets go crazy covering anything and everything. Both news organizations and political groups are looking for people willing to work for free. All you have to do is raise your hand and they will put you to work. Whether you choose to intern with journalists or political campaigns, you will get an up close look at the process. It may inspire you into politics or journalism. It may turn you off to both occupations. Either way you will have a better idea who you are when you are done. Go to it!
Kent Ninomiya
Ed Asner - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya. The groundbreaking television series 'Lou Grant' premiered 30 years ago. AP television writer Frazier Moore wrote a tribute to the landmark show. It got me thinking about my interaction with series star Ed Asner. When I was primary anchor at KSTP, Asner came to Minneapolis to shoot a series of promos with the news staff. He was very much the professional actor hitting all his marks and nailing all his lines. Asner was also a very kind and friendly man to all who approached him. However I did not meet Asner the activist. He was there doing a job, earning a paycheck, selling his image as the character Lou Grant. I'm not condemning the man for making a living, but I wish I could have met him in another setting where it wasn't all business. I know there is more to Ed Asner than a couple of cheesy promos. Then again, he only met me in that context and I hope there's more to me than a couple of cheesy promos. Here's what Frazier Moore has to say about the show Lou Grant: When everyone but idiotic anchorman Ted Baxter was fired from WJM News in 1977, Mary Richards and her fellow casualties were left reeling. It was a classically bittersweet finale for the beloved "Mary Tyler Moore" show after seven hit seasons. Then Mary's crusty boss, station news director Lou Grant, made a smooth transition. Within weeks, he had blown Minneapolis and snagged a good job in Los Angeles as city editor of The Tribune.
That's right: Lou went from the glamour and glitz of TV news (such as it was at bumbling WJM) to embrace print journalism.
At the Trib, the formerly comic Lou (still played by Ed Asner) got serious about news. What resulted was "Lou Grant," a superlative drama series that premiered 30 years ago this fall.
Now "Lou Grant" is worth noting for how vividly it captured a singular era in journalism, while somehow preserving that long-ago time in 114 episodes in remarkably relevant fashion. (Though not widely available, it can be seen in 10 million homes served by cable's American Life network, airing Wednesdays at 9 and 11 p.m. EST.)
"Lou Grant" arrived in the blazing afterglow of Watergate coverage by newspaper rock stars Woodward and Bernstein, and the 1976 movie version of their book, "All the President's Men," where Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman played them.
The bracing message of that era: Two dogged reporters (and a newspaper that backed them up) could change the world — and earn the public's adoration.
Anti-press fulminations from the Nixon administration were largely nullified by scandals and disgrace in the White House. It was only later that an anti-media crusade took hold, drawing battle lines between the press and government, and breeding suspicion among much of the citizenry.
It was later, as well, that newspapers were obliged to adapt to emerging, unimagined challenges: new media platforms, "citizen journalists" and information-dispersing gadgets with global reach that anyone could buy.
The Trib reporters were spared these distractions and identity crises. For them, news still took the form of ink on paper, preferably with comics, horoscope and crossword puzzle part of the deal.
The zeitgeist of "Lou Grant" was set forth in the clever opening titles. The cycle began with a twittering bird up in a tree about to be felled and processed into newsprint. By the end of the sequence, the published Tribune has reached its destination — a typical reader — and, then fully read, is slid into a cage to catch the droppings of a twittering pet bird. A newspaper was a cozy, closed system, and "Lou Grant" celebrated it.
Sure, it may seem primitive that, in the first season, Trib reporters were still banging out their stories on typewriters. But "Lou Grant" was breaking ground from its debut on Sept. 20, 1977.
Reconfiguring a half-hour sitcom into an hour drama was risky. The show dared to populate "Lou Grant" with a full-out ensemble — a casting format that, while proven in comedy, was largely untested in dramas, which were typically built around a single hero or a pair of co-leads.
Lou was the hero in the title, but Asner shared that fictitious newsroom with a wonderful cast.
Robert Walden played the driven young investigative reporter Joe Rossi. Mason Adams (up to then best-known, unseen, in commercials intoning "With a name like Smucker's, it's got to be good") was Managing Editor Charlie Hume. Linda Kelsey was reporter Billie Newman, determined to make good in what was still primarily a male domain. The glorious Nancy Marchand (later, of course, Tony's craven mother on "The Sopranos") was Mrs. Pynchon, genteel owner of the Trib.
Taking full advantage of its news-oriented setting, "Lou Grant" dealt with social issues that ranged from nuclear accidents to religious freedom, from dog fighting to (often) media ethics.
It was a big-hearted series with a humanistic streak (which, as the culture shifted, was sometimes blasted as "liberal"), a drama-comedy hybrid that emerged naturally from the series' creators: James L. Brooks and Allan Burns, writer-producers from "Mary Tyler Moore," and Gene Reynolds, a principal behind the TV incarnation of "M-A-S-H," itself an innovative half-hour blend of laughter and tears.
"Lou Grant" won 13 Emmys, two Humanitas Prizes and a Peabody Award, among many other honors. And although never a ratings smash, it drew an average audience of about 22 million viewers in those days of Big Three network dominance — routinely matching the viewership of "Dancing with the Stars," last week's top-rated show.
Then, in May 1982, CBS announced "Lou Grant" would end.
Did CBS make a business decision based on a ratings downturn (as the network always insisted)? Or did Asner, who had stirred up negative attention for his activism, spook network execs by bringing them increasing political headaches?
Recently, the Paley Center for Media (formerly the Museum of Television & Radio) in Los Angeles hosted a reunion of "Lou Grant" stars and producers. It didn't take long for the discussion to turn to why "Lou Grant" got axed.
"There was a really concentrated effort on the part of the right-wing to torpedo this show," said Burns.
Seated beside him, the 78-year-old Asner recounted one durable version of the show's demise. It dwells on then CBS magnate William Paley as the fall 1982 schedule was being nailed down.
"They had `Lou Grant' on the (schedule) board," said Asner. "Mr. Paley came in and said, 'What's THAT doing up there? Get it off! Get it off!' And with that, `Lou Grant' was erased off the board."
Whatever the circumstances, press reaction to its cancellation was harsh. There was some picketing. But there were no bloggers or e-mail crusades. "Lou Grant" was a lost cause, however immortal.
Drury's words - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya.
Here is an excellent farewell salute to broadcast legend John Drury -- in his very own words by Robert Feder Sun-Times Columnist.
Over the nearly 30 years I covered John Drury, I had the opportunity to talk with the veteran anchorman on countless occasions.
Even when a vengeful ex-boss at ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7 officially barred all employees from talking to me, Drury simply laughed off the idiotic edict, and spoke out whenever he pleased.
He was that kind of guy.
In both our formal interviews and casual conversations, Drury was candid and straightforward, often revealing a shrewd drive and competitiveness at odds with the easygoing manner he projected in public. Clearly, the tremendous success he achieved during his 40-year run on the air here was no accident.
Chicago lost a true Hall of Fame broadcaster when Drury, 80, died Sunday of Lou Gehrig's disease. A memorial mass will begin at 2 p.m. today at Holy Name Cathedral, 735 N. State.
Here are selected insights and opinions Drury shared over the years about his life, his career, and broadcast journalism:
On coming to Chicago: I was 35 years old when I came to this city. I worked in the sticks till I was 35 because I didn't think I was ready yet. I never expected to make a lot of money. (1984.)
On anchoring the news: It's been a way of life so long that I've never tired of it. I find each evening sort of rejuvenating. I'm with people who are much younger than I am, and I'm lifted by the association. (1998.)
On female co-anchors: When I came back [to Channel 7] from Channel 9, I was reintroduced with two very intelligent, articulate and beautiful women [Mary Ann Childers and Joan Esposito]. I think the combination with an older man who had been around and had an ability to develop an audience clicked. (1986.)
On the business: It's changed radically. I started doing this back at WTMJ in Milwaukee when news was considered the loss leader. We didn't worry about the ratings at all. Our only consideration was what did we think was news. It was almost unbelievable. News has become more pragmatic. Now there are other factors that determine the kind of news you do. (2001.)
On becoming No. 1: I think it's the result of an overall strategy devised by Dennis Swanson and implemented and enlarged upon by Joe Ahern. They put together the right combination of people who appealed to the public. People got tired of watching Walter [Jacobson] and Bill [Kurtis]. That whole organization grew tired over the years. I think that whole shop lost its vitality. (1986.)
On being famous: I like being recognized, I like being well-known, I like being liked by the majority of the television viewing community. But prima donna? No. I don't think there's a place for Ted Baxter. I don't need sycophants to support my ego. (1988.)
After heart surgery: I've rearranged my priorities. I like the pressures of my work, but I don't worry as much about things as I used to. I'm in a business where being No. 1 is extremely important, and it's still extremely important to me. But there's not much more I can do than give all I can give. There is a point when I've given enough. (1991.)
On broadcasting: It's been a remarkable career. Broadcasting has always been my first love. I've had my ups and downs, but I've never lost my lust for broadcasting. I just love it. (1996.)
On his public battle with Lou Gehrig's disease: It has been a bit of a struggle, but we hope to turn this into something positive for ALS. (2004.)
On his legacy: The ultimate goal for me in this business is not to be a star, but to be regarded well by my contemporaries and for someone to say, "He's good at what he does." I'd like colleagues to say I have integrity and ethics and do what I do exceptionally well. I've always just tried to do the very best I can. (1984.)
Harrison remembered - Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya. On this day in 2001, George Harrison, lead guitarist and spiritual anchor of the Beatles, died of cancer. He was 58. That was only 6 short years ago. In many ways it seems longer, in many ways shorter. I remember when John Lennon was shot in 1980. I was barely a teenager but I recall how I felt like it was yesterday. Both Lennon's and Harrison's passings came much too soon. In both instances I felt there was so much more they could share with us and that the human race suffered for it. Both deaths seem simultaneous in my mind making Lennon's death more recent and Harrison's more distant.
In honor of George Harrison's passing 6 years ago today... some quotes:
It's being here now that's important. There's no past and there's no future. Time is a very misleading thing. All there is ever, is the now. We can gain experience from the past, but we can't relive it; and we can hope for the future, but we don't know if there is one.
George Harrison (1943 - 2001)
If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there.George Harrison (1943 - 2001), "Any Road", Brainwashed, 2002
Life goes on within you and without you.
George Harrison (1943 - 2001), From the song "Within you without you" from Sgt PepperBest
George Harrison song: Something
Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya - in memory
Kent Ninomiya. I would like to reflect today on the passing of a colleague and friend. All of Chicago and the broadcast news community is saddened to learn of the death of John Drury. I had the privilege of working with John for 5 years at WLS. Despite being the biggest star in town he was always warm and down to earth. He led by example for 50 years exuding class and dignity. He gave me some wonderful advice on excelling in the business that I still rely on today. This from the WLS web site:November 25, 2007 - John Drury, one of Chicago's most respected and beloved journalists, has died at his home in Wheaton, Illinois, from complications due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, ALS disease. He was 80-years-old. Before his retirement from ABC 7 Chicago in 2002, Drury anchored the top-rated 10:00 p.m. newscast for 16 years, becoming a fixture in Chicago broadcasting during an iconic career that spanned four decades here. According to ABC7 President and General Manager, Emily Barr, "John was the consummate journalist - driven, passionate about telling the truth and of course, a great communicator. Throughout his 50-year career, viewers trusted him to deliver the news with fairness and accuracy and he never let them down. He was a wonderful, caring man who conducted himself with grace, loved to laugh and always made others feel at ease. All of us who worked with him are richer for having had the opportunity to be his colleague and his friend. We miss him and wish his devoted wife Ann and his family peace."John's family released the following statement: "John passed away peacefully this evening at his home surrounded by his family. Not only did he fight ALS, he gave back to the community by raising awareness to this disease. We want to thank everyone who has supported John throughout his career and throughout his battle with ALS."Born in Peoria, Illinois, on January 4, 1927, Drury was the youngest of fours sons. He grew up during the Depression, in Aurora, Illinois and learned about great storytelling when the family gathered around the radio to listen to Edward R. Murrow. He left West Aurora High School early to enlist in the Navy during World War II. When he returned home from the war he got his first job in radio at a community college and then as a student at the University of Iowa.I will miss John but revel in the memory of what he taught me about being a newsman. Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya Galactica
Kent Ninomiya
I am here to applaud the Battlestar Galactica Razor movie that premiered last night. It was excellently constructed and finely crafted. The creators should be complimented for venturing outside the regular cast and introducing new characters who could bring the story together. The movie filled in a lot of holes in the timeline. The gaps were inevitable considering the flashback device the series depends on so often. The movie nicely sets up the third and final season premiering in March. Hopefully they will wrap up the series in an equally satisfying fashion. If I have one complaint, it's that the climactic fight scene was clumsy. The rescue mission wasn't realistic and the cyclons just stopped coming after them after a while. Anyway... I probably shouldn't be using critical words like "realistic" when talking about a sci fi series. It's all make believe to begin with. All in all... I am eager to see more which is exactly what the creators intended. Well done.
Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya Hollywood future?
Kent Ninomiya. Hollywood's writers strike could end up being a wonderful opportunity for TV news. All indications are that new production will be virtually non existent until well into next year. In a few weeks stockpiled unseen entertainment will begin to dry up. TV news, especially magazine shows, can continue to provide fresh new content to a diversion hungry audience. Many of them may stay with us long after the strike ends. So what will we do with this opportunity? Is there a chance we could raise the bar and help people care about legitimate issues, or will we take the easy path and drop the bar feeding viewers the low brow tabloid fare they expect from their establishment entertainment industry? Will we fill the void of the strike by trying to be Hollywood or will we show the public that news can be entertaining as well as important. What do you think? Kent Ninomiya
Kent Ninomiya
I don't know what I was thinking, but I decided to venture out early the morning after Thanksgiving and take advantage of some of those amazing bargains stores offer to kick off the holiday gouging season. I should have known better. I was greeted by thousands of like minded people lined up in front of the stores with the best ads. I really should have known better. In 20 years in broadcast news I've seen 20 day after Thanksgiving shopping leads. As expected, all the television crews were lined up outside the shopping district to cover the onslaught. Here's my question... do we cover this mess year after year because we're lazy or because it's actually news. One could argue that if so many people are doing it then it's a legitimate story. Others could argue that anyone who cares about it is already standing in line. They're both a little right and a little wrong. I've worked many holidays. Actually, I've worked most of them and covered this exact story I don't know how many times. The challenge is to do it in a way that makes it news and interesting to those who decided not to brave the crowds. Too often the lazy reporter interviews the first person in line asking how long they waited. Boring! It's the reporter who dives into the meatier topics who squeezes news out of the holiday fluff piece. How about finding out how many of those great deals in the ads are actually available? How about letting people know what traffic and parking will be like if they decide to come down later in the day? How about an insightful piece on line etiquette and the fights that can break out when people cut? Let's be reporters... not "coverers"!
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KENT NINOMIYA is a writer and journalist. Over the past 20 years he worked at television stations across the country as a news anchor, news reporter and news executive. Kent Ninomiya is an avid world traveler who visited nearly 100 countries and regions on all 7 continents as well as all 50 US states. He's also a devoted family man with two young children. When he's not chasing them around, Kent Ninomiya's other interests include writing, sifting through history, following football, martial arts, numismatics and photography.
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