This morning I made a mistake. No, I did not forego my regular breakfast of OJ and Activia Vanilla Greek yogurt. I watched a bit of The Today Show after taking a break for several weeks. And man am I suffering because of it!
After Currygate, I decided that I needed to step away from the Today and I sauntered up the dial to CBS This Morning. I was shocked to find that this morning news program actually includes news in its program. Go figure?! It’s not as glossy or as fast paced as its rivals, nor does it have as many high-profile special guests, but CBS’s morning talk show entrée has something unique going for it – intelligence.
Charlie Rose is a true journalist and gives the show a loveable curmudgeonly, no-nonsense attitude. Imagine Wilford Brimley reading the news and commenting on world politics. Norah O’Donnell is more poised than the gals at NBC and I’m not really sure what purpose Gayle King serves – other than acting as Oprah-lite – but much to my surprise she doesn’t annoy me at all.
For whatever reason when I turned on the TV this morning, NBC popped up and I left it there. Immediately, I regretted my decision. Carson Daly is a co-host now? Watch out Matt Lauer! I do have to say that I am loving their new orange room! I have no idea what the room is being used for, it could be the green room to Hell, but it’s orange so I love it!
The problem is this revamped Today is still very much the Today of yesterday. The ‘news’ items are still delivered at break-neck speed, everyone is still trying to act chummy and as if they’re my friend, and the news is still repeated from every angle. The government may shut down! The GOVERNMENT may shut down! The government MAY shut DOWN! (Congrats to anyone who immediately thought of Tallulah Bankhead while reading that last line!)
So stop trying to scare me Today Show people and just decide if you want to entertain me or offer up some news. And here’s a little clue – I can entertain myself, thank you very much!
Charlie, Norah, and Gayle – I’ll see you in the morning!