Hype Stalker
As Charlie Rose recovers from surgery, producer Yvette Vega has taken the opportunity to put together some rather fascinating shows. The most recent was the "Battle of the Crazy Hair" night that featured Hollywood producer Brian Grazer interviewing New Yorker writer Malcolm Gladwell. Despite the unlikely matchup, the segment went over quite well and revealed that Gladwell may be in line for his own talk show some day. Highlight moment: Gladwell compliments Grazer on his Charlie Rose imitation, sending Grazer into ham-it-up mode, resulting in the Hollywood vet reaching over and executing the patented Charlie Rose Connecting-With-You-Hand-Lock?. Grazer then energetically huffs a dry Sunset Boulevard faux-laugh and deadpans at the camera, "Thank you, and good night..."
The latest media dust-up that has Manhattan buzzing is the empty slot at Time magazine and who will be selected (crowned) to helm the glossy icon of publishing. New York magazine's Adam Moss has been whispered, and the ever-present Tina Brown has even gotten a mention. But the big buzz is that our favorite patrician of publishing, Kurt Andersen, has yet to be bandied about as a real contender. Let's unpack the possibilities. Moss would immediately make Time magazine less a competitor with Newsweek and more a glorified print-version of CNN's "The Situation Room." Tina Brown?Well, let's just say that even the mention of her name in a conversation about running Time is like suggesting Bonnie Fuller might have a grand old time editing The New Yorker. Sure it's an interesting thought-and punch line. The irony is that Andersen would be perfect for Time magazine. Full of the satisfied cynicism that goes along with landing plumb editing gigs without actually hitting home runs, the provincial confines of Time-where merely keeping the ship afloat is deemed success-might finally be the home Kurt's been searching for?
A recent New York Times ("Times Are Tough for News Media, but Journalism Schools Are Still Booming," May 15) dutifully reminds us that, yes, good journalism skills are still important and that, though the media is drowning in ill-prepared writers and bloggers, J-schools are-surprise, surprise-flourishing. Writer Katharine Seelye makes mention of those important schools like Yale and NYU, where young, hungry, hopeful journalists can learn skills like blogging and posting podcasts and how to get a cool blog name and lure lots of traffic. The J-schools are now also teaching stuff like html, so those new-media folk can learn how to attach links and stuff like that. Also, the professors are now allegedly instructing students on tone and style so that they can sound extra-snarky. The media apocalypse has, at long last, finally arrived.
www.HypeStalker.com