I have to admit, I've been dreading the thought of writing this post all week. I've been disappointed with the amount of air time that the Michael Jackson story has been getting; 360 isn't the only program that is spending most of their time focusing on it, so my disappointment is more with CNN in general. Anyway, I don't get to blog 360 that often these days and I really didn't want to spend the entire post ranting about what the program didn't do (I'll try to keep the rant to a minimum, really.)
Once again, Anderson was reporting live tonight from on top of the CNN building in Los Angeles and the main focus of the program was the Michael Jackson story.
First was a report from Dr. Sanjay Gupta about the drugs that Jackson was given during the HIStory tour in 1996 – 1997. Dr. Gupta attempted to get answers from Dr. Neil Ratner about the care he provided to Jackson while on the tour. Dr. Ratner decided he didn't really want to talk on camera.
Next was a video clip from a full length dress rehearsal that Jackson did just two days before his death.
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Then we got to see more of the video clip that was provided by AEG of the last full dress rehearsal Jackson did in preparation of his concert series. Anderson interviewed Michael Bearden, Randy Phillips, Kenny Ortega, and Travis Payne who were all involved in the concert Jackson was preparing to do. (On the portion of the interview on the program, Travis Payne didn't actually speak.) They stated that Jackson appeared to be fine the night before his death as they left the rehearsals.
Those of you who watched the early days of 360, may remember that Anderson used to report on what the top story was on each of the big three nightly news casts and how much of their 30 minute broadcast was spent on that story. Well, if you cut out all of the commercials from the 10PM hour, you're left with about 42 minutes of on air programming (which is about average). How much did they spend on Michael Jackson? Roughly 29 minutes.
Tom Foreman reported on the plane crash of Air France 447 and a 13 year old who survived another plane crash. You can read more about the young girl who survive on AC360.com: The survival of Bahia.
We received a brief update on the fighting in the Helmand province of Afghanistan. Nic Robertson, who is in Pakistan, reported on the missing US serviceman. They believe that the same group that kidnapped the NY Times reporter took the serviceman.
(How long were the segments from Tom Foreman and Nic Robertson: just over 3 minutes each.)
If you're interested in other news stories that didn't make it onto the program… there are several on the AC360 blog (the scroll at the bottom of the screen is even directing us to check out AC360.com for other news):
- Iranian Student Leader: ‘First They Kill, Then They Count’
- Financial Dispatch: Unemployment rate hits 9.5%
- Job losses: Who’s hurting the most?
And now, on to a couple of other items. Kristien emailed us letting us know that Kay Jones had posts a few pictures from Los Angeles on Twitter:
Thanks to Julie for tipping us off to this video clip of Anderson coming out of the CNN building in Los Angeles:
And thanks to pebschua for the tip that the Regis & Kelly In box segment from the day that Anderson guest hosted had been posted their website. Thanks to Julie for sending me a link to the location:
That's it for me tonight. For those of you in the US, please have a happy & safe Independence Day on Saturday. And I'll leave you with a quote from today'sLetter to the President by Tom Foreman:
And I know celebrity stories in the past have sparked media storms. The Lindbergh kidnapping, for example. And hey, I covered Jon Benet as much or more than any reporter in the country. So I’m not blameless. It’s just that this age of the mega-news story, combined with our celebrity obsession, combined with our cell-phone-tweeting-texting-instant messaging-Facebook posting culture creates a runaway train at times like this; with part of the public screaming “more, more more,” and another part yelling, “less, less, less.” (I have to admit, btw, I’m in the latter category; fascinating guy, great entertainer, important cultural icon, but enough already…)So as long as that is going on, my advice to you is pretty simple: If you are interested in the latest MJ news, stay tuned to just about any media outlet you choose. If, however, you want the rest of the news…be very, very patient. It will come back, but not in force until this hurricane has passed. And that’s assuming some other big name doesn’t wind up “hiking the Appalachian trail” (if you know what I mean) setting off another media frenzy.
All Things Anderson is a blog dedicated to CNN's AC360 and its host Anderson Cooper.
14 comments:
I had to laugh at your post. I almost gagged when I saw Judge Larry Seidlin on TSR. Thank God he wasn't on 360 but the week is not over.
The excessive MJ coverage is getting to me. I can't take a full 360 but, when I turn it off, I miss the small amount of real news. How ridiculous to direct us to the website for other news. Let's hope his nonsense ends soon. And, if drugs are determined to be the cause of MJ's death, let it awaken those who may be heading in the same direction. Perhaps something good can come out of the tragedy.
360 has gone way overboard with this coverage. It is ridiculous and pathetic. Typical 360 though. 360's biggest problem is not knowing when to move on. They always stick with a story way way way too long.
I remember when Anderson used to report what the top story on the big 3 nite news programs. I had forgotten all about that. Thanks for mentioning that, BookAsylum.
The R&K inbox was good. Loved hearing Anderson joke about his hair. He just can't seem to bring himself to admit that his hair is grey, well practically white now...LOL!
The video of Anderson leaving the CNN building in LA is interesting. It appears he has a bodyguard with him and I'm guessing those people walking in front of him are with him too.
There was a time when I was about 8 years old when people would joke that I was married to Michael Jackson and I wouldn't get it. It wasn't until later that I realized that I shared the exact same name as the mother of Jacko's two eldest children: Deborah Rowe.
Dang it, I really hope that this constant MJ news domination ceases soon.
If not just for the sake of letting the guy rest in peace, but so that the incessant teasing can be over and done with.
PS Anderson's adorable (but we all knew that.)
Many if not most of you are disappointed with the perpetual coverage on AC360 and CNN as a whole, but for me watching both the last 5 minutes of the NEWSROOM with Kyra Phillips when the AEG Video was first released Exclusively to CNN, and when Anderson spoke with Kyra introducing the Video and talking about his conversation with the Promoters of this come back Tour as well as while watching AC360’s Newscast last night, something truly hit home.....
Most of you are just fed-up with the sheer magnitude of coverage I get that & truly understand that. But I came to the realization yesterday as Anderson spoke with Kyra just prior to the end of her show, and during the Interview with the men behind the scenes of this production, for Anderson and AC360, this isn’t just about the “hype” of Michael Jackson’s death, (and I truly believe this) but rather the life, musical legacy and sheer brilliance of one of the most gifted Artists and Entertainers of our generation around the globe, and finally the tragic death of a human being who had so much to live for, yet whose life was cut short, be it through his own mistakes that may have caused his demise, or potentially of those around him, who may have enabled him.
Watching both the conversation and the Interview with the folks from AEG, as much as Anderson is trying to get to the bottom of the cause of this man’s death and his state of mind prior to his death, I also believe Anderson is trying to come to grips with the WHY? And keeps asking the questions - Why did Michael Jackson’s life have to end this way? What went wrong? Why did he have to loose his life, when there was so much more to give and to share with the world, not just from an Artistic/Entertainer standpoint, but also as a humanitarian, as a human being? Would this have been the comeback career of the century after a 12 & ½ year hiatus, despite all of the controversy surrounding this man’s life?
Reflecting back: Anderson lost his own Father at the tender age of 11, the same age of Michael’s second child Paris. Anderson’s Dad was 50 years old at the time of his death, as was Michael. Anderson father’s heart gave out as did Michael’s.
Wyatt Cooper wasn’t as famous or infamous as Michael Jackson is, but famous in his own right none-the-less, makes one wonder what goes through Anderson’s mind, as he goes through his own life’s struggles with life, death and tragedy. Anderson said to Randy Kay earlier this week he “hates talking about kids in these kinds of situations”, it’s probably a constant reminder of the magnitude of tragedies in his own life, and the impact it can have on you as you grow older.
Hearing of some of the last conversations Michael had with the Gents from AEG, when he said “You Got Me Hear, I know I can do this now”, just to hear Michael say that, sent chills down my spine, to think how insecure he felt, despite his musical brilliance and prior successes, his artistic talent and his genuine love of and sheer passion for his God-given gift of music, to think he initially may have had doubts about his comeback is just unimaginable.
I think the amount of coverage and attention Anderson is giving to the death of Michael Jackson is also due to the fact this is a moment in history where, for many of us who have grown up with and been touched by his music, we choose to celebrate Michael Jackson’s life. Anderson Cooper met Michael Jackson at an age of one of Michael’s own kids today. When you share such a moment in your young lifetime, and are surrounded by such magnificent talent, despite not knowing it at the time, moments like that never really leave you, and it makes such moments of death even more poignant, as you go in search of the truth and for answers as to the Why?
I will not fault Anderson for his coverage of Michael Jackson’s death.
Further to my previous post, I also wish Anderson had the opportunity to Interview Jermaine Jackson at Neverland instead of Larry King, last night. Larry, sad to say, botched that Interview, and kept cutting Jermaine off all the time, it was ridiculous to watch. What a waste of a “get”. I certainly believe Anderson would have done better justice Interviewing Jermaine in a place despite all of the heartache and disgrace it may have brought Michael Jackson, it was also a place that Michael found sheer joy, peace and tranquility in his life.
Haha, nice post BA!
Thanks for the bonus R&K clip too, those are so fun to watch.
I have NO problem with Anderson not dancing on TV. If he wants to maintain his journalistic image, he doesn't need to dance. We always see a goofy side of him when he co-hosts the show and enough times on '360' when Erica is around :)
Tom Foreman said it best: I have to admit, btw, I'm in the latter category; fascinating guy, great entertainer, important cultural icon, but enough already....
It's almost getting embarrassing. Last night's lead-in should have been billed as the Michael Jackson Worship Hour with Larry King. Anderson's opening could just be a canned "As you've been seeing all day we will continue the same coverage as breaking news for the next hour." He might also think of adding an occasional, eyes down, "I apologize."
So, since nothing at all is happening ON the show, at least we have things to talk about OFF the show - Like Regis & Kelly, and that fascinating clip of Anderson coming out of CNN-LA behind a phalanx of linebackers with earpieces. He really does look fragile in that setting.
Loved the clip of Web-In Box except, like Michael Jackson, I am growing increasingly tired of Kelly's one-note harassment of Anderson on the dancing issue. He was clearly growing bored with it too. He's best when placed in a position to poke fun at his unusual upbringing, his imaginary social ineptness, or his rapidly-giving-Colonel-Sanders-a-run-for-his-money white hair. (Oooo! Can you imagine what a fine young southern gentleman might look like with a perfectly groomed goatee? Mm-mmmm, gravy.)
Not that it has anything to do with Anderson. However, the very concept of Larry Sidlin pontificating on TV about child custody is not only laughable and ludicrous, but offensive, banal, weird, inappropriate and just plain stoopid. Thanks CNN for living down to our new expectations!
ACAnderFan, Pemberly and Debrahmei – respectfully, I totally disagree with you. The coverage of Michael Jackson’s death investigation is deserving of the attention it has received thus far. People want answers, good or bad, people want answers. Additionally, maybe, they’ll be lessons learnt that could possibly send a message to the Hollywood Medical Community, if this Investigation determines MJ’s death was caused by an abuse of prescription drugs, the Medical Community and the “enablers” should be held accountable for their actions. As much as he has ownership of his own life and should be held accountable for his own actions, Michael did not do this all on his own, we need to acknowledge that, and right or wrong, this may have been his way of reaching out for help, but it ended his life. We may never know, but we certainly want answers.
@Parker, great comment, I'm pretty much done with the MJ coverage, but your perspective on it is insightful and puts a different light on the whole matter.
It turns out that it wasn't The Daily Show that got AC for Bubbles, but The Colbert Report instead.
Thanks so much for the clips - I noticed how quickly AC moved on when Kelly said they were going to explore the theory that he's a great dancer over the weekend - I guess that was a TMI moment, but I do believe AC is friends with Kelly and Mark and they hang together sometimes. Anderson's got a great quick wit - the emergency room comment was a good example of that. As far as his Vanderbilt non-inheritance goes, he surely doesn't need it, he's quite wealthy on his own.
Apparently Anderson is filling in for Campbell Brown. Still a boring program.
What a surprise to watch Anderson fill in for Campbell Brown and Larry King tonight!! Really unexpected!
And now apparently AC is also feeling in for Larry King.
As I was growing up, during the days when the country was convulsing under the changes demanded by its citizens--women's rights, voting rights for African Americans, the end of the Jim Crow laws (peculiar to the South where I grew up), the music industry was contributing to the changes.
Motown's excellence in promoting black singers, the opportunity for talent to rise and shine, the sense of limitless horizons, this is the environment the Jackson 5 came up in and helped to effect the multicultural society you younger folks take for granted.
Michael Jackson led the way, he and his family. You can debate the way his father managed the boys until the cows come home, you can blame Joe for Michael's oddities and self image. But Michael managed to get the music in his head out where we could hear it and appreciate it.
He broke more ground and barriers than you can imagine. He brought people of all races together.
From the vantage point of living life alongside his,
all this coverage does not surprise nor bother me much. Sometimes we have to stop and breathe and look closely at the hole an individual leaves when he exits this life; and Michael left a big one in the lives of millions and millions. The most effective way to grieve a loss is to share it.
Don't be mad at CNN for their coverage. Yes, other things are happening that are important, and those stories will get their time.
For those of us who watched Michael over the years it really is important to understand why he left so soon. I think, from my medical perspective, that it was an accidental death, medications misused over so many years that the cumulative effects tipped his metabolism over that edge of no return.
He has escaped his private pain finally. Perhaps all this coverage and the slow leakage of the reasons will give all those who loved him time to deal with the loss.
This may not be strictly Anderson related, but I felt that you who are Gen X or Y or whatever need a perspective of someone who saw the rise of this singer first hand and the effect he had on the world.
He left us way too soon, but he is no longer suffering.
Parker: I'm with you on Larry's serious flubbing up of Jermaine's interview. He really missed an opportunity, he had a brain fart or something going on... very awkward.
@Parker and Austin. I really think you had great points.
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