pudge's Journal: Tucker Carlson

Tucker got the axe from CNN (well, I think his contract expired and won't be renewed). Having seen him a lot, I can't think he actually got fired, as I don't see CNN disliking anything he's done. They just could not find a place for him to fit in at the network.

And he's not the problem with Crossfire. He was, if anything, its saving grace, if it had one: he was the only host there who regularly conceded points made by the other side, and criticized his own side's arguments. Almost every show that I saw, he did this.

That's what I like about him. He's smart and quick and doesn't tow anyone else's line, even though he is quite solidly right-wing. And he isn't afraid to offer entirely unconventional ideas about how to see the issues.

Well, if you want more of this good side of Tucker, he makes his rounds in other venues, but he also has a show of his own, a weekly effort on PBS called Unfiltered. It's well worth watching if you're into weekly discussion shows. If you dislike Crossfire, don't let that scare you away from Unfiltered, which is worlds different.

It's not the greatest show on the planet, but it's one of the few I watch every week.

Tucker and the new CNN pres.

[SIGALRM]

Apparently CNN's new president, Jonathan Klein, is convinced that shows which showcase "political bickering" do not belong on a news channel. I--like you--enjoy the show and will miss Crossfire when it's cancelled in the next few months.

Klein made this statement [dailykos.com],

I guess I come down more firmly in the Jon Stewart camp

I think this must have had something to do with his getting fired.

Also interesting: this AP story [yahoo.com].

Keep up the good posts, Pudge, I enjoy them.

Re:Tucker and the new CNN pres.

[pudge]

I didn't say I liked Crossfire. I just think it got a bit of a bum rap, and moreso, that its hosts were blamed for its shortcomings. The format, I think, was terrible. An audience to encourage the namecalling and bickering? A timer to keep arguments shallow? I didn't like it. But it is what it was intended to be, and I think it's nonsense for Stewart to blame the show when it's the culture and the network that are to blame for producing the show.

Re:Tucker and the new CNN pres.

[buffer-overflowed]

Stewart was using it as an example of a larger problem(that the "debate" we see on TV is to debate as professional wrestling is to real athletics[AKA that it's at the level of Springer]), and it's not so much that he beat on Tucker as that Tucker was the only one of the hosts to try to do his job(trying to keep the show in the format and on the intended topics).

I really don't mind Tucker. He seems reasonable enough even within the constraints of the crossfire format. Now, Carville and Novak OTOH....

Re:Tucker and the new CNN pres.

[pudge]

Right, Tucker got a bum rap.

I like Carville better than Begala though. At least he is entertaining. Begala is just a grinning monkey.

Novak is grating, but when he is balanced out, he is not bad. On Capitol Gang, he is balanced out fairly well by Al Hunt, Margaret Carlson, and Mark Shields. I like Hunt, I don't care for M. Carlson, but I can't stand Shields when he is on News Hour; however, he is actually balanced out well by Novak and and Kate O'Beirne. But David Brooks makes little attempt to reign

Re:Tucker and the new CNN pres.

[ces]

Interesting, I quite agree with you about the annoying state of so-called political shows.

Personally I prefer C-SPAN to almost any TV political show.

(actually "The Editors" is pretty cool, but it is Canadian and therefore doesn't count)

Re:Tucker and the new CNN pres.

[tf23]

I've always thought of Crossfie as the "worst of political discourse".

I agree with what you've said about it. However, I have always enjoyed the Saturday Nite Live skits that Crossfire has spawned.

I'm willing to try it out. Anybody have a BT link?

[John Harrison]

I'm unlikely to program the VCR (no TiVO for me) for it and there is no way that I'll watch it at the times and days it is on in Boston. Too bad none of the sites with torrents for TV shows have any news or talk shows. I would probably download quite a few that I can't catch. In fact, I am not aware of any PBS shows on the torrent sites...

In particular -- Iraq

[geoswan]

Yes, you are right, he could acknowledge the merits of the other side. In particular, he changed his mind about Iraq, and was prepared to say so.

good to know about unfiltered

[NeMon'ess]

I don't have cable, so I'll give Unfiltered a try.

it's the outfit

[tf23]

It was the bow-tie. CNN knew everyone was outraged by the damn thing and now they're giving him the boot!! ;)