There's a reason I don't watch the morning news. It's stupid. You get five minutes of actual news and 55 minutes of stuff nobody really needs to know. Gossip, sleaze, how to make you butt tight, save five dollars on canned goods, or get deals on houses in locations where no one really wants to live in the first place. The morning news is filled with insignificant feel good fluff.
So why is it that I was still surprised when this article appeared on my Facebook feed?
PW Tip Sheet: Shame on Today
The article starts with the question,"What could have possibly happened to the current crop of morning-show producers that they would disregard entirely the winners of the highest children’s book awards in the land?"
According to the article, the Today Show had an 11 year tradition of bringing the Caldecott and Newberry Award winners on the show the morning after the awards were announced for an interview. But for the last two years this has not happened, citing scheduling conflicts. I don't believe that for a second. I believe someone said these interviews weren't marketable. The authors were boring, the audience wasn't interested and we have more important things to do with our four hour block of time.
Which led me to two great finds in the not so mainstream media this week. First, a rough gem in an unusual place, Comedy Central. The Colbert Report did a two part interview with Maurice Sendack, author of Where the Wild Things Are and it was eye opening to say the least! Proof that it's actually very intelligent and witty adults who write children's books. You can catch part one of the interview here: Maurice Sendak Interview Part 1 and part two here: Maurice Sendack Interview Part 2.
Then of course I found a delightfully funny interview on NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. If you've never listened to this show before you are in for a real treat. I laugh all the way through it. This week they actually did an interview with the Newberry Award Winner Jack Gantos where listeners learn just how boring and dull the life of a children's author can be. This has got to be one of my favorite author interviews and I encourage you to check it out even if you stop before listening to the actual quiz show. You can check it out here: Jack Gantos Interview on NPRs Wait Wait Don't Tell Me
After listening to both of these interviews I was forced to re-embrace what I had long ago declared a brutal truth: Morning News Shows Suck.
