NBC News And "West Wing" -- Was A Journalistic Line Crossed In Live Debate?
The live debate staged on NBC's "West Wing" last night between fictional candidates Matthew Santos (Jimmy Smits) and Arnold Vinick (Alan Alda) had some realistic touches to it – maybe too real for some. One touch was casting real-life journalist Forrest Sawyer as the moderator, another was the use of the real NBC News logo throughout the entire show.
Steve from Lost Remote, who looks to have been the first to raise an issue, expects it to be a topic of discussion:
"I'll leave the reviews to the other guys and raise this: during the entire 'debate' anchored by real journalist Forrest Sawyer, the bug in the lower right of the screen said 'LIVE' and 'NBC NEWS' along with the peacock logo. While it added to the verisimilitude of the evening, what do you think about the presentation of a drama under the wrapper of a real news organization whose network broadcast the show?"New York Post's Adam Buckman writes:
"NBC does its news division a disservice by slapping a news label on a piece of prime-time entertainment. It is irresponsible, too, because it confuses some viewers."Doug Elfman in the Chicago Sun-Times reviews the debate, saying it "stunk so bad, the stench may have polluted everything it touched, including my ability to write about it."
"Making matters worse, the NBC News logo was pasted on the bottom of the TV screen, a slip of NBC's separation of fact and fantasy."Tom Shales weighs in on the cross-over in the Washington Post this morning:
"This is a small sign of how standards at the news division have deteriorated over the years, and an indication that maintaining the line between news and entertainment is no longer much of a priority -- at NBC or, for that matter, at CBS or ABC."The blurring of lines between reality and fiction is not at all a new trend. Real-life journalists often can be found in movies playing themselves. Remember the movie "Dave?" There were enough talking heads and politicians in that film to fill the "Situation Room." New CNN superstar Anderson Cooper may be best known to a segment of the population as the host of "The Mole" reality show. Larry King has 46 credits on his filmography. Even Daniel Schorr has turned up on screen, playing a creepy version of himself in "The Game".
But in the movies, presumably, we all realize it's pretend. When it comes to a live broadcast on television those lines aren't so clear – at least that's what some observers are saying. What do you think?