"Extra, Extra"

Picture the shivering little newspaper boy with a loud voice singing out "Extra! Extra!" on any metropolitan street corner. A large man extends a dime to the boy, content that he has fulfilled his need to know in its entirety. He is reassured that the reporter was an ink-stained wretch, smoking cigarette after cigarette, reciting "who, what, when, where and why" to a bilious city desk editor who grains when he calls in for "rewrite!"

The scene was circa 1930. If there was any question what constituted news, he'd tell the fledgling reporter that if a man bites a dog well, that's news! A far cry from 2009! First, it's hard to find an evening newspaper anywhere. Secondly, the new outlets are the media creations of radio, TV, and now the Internet -- "Facebook, Twitter" and only the Lord knows what's next.

Consider the poor dog that got bitten. CNN and FOX would have covered that story like icing on cake. Not only the "breaking news" aspect, but a thorough and painfully long four-panel of experts called up by the duty psychologist. They would explore the age-old dog-man relationship in painful detail. The SPCA representative would just sit there with a faint smile on his face. And who amongst us can ever forget the longest legs any human interest story that ever lived? One refers to the three-month-long to-do about poor little Michael Jackson? And what about the media circus that lasted two years -- the recent campaign, election, and the administration of Barack Obama -- and his nemesis congress? (If I hear and see much more about Health Care, I may bellow something like "GIMME MY COUNTRY BACK!)

One must admit that we are given perhaps an indigestible mix on today's TV, and there are a lot of editorializing, both extremes of ideology. MSNBC is far left; FOX is far right, and CNN rides both extremes.

We must weigh all these opinions coming at us with the proverbial grain of salt, and rely on the unvarnished wisdom among the American people. That is hardly headline, but it never gets old.