New News
I get my hour or so fill of news and current events each night before going to bed. And there was one story in particular I couldn't pass up.
Don Lemon on Kanye: I had to turn the TV off
I had heard about Kanye's most recent visit so I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Lemon goes on an impassioned rant about the whole affair, with this clear message -
...and we have to stop pretending, sitting here on these CNN panels or whatever network panels, and pretending like this is normal, and 'let's have this conversation about Kanye West (done in mocking tone). Who cares? Why are you sending cameras to the oval office and covering Kanye West?
Lemon brings up a great point. Kanye's visit should be insignificant "news." Especially with the level 1 hurricane ravaging the southern states, news cycles should be devoting their time and media to more pressing matters than random celebrity showings. So you would think CNN would take their own advice and move away from the story.
Wrong.
In the past 24 hours, CNN has released 6 clips on this very topic. 6 out of 16. That's 37.5% of their coverage in the last day. CNN has effectively discovered how to mix in the paparazzi industry into their coverage for more views, and they are undoubtedly milking it. Immediately after this upload, they put up a story on the hurricane. Then three more uploads on Kanye. The view count speaks for themselves and I would bet money that that's the sole driving factor on what to share as a reputable 'news source'.
C'mon guys. Maintain some dignity.
CNN's obstacles are almost impossible as a 24-hour news cycle. Crappy hearsay and pop-culture speculation are undoubtedly going to leak in at times. But this is a whole new level of stooping. If anything, CNN is being played, offering tons of free publicity to the president, which for most of reasonable Americans, seems like a harmless and almost heartwarming meeting. It certainly bolsters the Republican base, so why are you so obsessive CNN?
CNN, this is likely just a short-term cash-grab for more views and a more emotionally attached viewership. But you're losing in the long run and this certainly doesn't push back on the "fake news" nickname you've been stuck with for 2-3 years. Good luck with that.