Ok everyone knows that local tv news broadcasts are about 98% sensationalist garbage and ratings-driven filler. Which is why I don’t watch them. But I was looking around at some east coast news station websites today for local info on the hurricane, when I noticed that one affiliate has the same tagline as a station here in the Bay Area. “Channel 12 – On Your Side.”
What? So, are we to assume that all the other stations are not on my “side”? And what does that even mean? Why are we all of a sudden “taking sides”? Are we fighting for something? It’s just a stupid fluffy empty tv news team. I highly doubt that when battle lines are drawn, these shiny talking heads will be “on my side.”
Anyway.
The Animation Show was great. My favorites were by far the cartoons by Don Hertzfeldt and Mike Judge, of course. There was a very trippy Disney short with Dali-esque overtones from the late 1950s, which reminded me how good animation was once done without computers. I liked all of the shorts, but I will say that my least favorite was “Ident,” — a choppy claymation film with a deeply buried point and no dialogue. Way too arty and ambitious for me. I also was not a big fan of the Bill Plimpton cartoon about the parking lot. Kinda boring and irritating. But the other shorts were great!
Everything by Hertzfeldt made me cry with laughter.
Hurricane Isabel is now lashing away at Virginia and NC, and I would like to now send my good vibes and best wishes to all my friends and family who live in the storm’s path. Don’t forget to board up your windows and write your name on your arm! Also just get out of the way.
the disney short was a joint project between
walt disney and dali that got shelved and only
recently was finished. i think that animation
festival is coming here in october or november,
i’ll have to catch it.
i’m not sure if it’s the same down there, but
every single local news station has to tie in
any national or international news item with a
‘northwest connection’ as tenuous or non-existent
as that connection might be.
The Animation Show is apparently coming to Seattle in the last week of September.
Bay Area newscasts I think try to set up connections with national news stories, usually if some SF resident is somehow involved, but I only know that from seeing newscast promos, which are highly entertaining.
“Tonight at 11 …We’ll tell you what common household product you may have in your home right now COULD BE A DEADLY SILENT KILLER.”
And then it turns out to be rat poison or something.
oh i love those! also when they push whatever
new diet/health craze is being touted. as if this
is in any way news. and at least up here, they
do the newscaster voice enunciation/head bob
thing as if they were trying out for a vaudeville
newscaster revue. amusing in very small doses.