Alec Baldwin on The View
This was a dry media week for me. I saw Alec Baldwin on The View this morning. Clips from the interview with Barbara Walters and Rosie O'Donnell had been played on many other newscasts that I'd seen before The View's airing. Baldwin gave an "exclusive" to talk about the phone message he'd left for his daughter. And it wasn't much of an interview - it was Rosie, Alec and Barbara sitting on a couch all facing forward - kinda awkward. Rosie and Barbara never really asked questions of Baldwin that put any pressure on him. It was more Baldwin making points and saying "can I finish this? when do you have to go to break?" Baldwin introduced us to the term "parental alienation" and explained how his ex-wife makes his daughter feel as if she is betraying her mother if she loves her father. It was like Baldwin's petty gossip mixed with a Dr. Phil episode. I guess I was impressed that Rosie did not go crazy on him, but it ended up feeling like a Baldwin public relations exercise (he has a book on parental alienation coming out). If Barbara was going to have him on at all, how could she have not lassoed some appearance or comment from the "evil ex-wife" Kim Basinger? Maybe when she's on The View, she's not a journalist. But I expected more from her.
posted by Amanda @ 3:03 PM
4 comments
4 Comments:
Yeah, I'm surprised Baldwin didn't go for the usual apology tour and appear on every talk show. I actually like Baldwin, he's a likeable guy and for a long time he was an underappreciated comic actor, but it's pretty sad and unfortunate that his acrimonious divorce has become a staple of tabloid news. Now, thanks to this tape, it's bled into mainstream television. Celebrity divorces typically come off as over-the-top melodramas in entertainment news, and that's pretty much what we're getting here.
It is funny, because last night when I was at my friends house we had a debate about this. First of all, I am also shocked Rosie did not go crazy on him, because that is pretty much her style, but maybe it is because she kind of feels like some people, including me. I just do not see why this phone call got so much attention. While some of the things Baldwin said probably were inappropriate, I know that my parents at times have definitely been that mad at me... my dad espcially. I just do not think that it was that bad. I mean when I got in trouble at home, I really got in trouble. I think that the media went way overboard with this coverage, and turned Baldwin into and evil father. I think all of these new parenting rules that have been publicly excepted as the norm is weird to me. It seems as if kids now cannot get in trouble for fear of what will happen to the parents. The media portrayal of Baldwin is a perfect example. I would have not called my child a pig, but I mean come on people. Call me old fashioned.
I think the Alec Baldwin story has been so overblown. It's a private matter that should be handled by that family. I know I try to avoid coverage of it. But I think the question of whether or not the View is a journalistic forum is a good one. I mean you've got one of the most preeminent journalists ever, Barbara Walters, as the creator. Meredith Viera used to be the moderator, now she's on Today. But I don't think anyone can literally find this show to contain journalism. It's all opinion, even though respected journalists were present at its creation. Joy Behar is a comedian, Elizabeth Hasselbeck is a Survivor. That is not journalism, that is entertainment.
I completely agree with AG. This is another low in journalism. Celebrity "news" coupled with near-profanities, a nasty divorce and a peek into someone's private communication...ah, what more could we ask for?
I am not advocating that parents speak to their children in such terms, but airing this private message out of context is sure to have a chilling effect on parenting and disciplining.
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