February 19, 2010

A metanews report from Charlie Brooker: how to report the news, BBC style.
posted by tracicle 14 years ago
  • This is funny and sad all at once. Given that news is more a product in the marketplace now rather than the fourth estate it used to be, I guess we shouldn't be shocked that it comes to us in a bland pre-packaged format.
  • This is excellent. Also, in the US any story related to things financial has to have stock footage of money being printed, chopped and bound in stacks. "This is what money looks like, in case you didn't know, kids, and this story is about things financial, but just to give you a handle on that intangible, here are some pictures of money". Likewise any story about medicine has a pharmacist counting out pills in a tray - always five at a time. "See, kids... pills... that's like medicine, see?" I wonder if there is a college drinking game for stock footage. "Home construction is 2% up this month" (Footage of man in hard hat hammering roof). "Chug, chug, chug!"
  • Brooker is plenty clever, but my favourite meta-news video will always be "Series Of Concentric Circles Emanating From Glowing Red Dot".
  • Well, the ubiquitous expert in a empty oxymoronic suit is classic on the A roll. I only missed seeing the lady moderator/weather-lady with the full to bursting oxymoronic plunging cleavage line.
  • So, what else is news?