MSNBC's Morning Joe & Starbucks--John Stewart nails product placement
I thought Top Chef episodes had really become product placement sluts over the past few seasons...and then I saw this bit on the Daily Show With John Stewart. Now there is shameless product placement branding on "serious" news shows? Morning Joe is supposed to be a somewhat conservative news show, but how would I even take that guy seriously now? What do you guys think? If nothing else, Stewart's take is an amusing look at the many ways advertisers target audiences and a somewhat troubling look at how our news media giants are being bought.
It also reminded me somehow of the movie Mystery Men, where Super Hero Captain Fantastic has different brands on his super suit (much like Nascar cars) so that when he's covered on the news his sponsors get coverage. That was a terrific spoof.
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9 Comments:
If you want the news anymore, you have to read the ticker tape running along the bottom of the screen. You won't get much in the way of depth, but it will be all the news the TeeVee Peeple are willing to broadcast. The talking heads are there to beat you about the head and shoulders with trivialities and be sensational.
Grumpy Old Man at 11:41PM on 06/04/09
Oh I long for the days when newscasters just read the news. There was no agenda or bias on the part of the person relaying it. Guess that's why I don't watch the news anymore, local or national. Do you really buy into this person so much that a shill for Starbucks just destroys all credability for you? If that is the case then by all means stop watching. That is what the remote is for.
finsbigfan at 8:47AM on 06/05/09
YMMV, but for me, the combo of Morning Joe and Starbuck's treatment of its workers is enough to halt my occasional visits altogether. I don't shop at the WalMart store or Sam's, and I'll add them to the list. If you're looking for news, you might check out the BBC World Service, which is commercial-free and, aside from the occasional Lucy Kelloway (sp?) piece, rant-free.
lemons at 9:48AM on 06/05/09
Perhaps we need to understand who is paying the bills in the media. In a perfect world the talking heads would be paid without commercial interruption, so to speak. With print media and websites like Serious Eats someone has to pay in...Those paychecks don't grow on trees.
Product placement is all over the motion picture business too...unabashadly.
gutreactions at 9:53AM on 06/05/09
I wish I could find it, but I think there was a newscast that at one point had the hosts drinking Coke or Diet Coke (and, no, it wasn't American Idol—but it was similar to what they do there).
Adam Kuban at 11:42AM on 06/05/09
Joe Scarborough is a complete idiot. He doesn't need Starbucks product placement to discredit himself. He does it all on his own.
simon at 12:05PM on 06/05/09
I agree, Simon: Scarborough is an ignoramus. Zbignew Brzezinski called him on it a few months ago: "You know, you have such a stunningly superficial knowledge of what went on that it's almost embarrassing to listen to you."
Sommelier at 6:38PM on 06/05/09
I minored in journalism in college. Granted, it was many moons ago, but I do remember the curriculum stressing that neutrality should constantly be present in all news presentation. I am consistently shocked when I see nothing representing that ideal in the broadcasts I watch. Most news 'presenters' aren't even journalists. They will even proudly proclaim that they are commentators.
mollykate678 at 9:57AM on 06/06/09
Everyone has a price these days, particularly if they appear on TV. But you can't fast forward through shows that now have the ads embedded!
OnlyBetterEaters at 9:14AM on 06/16/09