Ingraham Brings "Power to the People" to "The View"
Laura Ingraham took a day off from her nationally syndicated radio show to appear on "The View" - which was a halcyon blend of serious discussion of topics that Ingraham has covered in her bestselling book Power to the People on one hand - and then celebrity gossip, boisterous girl bonding, a fashion show by the hosts and a bizarre trip to DisneyWorld to get the autographs of hot guys on a calendar - which seemed more appropriate to a MTV type program.
After the fashion show - which involved outfits modeled that women could get for under $100, the show moved on to a long distance interview from Arizona with regular host Elisabeth Hasselbeck who had just delivered her second child, a baby boy. It then proceeded to a discussion of some of the topics discussed in Ingraham's book - specifically the pornification of the culture which was generally agreed to be a problem not only in the heartland, but by many parents on the coasts as well. The progress of the war was discussed with Ingraham noting that the media doesn't seem to want success in Iraq - and with Barbara Walters saying that she and others who support the troops nevertheless disagree with the premise of the war. Ingraham encouraged people to write to offending shows' producers to complain about inappropriate language or actions portrayed - and there then was a discussion about how far such complaints should go - should hosts be fired or disciplined as Don Imus was for his comments about the Rutgers women's basketball team or not. Faith, another important topic in Ingraham's book, was discussed vis-a-vis Governor Mitt Romney's candidacy and whether he should do a press conference to more fully explain his Mormon faith which isn't well understood.
The rather weird Disney trip seemed to belie the fact that there was true concern about the culture as there appeared to be grown women chasing around hot men for autographs - this in the prime morning television slots.
With the hyper pacing and aggressive product placement and endorsements, "The View" seems to promote the commodification of the culture and tamp down the serious discussions that were started and then stopped to surf on to the next topic - encouraging antic behavior and not letting the substantive discussion evolve that seemed to be there in the waiting. For example, at the close of the show, Ingraham was asked to tell about herself and her bout with breast cancer. This alone could have had more than a statement from Ingraham - and would have been of great interest to the women in the audience.
Hopefully Ingraham will have an opportunity to go back to "The View" - it would be nice to see this show mature and move beyond constant product hawking for a few moments and discuss what women do care about. Given it was Veterans Day, it would have been appropriate to hear from some of the women who have served in the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
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