Anna Nicole Smith: Still Dead, Updates Every 2 Mins

  • Thread starter Thread starter edward
  • Start date Start date
Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the media coverage of Anna Nicole Smith's death and the subsequent court proceedings regarding her burial. Participants express their views on the sensationalism of the news, the emotional reactions of the judge, and the public's fascination with celebrity culture. The conversation touches on themes of media ethics, societal values, and the trivialization of serious issues.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Meta-discussion

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants criticize the extensive live coverage of the court proceedings, questioning the public's interest in such sensationalist news.
  • Others express concern over the emotional demeanor of the judge, suggesting it detracts from the seriousness of the case.
  • A few participants argue that the media's focus on celebrity deaths reflects a broader societal issue regarding the consumption of trivial news.
  • Some comments highlight a perceived disconnect between the media's portrayal of events and the actual significance of those events.
  • There are references to the impact of this coverage on public perception and the potential for it to distract from more important news stories.
  • Speculation arises about the motivations behind media coverage, with some suggesting it caters to a demand for sensationalism.
  • Participants share anecdotes and personal reactions to the media's handling of the situation, indicating a mix of frustration and disbelief.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally express dissatisfaction with the media's coverage and the public's fascination with celebrity culture. However, there is no consensus on the reasons behind this phenomenon or the implications it has for society.

Contextual Notes

Some comments reference the emotional responses of individuals and the perceived triviality of the news, indicating a complex interplay of opinions regarding media ethics and societal values.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be of interest to those exploring media studies, cultural criticism, or the psychology of public interest in celebrity news.

edward
Messages
73
Reaction score
165
FOX NEWS ALERT Anna Nicole Smith is still dead, details every two minutes.

I was channel surfing up towards the History Channel this afternoon, when I flipped past FOX and MSNBC, they were both carrying live court room coverage of the "where is she going to be buried" fiasco.

Gimme a break, there has to be some real news out there somewhere. It is incredible that enough of our population has become so intrigued by this kind of sensationalist tripe that major news networks would carry the live court procedings. They could at least have switched to a high speed chase for a few minutes.
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Even I was a a bit suprised over the live court room footage. More so because it was on for days. I didn't care much for the overly emotional judge, this all should of been done in one day, behind closed doors.
 
As much as I hate Fox News (which really ought to be renamed "Fox Republican Propaganda Machine"), the blame goes to NBC this time. It seems that MSNBC's abnormally high ratings can be attributed to their round the clock Anna Nicole coverage. What's really sad is that all of this coverage is by popular demand!
 
The issue should be restated as not to know the dead from the living, as the living from the braindead. We get all worked up time and time again whether one in a coma has any prospect for a cnscious existence, but ignore the far larger problem of those who seem alive, but function at a lizard level of intelligence. I don't mean to come off as superior, but science doesn't sell, sensationalism and emotional punch do--kind of a hugfest at some limbic level of processing will always capture the day.
 
Yep, and it is the popular demand part that has alarm bells ringing in my head. Court TV, A third cable channel covered a lot of the court agenda, it seems to me that Court TV would be the better place for something like this case. As a people are we really that hooked on sleaze?
 
Well, edward, no offense, but it certainly made you look. You took the bait like everyone else.
 
Last edited:
denverdoc said:
The issue should be restated as not to know the dead from the living, as the living from the braindead. We get all worked up time and time again whether one in a coma has any prospect for a cnscious existence, but ignore the far larger problem of those who seem alive, but function at a lizard level of intelligence. I don't mean to come off as superior, but science doesn't sell, sensationalism and emotional punch do--kind of a hugfest at some limbic level of processing will always capture the day.

Yep again. Situations of this type seem to trigger something in the brain that causes people to ponder questions that mean absolutely nothing. It is almost like an escape into nothingess, yet people crave it. Shades of the OJ trial, we are hooked.
 
Math Is Hard said:
Well, edward, no offense, but it certainly made you look. You took the bait like everyone else.

That is what worries me.:wink: I misssed nearly two minutes of "Marvels of the Modern World" on the History Channel.
 
Last edited:
edward said:
It is almost like an escape into nothingess, yet people crave it.

It is really too bad when the news services cater to this. Okay, so we have a country of trash tabloid addicts, but do the news services really have to throw meat to the hyenas?
 
  • #10
Thats to me the unfathomable question, why anyone would give a second glance to this story is beyond me, and why americans are so hooked on celebs that News these days, it is about a few individuals whose lives have no bearing whatsoever on mine. I could not care less which celeb is getting married, pregnant, unfaithful, or has some runaway kid. Maybe we should tie the right to votr to some minimal awareness.
 
  • #11
denverdoc said:
Maybe we should tie the right to votr to some minimal awareness.

When my wife and I see someone do something really stupid, one of us usually comments: "Just think, he/she votes!"

==> the current administration.
 
  • #12
edward said:
I was channel surfing up towards the History Channel this afternoon, when I flipped past FOX and MSNBC, they were both carrying live court room coverage of the "where is she going to be buried" fiasco.
...
They could at least have switched to a high speed chase for a few minutes.
You missed the right channel.

When I was eating lunch a couple days ago, I was doubly dismayed when CNN Headlines News was simultaneously running the live feed of the court proceedings along with live feed of a high speed car chase, (both happening in Broward county, incidentally) on a pair of split screens. I left that sandwich place with irreparable brain damage.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/local/states/florida/counties/broward_county/16752922.htm
 
  • #13
Gee, too bad there wasn't also a Barry Bonds AB and a 4.0 earthquake somewhere. They could have split it four ways and you could have also been watching a chandelier swing and a washed-up, drugged-out primadona limp 90 feet.
 
  • #14
I haven't seen any of the court proceedings (and am not inclined to go looking for them either), but the news this morning was commenting on the judge in the case...that they thought the cameras were the problem, because he seemed to be turning it into an audition to get himself onto one of those "People's Court" type shows. Such a thing makes me more concerned when I think that this judge doesn't just decide where a dead body gets buried, which in the grand scheme of things is incredibly insignificant, but also handles cases where the fates of living people are decided. If you're facing jail time or huge fines, is this the judge you want presiding?

I'm still baffled why any of this is on the news at all, and why anyone cares. It's just a family argument over where to bury a dead body. All this fuss over a corpse. :rolleyes: It was really scary when the only news I was seeing was about Anna Nicole's death and Britney Spears shaving her head and getting a tattoo. Can it get any more trivial than that?
 
  • #15
Moonbear said:
I haven't seen any of the court proceedings (and am not inclined to go looking for them either), but the news this morning was commenting on the judge in the case...that they thought the cameras were the problem, because he seemed to be turning it into an audition to get himself onto one of those "People's Court" type shows.
I thought the judge was a nutjob! He seemed to be going off with some idiotic social commentary about how there no religious wars in this country, which should make it easier to put aside differences...but then I got distracted, the white van was driving on the wrong side of the highway, through opposing traffic.
 
  • #16
Gokul43201 said:
I thought the judge was a nutjob! He seemed to be going off with some idiotic social commentary about how there no religious wars in this country, which should make it easier to put aside differences...but then I got distracted, the white van was driving on the wrong side of the highway, through opposing traffic.

:smile: Fairly unbalanced news, huh? :biggrin:
 
  • #17
NASA is most likely quite relieved that Anna and Brittany stole the yellow journalism limelight from Lisa Nowak.
 
  • #18
Moonbear said:
:smile: Fairly unbalanced news, huh? :biggrin:

I prefer the slogan: Fox News -- We Report, You Comply!
 
  • #19
D H said:
NASA is most likely quite relieved that Anna and Brittany stole the yellow journalism limelight from Lisa Nowak.

My theory is that NASA killed Anna Nicole and gave Britney crazy pills.
 
  • #20
Brittney probably just had her prescription for stupid pills misread by her pharmacist.
 
  • #21
denverdoc said:
The issue should be restated as not to know the dead from the living, as the living from the braindead. We get all worked up time and time again whether one in a coma has any prospect for a cnscious existence, but ignore the far larger problem of those who seem alive, but function at a lizard level of intelligence.
Well, the issue can be complicated at times.

Supposedly from a real trial (athough that may be myth):

Q: "Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a pulse?"
A: "No."
Q: "Did you check for blood pressure?"
A: "No."
Q: "Did you check for breathing?"
A: "No."
Q: "So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?"
A: "No."
Q: "How can you be so sure, Doctor?"
A: "Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar."
Q: "But could the patient have still been alive nevertheless?"
A: "It is possible that he could have been alive and practicing law somewhere."
 
  • #22
russ_watters said:
Brittney probably just had her prescription for stupid pills misread by her pharmacist.
:smile: :smile: :smile:
 
  • #23
Well, I told Tsu last night and I might has well go public: I'm the father.
 
  • #24
Ivan Seeking said:
Well, I told Tsu last night and I might has well go public: I'm the father.
You too? With all the "fathers" coming forward to claim the poor orphan, there must have been a line around the block leading to ANS's bedroom door.
 
  • #25
I just love how a bit of money changes the line from "No way! That's not my baby!" to, "Me, me, me, I'm the father, pick me!" :biggrin:
 
  • #26
A woman on another message board that I belong to has a signature banner that says, "Think outside the FOX". I like it.
 
  • #27
The OP reminds me of when Francisco Franco died and Chevy Chase kept announcing that he was still dead on SNL News. :biggrin: