The show "Charlie Rose", an interview show that airs on PBS and Bloomberg, is the best show on television. It stands in marked contrast to other interview shows such as "Larry King Live" or "Piers Morgan" in the depth and quality of the questioning. Whereas "Larry King" consisted of King tossing softball questions to some of the most interesting and famous people in the world, "Charlie" consists of having both famous and distinguished guests across a wide spectrum of interests being asked poignant, timely questions.
The sets of "Charlie" and either of the CNN productions set the tone for how different each program is. "Charlie" consists of Charlie Rose, the interviewer, and the interviewee. The only props are a coffee table, a drink for Charlie and one of the guests, and a completely black background. Compare this with "Piers Morgan", which has an elaborate set design, with lots of colorful lights and screens with the name "Piers Morgan" rolling across, just incase you forgot which show you were watching. In my opinion, all of this takes away from the content of the interview, making it no more than mere small talk between a Brit and some famous or supposedly "important" person. "Charlie Rose" cuts directly to serious questioning after a brief introduction, not letting any of his guests get off the set by dodging the question or giving a non-answer.
Additionally, the guests that appear on "Charlie Rose" are not just the latest flavor of the week that the media has decided to concentrate on. Sure, he interviews distinguished guests such as Barack Obama and Angelina Jolie, but he has also interviewed lesser known names as the commentator David Brooks and the former dean of the Harvard Business School, Kim Clark. This keeps the regular viewer well informed concerning not only the top news stories of the day, but also stories and perspectives that wouldn't make it on the air any other way.
The sets of "Charlie" and either of the CNN productions set the tone for how different each program is. "Charlie" consists of Charlie Rose, the interviewer, and the interviewee. The only props are a coffee table, a drink for Charlie and one of the guests, and a completely black background. Compare this with "Piers Morgan", which has an elaborate set design, with lots of colorful lights and screens with the name "Piers Morgan" rolling across, just incase you forgot which show you were watching. In my opinion, all of this takes away from the content of the interview, making it no more than mere small talk between a Brit and some famous or supposedly "important" person. "Charlie Rose" cuts directly to serious questioning after a brief introduction, not letting any of his guests get off the set by dodging the question or giving a non-answer.
Additionally, the guests that appear on "Charlie Rose" are not just the latest flavor of the week that the media has decided to concentrate on. Sure, he interviews distinguished guests such as Barack Obama and Angelina Jolie, but he has also interviewed lesser known names as the commentator David Brooks and the former dean of the Harvard Business School, Kim Clark. This keeps the regular viewer well informed concerning not only the top news stories of the day, but also stories and perspectives that wouldn't make it on the air any other way.
I was learning a little bit about news segments like "Charlie Rose" in my Media and Democracy class. In class we learned that these were alternative news sources. It is cool to see sometimes how PBS and others compare with more mainstream media outlets like CNN and FOX News. You can see how they target and how they deliver the news differently.
ReplyDeleteI have not watched this show, but I feel like it would interest me. I think the most important aspect to a successful show is to attend/attract a diverse audience from different fields, careers, and backgrounds. This way, people won't think, "he's not referring to us." Everyone wants to seem important to somebody even if they are not as important as "thee" important.
ReplyDeleteI use to be interested in Larry King and I feel like since this show is similar to that, I will have a keen interest in watching it. It is also nice to see the various ways different shows have of portraying similar people. Usually only the mainstream CNN or Fox News get viewers' attention but it's nice to see a different type of show on PBS get the same attention.
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