In 1979 three cable channels quietly got their start. It was a time of three major networks, and cable in very few homes. Over the next few decades all three became cultural icons. They were MTV, CNN, and ESPN.
In the beginnings, like all budding enterprises, all three basically made it up as they went along. MTV had less than 200 videos, three camera, and 5 newly minted VJs who seemed more worried about having fun and loving music than anything else. For the first 15 years MTV showed nothing but videos and music. (NOTE: for those of you under the age of 25 the M in MTV stands for music.) At ESPN the first edition of their flagship show Sportscenter had zero video high lights. Hours of programming was filled with tractor pulls, world strongest man competitions, roller-derby, AWA wrestling, and Australian Rules Football (all to my great delight). CNN was not the world news power it is today, but in stead the news was nothing more than reporting wire services from around the world.
By the late eights and early nineties all three had reached their zenith. They were large enough to be significant, but still nimble enough to be truly innovative.
MTV’s afternoon was filled with Dr. Dre (not the rapper you are thinking of) and Ed Lover (doing the Ed Lover dance) spinning Rap and Hip Hop tunes (before rap was main stream), followed by Dial MTV. (This was the precursor to Total Request Live, minus the studio audience, minus the celebs pushing what new project they have, and actually playing the full video).
ESPN had “The Big Show”. It wasn’t really called the big show, but that is how Keith Olbermann started the 90min 6:00pm eastern Sportscenter, “Welcome to the big show.” Keith and Dan Patrick moved briskly through the world of sports by provided highlights and information with a biting comment or a subtle joke. Not much more. It was a sports fan’s dream.
CNN became so good at bring us the news, they had us on the front lines all over the world. Bernard Shaw on the telephone and hiding under the table in his Baghdad hotel room and the missiles started to fall. News that was so far reaching that the US forces had to stop providing strategic information because the Iraqis were watching CNN. They brought us the first televised war.
But that time has passed. Now I am not going to act like a 97 year old and say, “Oh those were the days. It was so much better then.” Now is just different. Not better. Not worse. Different.
There are so many more channels and types of media. The big three no longer have a monopoly on their field. Information comes much faster. MTV is filled with cheap reality in a celebrity focused world where music (or any other art has much place, just the live of those who created it). ESPN is filled with talking heads who scream opinions none stop as they try and compete with an always on sports talk radio world. CNN no longer has the luxury to develop a story. Everyone is trying to get there first and we will figure out who is right later.
It is a different world. All three have grown so large that they must make safe and profitable choices. They are no longer owned and run by a small few, but huge companies. They are trying to appeal to as many people as possible.
Not that it is bad. They just can’t claim the cutting edge street cred of years past.
From their glorious past there are still a few cutting edge remnants. Adam Curry is portrayed in the media as the father of the podcast, a mode of communication we still don’t know where it will lead. And Keith Olbermann is still out there making us laugh, while informing.
His current incarnation is the host of MSNBC’s show “The Countdown with Keith Olbermann”. The format of the show forces them to move through many issues, instead of just lingering on the hot story of the day (which other shows beat to death). The topics range for international news to news of the weird. All of which is presented with Keith’s wit, charm and insight (all of which are sharp and precise). It is the one hour of news I try and get every day.
Because it is hiding in the cable nether regions on MSNBC it is able to fly under the radar, letting the host and his staff to present not only the news, but in an entertaining way which is shaped and shaded by Keith’s point of view. I don’t always agree with his analysis, but it is always fun. Some how they are able to be on a channel owned by giant GE and still be deviant and counter cultural. It is what the “Daily Show” would be if it wasn’t a fake news show, but a real one instead.
I think it is important to know what going on in the world, and there is no crime in getting that news in an entertaining and intelligent fashion. Do yourself a favor and check it out.
“The Countdown with Keith Olbermann” airs nightly at 8pm eastern and replayed at Midnight eastern. It can also be heard at those times on XMRadio channel 130 (which is where I listen).