Next year CBS could have Jackie Gleason host the Fourth of July program in Boston.
After all, the technology exists and it’s “just for entertainment,” isn’t it?
This year, they “enhanced” the fireworks experience for TV, and who can blame them?
Just because what they showed was not reality, why should that ever influence television?
They have the technology to make what is good even better, why not use it?
They have the ability to drum and drum a point until everyone believes it, whether it is true or not, so why shouldn’t they?
After all, “the media is the message,” isn’t it?
Actually, in Boston, some folks would just as soon that the truth was still the message, and they noticed when CBS showed fireworks over landmarks in the city. The problem is, the fireworks were actually shot over the Charles River, for obvious reasons, to insure that those landmarks didn’t get burned down.
Thanks to the miracle of modern special effects, however, the shots of the fireworks and other shots of the landmarks were merged to make a whole new, exciting, and completely bogus image.
The executive producer of the program said it’s all good, because this was “entertainment” and not “news.”
Wait a minute.
These are broadcast views of what appears to be fireworks being exploded over a heavily populated city — not Orson Welles and the Mercury Theater reading “War of the Worlds” on the radio.
Why would anyone who wasn’t told, know that these images had been faked?
Apparently, the lesson that we have been taught by CBS is that, unless someone flashes a big sign that announces “NEWS” we should just presume that what we see is not the truth.
And, frankly, that would be good advice.
Turn on TV, Tune into lies. Drop out of integrity.
Fair enough.
— Chuck Smith