Oprah’s Most Memorable TV Moments (PHOTOS)
November 19, 2009 by Huffington Post
Filed under Videos
Oprah’s Friday announcement that “The Oprah Winfrey Show” — which began in 1985 — will end its run in the fall of 2011 will bring to a close one of television’s most legendary shows.
Below, we’ve compiled 12 of the most memorable “Oprah” show moments. Vote on your favorites.
Katya Wachtel: Morgan Stanley CEO Calls for More Regulation of Wall Street at Vanity Fair-Bloomberg Event
November 18, 2009 by Huffington Post
Filed under Videos
At a Vanity Fair and Bloomberg event in Manhattan on Wednesday night, audience members were delighted by an impromptu ( and slightly coerced) appearance by Morgan Stanley CEO, John Mack, who called for far more stringent policing of Wall Street.
Mack, sitting inconspicuously amongst a crowd of business journos and financiers, was cheekily ambushed by Bloomberg’s Margaret Brennan during the ‘additional questions’ portion of the evening, after a stellar panel of business reporters (and one historian) speculated on the causes of the financial crisis and analyzed how governmental and news institutions have handled the event.
After a quasi-joke that he was hiding from the camera, Mack grudgingly stood up and answered questions from Brennan and the panel. Mack, who will step down as CEO of Morgan Stanley next January, thought press coverage of the crisis had been, “overall, fair,” and honed in on the urgent need for greater regulation of the finance industry.
“Regulators have to be much more involved,” Mack said. “We cannot control ourselves — [regulators] have to step in and control the Street.” He added that some positive changes have been made, pointing to the fact that in the halls of Morgan Stanley, ten or fifteen federal regulators now roam daily.
“I love it,” Mack said. “It forces firms to invest in risk management.”
The ‘Covering the Crisis’ panel consisted of Vanity Fair’s Bryan Burrough (formerly an investigative reporter for the Wall Street Journal), Niall Ferguson (a professor of history and business at Harvard and contributing editor for the Financial Times), Bethany McLean (a contributing editor at Vanity Fair and the reporter often credited with having brought down Enron) and Andrew Ross Sorkin (the NYT’s chief mergers and acquisitions reporter and columnist). The discussion was moderated by a pithy and tongue-in-cheek Michael Lewis, who left Portfolio in February to join the ranks of Graydon Carter’s mag (the man at the helm of Vanity Fair was in attendance, as was the Bloomberg group’s multimedia CEO, Andrew Lack).
Some highlights from the conversation…
- Lewis: Should Lehman have been allowed to fall? Sorkin ummed and ahhed and then said yes; Ferguson said no; so did Burrough: “Lehman was losable. They were isolatable. You could put them on an island. If you had lost AIG, I’m not sure it was isolatable.”
- Lewis: What caused the crisis? Sorkin said deregulation, monetary policy and leverage; McLean blamed the political emphasis and encouragement of universal homeownership; Ferguson listed all the above and then proclaimed that we have all missed one important factor: China.
- Brennan to Mack on media coverage of Morgan Stanley and the crisis in general: Mack described the coverage as generally fair, but then declared that coverage of the Stanley/Mitsubishi deal was “bullshit.”
- Brennan (host of cable TV news show, InBusiness): Did cable news coverage affect the crisis? Sorkin said it may have upped the panic ante, because even neutral, realistic reflection of the panic reverberates and thus intensifies alarm; Burrough was more condemnatory: ” TV journos have too much time to fill. Your job is not to reflect passions, it’s to report facts”; Ferguson argued that major financial meltdowns happened long before cable news.
- Lewis to Sorkin: Is there anything you didn’t uncover in your book? (Sorkin’s new book, Too Big to Fail, looks at the collapse and bailout of Wall Street. Lewis had implied earlier in the evening that Sorkin’s source list and the information he extrapolated during the reportage, was quite impressive): Sorkin said he wished he had access to the confidential notes taken during that 5 hour meeting on what to do about AIG, on that fateful Tuesday last September…
To watch a replay of ‘Covering the Crisis,’ visit Vanity Fair.com
Anna Davlantes Joins Fox-Owned WFLD After Leaving Channel 5
November 18, 2009 by Huffington Post
Filed under Videos
Anna Davlantes, who bolted WMAQ-Ch. 5 this summer after nine years, has joined WFLD-Ch. 32 as a contributing anchor and reporter for the Fox-owned station’s 9 p.m. news.
Ari Herzog: Do You Care That President Obama Does Not Tweet?
November 17, 2009 by Huffington Post
Filed under Videos
The blogosphere is abuzz in the wake of President Barack Obama’s statement in Shanghai Sunday night that he doesn’t use Twitter, nor has ever typed a tweet. MG Siegler at TechCrunch reacts and opines:
This is interesting considering the Internet, and social media in particular, was considered a large part of his ascension to the Presidency. Obviously, he had a killer team around him that was able to embrace the web without the then-Senator getting too much involved. Still, it’s somewhat surprising that he never sent any of his own tweets during the primaries.
The Presidency comprises more than the person elected to the office, but also includes aides and assistants and directors and managers. Macon Phillips is one. Vivek Kundra is another. Bev Godwin is a third. They are individuals appointed to roles that (in)directly support the President and are allowed to speak on his behalf — or the Presidency’s behalf.
Should it matter that Obama never tweeted?
Pay attention to the following comment by Brian Ahier, an Oregon city councilor:
As an important clarification to an error in the article, the Whitehouse communications team only send tweets from the official Whitehouse Twitter account. There are very strict rules that regulate the mingling of official accounts with campaign and personal accounts. @BarackObama is the account of the Obama political campaign. @WhiteHouse is the account of the Whitehouse.
I wrote about the connection between social media and the presidential election 12 months ago, and compared the number of Obama and McCain followers on various social media sites between August and November 2008.
It’s no more surprising that @BarackObama’s Twitter followers jumped from 111,000 in November 2008 to over 2.6 million today, than to read about the President not tweeting himself.
It’s also not important that he doesn’t tweet. He has more important things to do. Your thoughts?
The above previously appeared here on AriWriter.
Palin Accuses AP Of Doing "Opposition Research" In Fact Check of Book
November 16, 2009 by Huffington Post
Filed under Videos
Former Alaska Governor lashed out at the Associated Press Sunday for doing a fact-check on her memoir, “Going Rogue.”
“Amazingly, but not surprisingly, the AP somehow nabbed a copy of the book before it was released,” she wrote on her Facebook page. “They’re now erroneously reporting on the book’s contents and are repeating many of the same things they spewed during the campaign and afterwards. We’ve heard 11 writers are engaged in this opposition research, er, “fact checking” research!”
The AP reported that Palin’s account often contradicted her record as well as current events. Her depiction of the McCain campaign is also frequently at odds with internal campaign emails.
Get HuffPost Politics On Facebook and Twitter!
"SNL" Skewers Lou Dobbs After Host Quits CNN (VIDEO)
November 15, 2009 by Huffington Post
Filed under Videos
“Saturday Night Live” went after Lou Dobbs this week, claiming he retired from CNN because he thinks the “C” stands for the Spanish word “si.” Dobbs, played by Darrell Hammond, went on to refer to his replacement, John King, as “Juan” King–a man he says may have paid for his dapper appearance with drug money.
WATCH:
Get HuffPost Comedy On Facebook and Twitter!
Fox News Responds To Anita Dunn Again — This Time With More Spice
November 14, 2009 by Huffington Post
Filed under Videos
Fox News has responded to outgoing White House communications director Anita Dunn, again wishing her well — but this time with more spice.
“We wish her well in her new position where we’re sure she’ll continue providing brilliant strategic vision,” a Fox News spokesperson told the Huffington Post in response to Dunn’s parting shots against the network.
Earlier in the day, Dunn — seen as the “general” in the administration’s feud with Fox News — spoke out against Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck, as well as the network at large, in an appearance at the Bloomberg News Washington Summit.
Last week, in response to the news that Dunn would be leaving the White House, Fox News merely said, “We wish Anita well in her future endeavors.”
The “well-wish” is a classic response from the Fox News PR department, and is “usually accompanied by a kneecapping. It’s something like a kiss from a Mafia don,” the AP’s David Bauder wrote in a 2006 article.. The network — which hadn’t ‘wished anyone well’ in over three years before Dunn — has various degrees of response depending on the situation:
A wish-well is generally a team effort by Fox’s PR staff, [Fox News PR Chief Brian] Lewis said….
Each line is a counter-punch, Lewis noted. Fox doesn’t “go nuclear” unless provoked. And he doesn’t want the lines to lose impact by overdoing it.
“Not every attack on us deserves a response,” he said. “It could be no response. That’s a strategy. It could be mild, medium or spicy, depending on what our needs are.”
Clearly, this week’s response is one degree “spicier” than last week’s.
The Fox News spokesperson added that Dunn was incorrect in one of her statements about the network Friday.
“We have not made a decision network on whether or not we are going to do those,” Dunn said in response to recent reports that President Obama would be interviewed by Fox News’ Major Garrett while he is in China. “There are no confirmed television interviews in China. And if, oh, some network sent out a press release announcing that was going to happen you’d have to ask about that network and whether or not they really had their facts confirmed before they leaked that.”
“Once again, Anita has her facts wrong,” the spokesperson said. “Fox News never issued a press release.”
Bob Woodruff: Families, Caregivers Bear the Biggest Burden
November 10, 2009 by Huffington Post
Filed under Videos
This Veterans Day, as we honor those who defend our country, our thoughts are with the injured overseas and here, at Fort Hood. While the facts are still developing, this tragedy exposes the true toll of war’s hidden injuries — not only on our nation’s service members, but on the families and caregivers who tend to them.
Today, most troops wounded in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan are surviving their injuries. They fought our country’s battles. Now they fight their own. According to the RAND Center for Military Health Policy Research, 320,000 have sustained traumatic brain injuries, and nearly 20 percent will report symptoms of PTSD or major depression.
Exposed for prolonged periods to trauma and stress, many face intense cognitive and psychological issues. The financial cost of addressing these issues is worrisome. RAND estimates the one-year cost of moderate TBI at more than $250,000 per case and the total cost to society at more than $4 billion. Our nation’s ability to treat these conditions is still inadequate. While the US Department of Veterans Affairs has taken significant steps under General Shinsecki to address stigma and remove barriers to care, there are still gaps. A recent study showed that 57 percent of those reporting a probable TBI had not been evaluated by a physician, and only half seeking treatment for PTSD or depression received minimally adequate care. The Fort Hood tragedy reveals the strains in our healthcare system, particularly the shortages and stigma associated with reporting and treating psychological wounds.
The larger costs our nation and its families will be forced to carry are also troubling. Like physical injuries, hidden ones can affect the economic livelihood, quality of life and family relationships of service members just as they are trying to regain their footing. Financial needs during recovery often exceed what the government currently can provide, forcing healthy family members to give up their jobs to serve as primary caregiver. Many are spouses who have no respite from these responsibilities, and no other means of income beyond their military benefits. Others are parents of military children, once empty nesters who are now primary caregivers not eligible for the same benefits. Economic conditions make efforts to assist military families even more urgent — with the number of unemployed current veterans nearly equal to the entire US military strength serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. Even in a positive economic environment, military families — especially the injured and those grappling with TBI or PTSD — will need special opportunities to find jobs and establish economic security.
With the high cost of rehabilitation expenses and pressure on family income, a growing number of military families are severely rent burdened, 500,000 paying more than 50% of their income on rent. Financially strapped and emotionally fragile, those who suffer from trauma are at risk to experience psychological or behavioral issues or succumb to substance abuse. Others will join the ranks of our nation’s homeless. According to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, one in three homeless have put on a uniform to defend our country. While thousands who served in Iraq already use the VA’s homeless programs, many more will need supportive housing programs designed after The Jericho Project model to addresses the root causes of homelessness and the special needs of veterans.
America’s service members, caregivers and families are hurting in other ways, too. The Fort Hood incident offers a glimpse into the special stresses of caregiving. While exceptional, this tragedy is shining a light in the dark corners — where those who provide assistance to others who are traumatized can suffer silently, avoiding help because of shame or feelings of inadequacy. Even in ordinary circumstances, for our military families, the emotional weight of rehabilitation and transition make just staying together taxing. Spouses of those with hidden injuries often face their own grief and depression as they struggle to reunite their families after long separations. Children of parents with trauma have special needs for counseling, socialization and support that are not always easy for mainstream educators to address. More organizations like the Military Child Education Coalition, greater openness, and better training are needed for our counselors, community leaders and clergy to blanket military families with security and help them cope with these very real issues.
This isn’t about politics, or about the war. It’s about the warrior. The massacre at Fort Hood is a tragic reminder of the psychological wounds of war. It can also be a catalyst for change to help those who endure them. This Veterans Day, after we raise the flag, we must raise awareness about wars hidden injuries, and what’s required for injured service members, families and caregivers to have safe and successful futures. The health and livelihood of our families, and our country, is at stake.
News anchor Bob Woodruff, the group’s founder, was seriously injured by a roadside bomb while reporting in Iraq. He has returned to the air and covers a variety of issues from around the globe for ABC. A military family member, Rene Bardorf is Executive Director of The Bob Woodruff Foundation, which provides resources and support to injured service members, veterans and their families.
Lisa Napoli: Go Iowa!
November 10, 2009 by Huffington Post
Filed under Videos
I remember the news reports saying that the first thing the
East Germans did was go to buy televisions. They tied them onto the backs of their tiny Flintstone-era
cars. A year later, when I found
myself lucky to visit Berlin, I looked for evidence of this TV-mania; I was too
young to figure it out, really, too overwhelmed by what was then only my second
stint at international travel.
I think about this as I sit in the ESPN Sports Zone,
watching a massive bank of televisions with my friend B., a rabid Yankees
fan. (So rabid he defied his own
personal convention and got a tattoo with the logo on his calf.) It is what turns out to be the
penultimate game of the World Series.
“How smart they are—they’ve figured out how to make you leave the house
to watch television,” B. says. He
is in the food business and he knows his theme restaurants well. This is genius: Several hundred people
sitting in a giant darkened room, gazing at screens. The former residents of East Germany would be thrilled. There’s a personal sized screen on your
table. The giant one in the
center, which we have been assured will be on the baseball game and not
football. And a dozen others
surrounding it, dramatically blinking and flashing sports and more sports. When there’s a blip on our table-top
screen, our waitress Jackie sends out a technician.
Lately, I haven’t been blogging a whole lot, because I’ve
been living life instead of recording it.
The only time the TV gets turned on in the house is when there’s a
football game. Namely, an Iowa
football game. This has to do with
T. and his ardor for his alma mater; if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em, I figure,
and I kind of like the habit, the belonging, anyhow. That has a lot to do with T. and a bit to do with having
gone to a school where the only organized sport was Frisbee.
There’s an unwatched DVD from Netflix collecting dust on top
of the set, which has been reading purply pink on the edges since I picked it
up a few weeks ago for some reason I can’t remember. Now that Iowa got beat this past weekend, my zest for
learning about college football has waned a bit. But only a bit. I can see that it’s fun to be a fan. From my old friend B. the Yankees
maniac and my new one T, who doesn’t have an Iowa tattoo, except in spirit.
Communal watching of the game seems fun, in its way. A few weeks ago we went to Barney’s
Beanery in Santa Monica, where Iowa fans crammed the warren of tables and
gasped in disbelief at the last-second win against Michigan State. As I gasped, too—not that I understand
a damned thing about football—I thought, somehow television is better when it’s
viewed in a crowd, when everyone’s tuned in simultaneously and cheering for a
shared outcome. No wonder I can’t
turn on the TV at home, by myself; even when I force myself to, it just all
seems so passive and pale. Still, I’m going to keep it around at least until the end of college football season.
NY Post Circulation Sinks To 508,000
November 9, 2009 by Huffington Post
Filed under Videos
Nearly every paper in America has lost circulation, but The Post more than most — down almost 30 percent in 2.5 years, to 508,000 in the most recent reporting period, against 544,000 for The Daily News.
