View TV Phenom-American Idol. Rolling Stone's Joe Levy, music producer Bobby Colomby, and Lola Ogunnaike of the New York Times discuss the phenomenon of "American Idol". Has this program helped the music industry, or damaged it in some way? As a media product, is "American Idol" more about television than music? Is much of the appeal of the contestants in their looks, compared to their musical talent? Does the "reality TV" aspect of illustrating the contestants' life stories also contribute to the program's success? Could such a popular contest program have been held on the radio with similar success?
View track 4.2, Issues: The Ratings Battle. This track takes you inside a mid-size commercial television station in Erie, PA. Do you believe the statement, "if it bleeds, it leads" accurately represents trends in TV news viewership? What factors do you consider when choosing a station to watch your news?
View track 4.6, Issues: Sports Journalism. Why do you think sports segments are stuck at the end of a newscast? Do you consider the typical lineup of the day's sporting highlights to be journalism?
TV Phenom-American Idol (51009.0K)