If It Bleeds, It Leads An Anatomy Of Television News [Paperback]

You've been watching television news forever. You're intimately familiar with the friendly faces and soothing voices that nightly tell you what's wrong with the world. You think you know everything there is to know about them. You're wrong.If It Bleeds, It Leads takes us minute-by-minute through two-and-one-half real hours of syndicated, local, and network information programming to uncover the truth behind what passes as news. Why is the only real difference between Jerry Springer and Dan Rather that Dan's guests usually don't need medical attention? How did a load of baking powder spark two minutes of high-strung local news coverage? It's all here: the personal revelations of talk show guests; the dangers lurking in your neighborhood; sports; sex; celebrity; power; and weather updates every ten minutes--all real material taken from real broadcasts designed to keep viewers glued to the screen.* Disclaimer: Everything you are about to read is true Hour One: Syndicated Talk (The Actual Program You See Will Vary Depending on Where You Live) * 4:00:00 pm Station Identification * 4:00:05 pm Opening Montage (Roll Tape) * 4:00:35 pm Meet the Hosts * 4:05:00 pm Meet the Guests * 4:10:00 pm Supply Medical Treatment for the Guests * 4:12:20 pm Begin First Protracted Shoving, Punching, and Deleted Dialogue Segment Between Best Friends Who Care About Each Other a Lot * 4:13:15 pm Add Fuel to Fire; Cue Second Bounder * 4:13:27 pm Begin 2-Minute 45-Second Sibling Shoving, Punching, and Deleted Dialogue Segment * 4:16:12 pm Add More Fuel to Fire; Alert Hospital to Prepare for Injuries * 4:18:02 pm Everyone Realizes This Is the Show * 4:23:30 pm Prepare to Pay Bouncers Overtime Hour Two: Live at Five (Dead by Six) * 5:00:00 pm Tease * 5:00:30 pm Inventing a Riot * 5:02:45 pm A Reassuring Segue * 5:03:00 pm Only Popular Restaurants Are Dangerous * 5:05:50 pm Tease * 5:06:00 pm Ad Time-Out: You Will Be on Television * 5:09:00 pm Feeling the Barometric Pressure * 5:11:45 pm What EverlSU