State of the Union: Done With the Past
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Specials, Video,
For the second time in his presidency, President Barack Obama stood before the nation to deliver the State of the Union on Tuesday night. Many viewers had the option of skipping the speech because it was leaked online some two hours before the president took his podium. In the Information Age, nothing is sacred.
Obama opened by mentioning the Tucson tragedy, calling attention to the grim, empty seat within the chamber. But he quickly moved forward in the speech, talking at length about America’s greatness and spirit of innovation. It all felt a little empty … until Obama broke the ice with his first really great joke.
“I have heard rumors that a few of you still have concerns about our new health care law.” It came a little late into the speech, but it was the line that united the room. Laughter is much more heartfelt than forced applause, and at last the President of the United States was off and running.
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VIDEO: SNL’s Take on the State of the Untion
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Comedy, Late Night, NBC, Saturday Night Live, Video,
Last week’s Saturday Night Live opened with Fred Armisen, who has enjoyed the honor many times this season. He reprised his role as President Barack Obama to deliver his own version of the State of the Union address.
Complete with real footage, the skit was hilarious, though Armisen’s impression is by no means definitive (or even very good). What makes this clip stellar is Jason Sudeikis as Joe Biden. Just watch it to see.
Read More | YouTube
Obama Addresses the Nation: The State of Our Union
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Prime Time, Specials, ABC, Cable, CBS, FOX, NBC, PBS, Video,
President Obama took over TV on Wednesday night to deliver his first State of the Union address, wisely scheduling his speech to occur after American Idol (which has a higher approval rating). As Vice President Joe Biden and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi arranged themselves in their special seats, First Lady Michelle Obama stood poised with a large contingent of service professionals who were on hand to hear the speech. It was business as usual, but there was no hiding the charged atmosphere. Barack Obama’s first State of the Union has been a long-anticipated event…as is the change the country had hoped to see.
The President entered the room to a smattering of applause, smiling as he shook hands on his way up the aisle. Once he was finally in position, he handed copies of the speech to the other two highest-ranking political figures in our land - a speech which is also obtainable online as a matter of public record. Keep reading to get all the highlights.
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Will the White House Interfere with Lost’s Premiere?
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Drama, Prime Time, Sci-Fi/Horror, ABC, Lost, Video,
UPDATE: It appears the White House will stay clear of February 2nd.
Note to all you Lost fans out there: If those folks inside the White House don’t play nicely, we may be forced to wait for our Season 6 premiere.
Although the networks have managed to plan out their schedules (for the most part) months in advance, organizers in D.C. have a bit more difficulty getting things pinned down. As of today, President Obama’s administration has slated either January 26 or February 2 as the day for Obama’s first State of the Union speech. Should they choose to go with the latter date, we probably won’t be going back to the island until February 9.
Are you as irked as a I am? If so, feel free to join the masses by tweeting with the hashtag #NoStateofUnionFeb2. In the meantime, get a recap of the first five seasons in approximately 8 minutes.
Read More | Futon Critic
Monday Ratings: A Slow Start to the Week
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Action, Comedy, Drama, Music, Prime Time, Reality, Sci-Fi/Horror, Specials, ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, The CW, The Office, Ratings,
Last night’s Presidential address threw viewers and networks for a loop. Numbers were down all across the board. After piecing together the ratings, it appears ABC narrowly won with the viewers while NBC was the victor with the demos.
8pm
- Two and a Half Men* (9.7 million, 3.4/9 in 18-49) beat out all of Monday’s originals.
- Dance War (9.4 million, 2.5/6) lost a little footing from last week.
- American Gladiators (8.5 million, 3.5/6) plunged 1.6 million into the water.
- How I Met Your Mother* (7.5 million, 2.6/7) saw a 400,000 boost.
- Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles* (6 million, 2.2/6) was down 2.6 mill.
- A special Gossip Girl (1.7, 0.7/2) went barely noticed on its new night.
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Variety
President Bush Delivers Last ‘State’
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Prime Time, Specials, ABC, Cable, CBS, FOX, NBC, PBS, Editorial,
Monday night saw the very last (scheduled) State of the Union address delivered by our Commander-in-Chief, President George W. Bush (Dubya). He preempted a great deal of network and cable coverage for this speech to members of Congress and the nation. (A full transcript of the speech can be found at the official White House site.)
The real meat of Bush’s speech centered on the last seven years and bills he wants Congress to pass in the coming weeks. After a ton of hemming and hawing on a number of topics - he did mention voting in the next election at the top of the hour and alluded to the possible recession and economic decline in which the country currently finds itself - he got around to the issue everyone wants to know more about: our troops.
Calling the War on Terror “the defining ideological struggle of the 21st century,” Dubya announced he will require 3,200 more Marines in Afghanistan. He also talked on his Return on Success policy which will help bring 20,000 troops back to U.S. shores in “the coming months.”
He lauded his own success with No Child Left Behind and promised new budget cuts would create a surplus in the nation’s finances. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi gamely managed to keep a straight face as Dubya applauded his own efforts with the nation’s education. Bush called for new Pell Grants for Kids totaling $300 million, and at least mentioned the possibility of renewable energy during his time on the floor. But he also asked that Congress continue to fund the troops, praising those who are currently serving on the front lines (to stirring applause from both sides of the aisle).
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This Week on TV (1/28-2/3)
Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Comedy, Drama, Games, Music, Prime Time, Reality, Sci-Fi/Horror, Sports, ABC, Bravo, FOX, HBO, MTV, NBC, The CW, Apprentice, The - Donald, House, Lost,
(You can view the whole Revamped TV Programming Schedule here.)
MONDAY (1/28)
**Live coverage of the State of the Union Address (9 PM Eastern) will alter many schedules. Double-check your local listings for times.**
- Dance War (ABC, 8pm): “One contestant from the losing team is ousted after the first round of competition.” Those remaining will learn Bruno’s ‘I’m Still Standing’ routine.
- Gossip Girl (CW, 8pm): Pilot repeat. Late-comers can finally learn why Gossip is this season’s guiltiest pleasure. (And when I say ‘gossip’, I mean the show, of course.)
- In Treatment (HBO, 9:30: Series premiere. New therapy drama airs 5x a week with a different patient every night. Apparently Gabriel Byrne can’t handle them all at once like the masterful Dr. Drew.
- Making the Band 4 (MTV, 10pm): Diddy brings back all the winners and throws them together in one house. If they end up killing each other, he can finally start anew.
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CNN: In it for the Long Haul
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Specials, Cable, News,
Cable news network CNN will try something never-before-seen for this year’s exciting election coverage: they’re going to squeeze all the fun out of it with consecutive forty-hour live coverage. And you thought they couldn’t possibly make poll results more uninteresting.
February’s “Super Tuesday” is the event. Coverage begins at six in the morning Feb. 5, when polls open in more than twenty states. The coverage ends at 11 pm the following Wednesday. Results of the polls won’t even be available until well into the evening of Feb. 5, but that’s not stopping CNN. Meanwhile, the network will show live coverage of candidates through the weekend, including debates. It’s all the politics you can stand, complete with tired TV anchors and plenty of pretty poll graphs. But don’t let’s get too far ahead of ourselves…the White House isn’t empty yet.
So that no one forgets we still have a President in office, George W. Bush (Dubya) will preempt network programming this coming Monday night for an hour-and-a-half-long State of the Union address. I always have a bad feeling when one of these occurs, fearful as always that the US is about to declare war on yet another country. But who knows? Maybe he’s just going to give us all health care instead of going to war. That’ll be that day.
Hollywood Reporter
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