reminder: fotc

Flight of the Conchords - Robot Future

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the ministry

The Ministry is the title of a new show coming to a TV near you about a near-megachurch. Written by Joel Kilpatrick, the creator of Lark News, the evangelical version of The Onion. Check out more about it here. I wonder if it will be as good as I think it can be. I'm hoping it grabs on audience so we can see his ideas unfold.

pbs and the emerging church

Interesting to hear a "news" perspective on some of the possible changes to how Americans do church:



"There are also questions about the extent to which the emerging church conversation will push out beyond a white-middle-class movement to become truly diverse and global. And whether it will have a lasting spiritual impact." Zing!

survivorman

It's time to give a shout out to he new season of Survivorman. If you haven't seen the show, stop everything you are doing and run to your Tivo.

This guy, Les Stroud, isolates himself in the wilderness to survive alone for 7 days (did I mention he has like 50lbs of camera equipment because he shoots the WHOLE thing himself). Whether you like the outdoors, adventure sports, or are into film, this is an amazing show. If you want to be entertained, I think you will enjoy this as well.

Whatever you do, give it a shot!

the soup confession

Turns out I may not have been completely honest about my TV addiction. The truth is there is another show which I watch almost religiously. The Soup (formerly Talk Soup).

Now, I initially began watching this 30-minute weekly entertainment show because it was good research for pop culture and entertainment news, and was remotely humorous. I enjoy staying on top of these things since it helps me understand the influences of pop culture on the students I work with, and makes for humorous references during teachings at our weekly gathering. I must warn you, since it often has some questionable content. But I have to confess it's grown on me.

Joel McHale's personality, humor, and near apathy for his job have endeared me to the show. While I do watch to stay on top of current events, I have become more interested in Joel's journey as he has gained some success and notoriety and has appeared on Iron Chef America and Thank God You're Here. The guy is sort of a sad character (real person) and I am rooting for him!

pardon the interruption

It's time for me to express my commitment and love for PTI. This daily TV show is really the only TV I feel I am addicted to. The rest of TV I can leave behind, but don't take away Tony and Mike!

ESPN's Pardon the Interruption gives you an overview of sports stories. Tony Kornhesier (Wikipedia/Washington Post) and Mike Wilbon (Wikipedia/Washington Post) give their commentary on the events, the culture, and the implications of sports news. It is far more insightful than you might think, though sometimes it does stoop to the glitz and glam of entertainment news.

Rebecca, my wife, says that Tony and Mike just yell at each other. I say you can turn down the TV if you think they are yelling.

the lost tomb of jesus

James Cameron has discovered the lost tomb of Jesus . . . that's how I first heard about the documentary on Discovery Channel last night. And I have really enjoyed the publicity surrounding all this.

I have watched the documentary, the critical look hosted by Ted Koppel afterwards, and watched numerous TV interviews. What strikes me as most fascinating about Simka Jacobovici (the director) is that he continually voices the fact that he is not an expert, and is just reporting the facts. The commentator tone which he takes in interviews is one that is not apparent in the documentary where he speaks as the all knowing force behind these amazing links which compel him to his conclusions.

Ultimately he places himself so that in interviews he cannot possibly be wrong. He says he is simply hypothesizing and trying to encourage attention and study using the facts (as he chooses to report them) from other experts. While the documentary invited viewers to reach their own interpretations at the beginning and end, he seems unable to allow the experts and commentators around him in interviews to reach their own interpretations. This poses the critical thinker to wonder why Simka would want the general public to draw a conclusion versus having experts draw conclusions? Ratings = Money.

This kind of docu-drama and archaeo-porn, as it has been called, seems very loose in its ability to report on the science of archaeology. It has always been fascinating to me how the History channel, among others, puts on shows that reenact history as it happened, but are only based on very limit ted documentation from compromised sources and centuries separated from the events (research how we establish the history of the Caesars and the Roman Empire). The danger of this is that it communicates to the audience a surety about the history being reported, without expressing the tension behind the facts. This is why there can be so many TV shows which show the many renderings of historical events and our ever changing textbooks.

adam's ankles

I was sitting in a meeting today with Adam Rechenmacher and found myself distracted because of his ankles. He wore those low socks coming just slightly out of running shoes with brown pants. I took the time to ask him about his ... distracting ... fashion statement, and he expressed his desire to be like House, who wears running shoes to work. I'm not sure Adam realizes that House has jeans with his running shoes, not pants. It's the coat with jeans that is a real fashion statement. Nevertheless, the excuse of being like House meant they were some amazing ankles at work today.

24

So I have found myself pretty much addicted to 24 for quite sometime. I really have only faithfully watched the last three seasons, and saw the end of the first season. There are times I hate myself for having to know what happens to Jack and his world. This season, and last, I am frustrated by the continual unprofessionalism and incompetence that surrounds Jack. I find myself wanting to fast forward my Tivo through the other scenes just to see how Jack responds, but I have found this takes away too much of the story. There still certainly remains the questions about who will they kill next, who is really a mole at CTU, and which storyline are they completely wasting my time with. Even with these seemingly predictable elements, I can't stop watching.