And Finally, the News…

It may not be the Howard Beale “Mad as Hell” meltdown scene from the movie Network, but I’ll take it for now: here’s MSNBC anchor Mika Brzezinski refusing to cover the Paris Hilton non-story despite the prodding of her co-anchors and producer. Really, people, of all the things with which we should concern ourselves, that trampy monster of entitlement should be among the last of them…

I had a cynical moment where I thought that this was mere grandstanding in order to cover Paris Hilton by not covering her, but as someone who occasionally tunes in to MSNBC, I think that such subterfuge requires more brain cells than all of their producers currently have. I’m going to assume that Ms. Brzezinski’s refusal is genuine and salute her with a filet mignon on a flaming sword.

For those of you who are wondering what the hell I’m talking about with this “Howard Beale” and Network, here’s a synopsis of the movie, and here’s the scene to which I refer:

The Howard Beale meltdown scene from Network has been borrowed a number of times. The most recent homage paid to it of which I’m aware is from the opening episode of the late and largely unlamented Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip:

Studio 60 was 20% good moments, 80% Aaron Sorkin practicing self-love with a television budget and audience. Life’s too short — if I must endure some egomaniac celebrating his own genius in a showy manner, that egomaniac had better be me.