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Joy Behar and the decline of civilization

By Mark Obbie

When the Rod Blagojevich publicity circus pitched its tent on ABC's The View yesterday, only a fool would have expected real journalism to occur. Still, by the account of the Chicago Tribune's Rick Pearson and Frank James, the venerable interviewer Barbara Walters -- appearing remotely from the West Coast -- did her best to lend some facts and professionalism to the affair. But, after Walters unsuccessfully but valiantly pressed Blagojevich to explain why he was captured on tape proclaiming his Senate-vacancy opportunity "f***ing golden," the brainless Joy Behar took center stage. I have had the good fortune to live a full life so far without watching The View or seeing or hearing Behar. To be honest, I've never even heard of her. After viewing this clip, I now resolve to revert to my View/Behar blackout -- haunted though I am by the sight of her giggling, kicking her legs out, begging for Blago's Richard Nixon impression, and tousling his helmet hair. What a clown. She even managed to make Blago, amid his shameless jury-tampering PR stunt, appear dignified by comparison. The unfortunate thing isn't that ABC would let entertainers pretend to do journalism. That's a longstanding TV tradition. The real shame is that the public has another reason to confuse fluff with what reporters do, or are supposed to do.

Full post as published by Lawbeat on January 27, 2009 (boomark / email).