Douglas Howe: November 2008 Archives

Okay, I can hear the cards and letters (or posts) comin,' because Idol Chatter is usually a generous and congenial part of the Beliefnet blog network, and we usually take a pretty open position in embracing our culture and the arts relative to our faith journeys.
But every once in a while, art doesn't transcend truth as much as it distorts it, and that's where I draw the line. Hence my opposition to the upcoming "Princess Diana Bible."

Now, when you hear that term, what do you think of? A bible that the princess gathered scholars together to discern and produce, prior to her death, a la Kings James of 1611? Or perhaps a bible which features commentary focused on the needs of the poor and the oppressed, which she spent the latter years of her life focusing on? Or perhaps even a Bible written in the current Queen's English?

Nope, the upcoming "Princess Diana Bible" will be a pro-gay translation bible from authors who claim "there is solid evidence that Adam and Eve were both women" and whose current movie has been banned by at least one movie theater chain.

Imagine the expectations when one of the most popular--and one of the most inspiring--television shows returns to the air for the first time in more than a year and a half. I mean, that's a lot of time for creativity and editing. Expectations were high. Interest peaked. Heck, even Idol Chatter's Kris Rasmussen returned to the "24" blogfest! And last night was the night, as the popular show returned to the air in the two-hour "24: Redemption."

I wonder how many viewers tuned out of "24's" first scene, which may have been the most disturbing in its history, as African children were being trained by their soldier guardians to hate those not among them. The scene culminated in one of the children being challenged to use a machete to kill an African-American man in front of the cheering crowd of other children.

One of the more inspiring storylines to this year's election cycle was the large number of people who went to the polls. And one of the driving forces behind that was the large amount of non-news channel coverage of the election.

"The View," "Oprah," and "Saturday Night Live" were just some of the shows that had made the election and its stars a large part of their programming over the recent months. This election was not only historic in its production of the first African-American victory for the White House, the first Republican candidate for Vice-President who was a woman, and the dramatic turnout that changed the electoral map and political landscape of the nation. It was also historic from a pop culture point of view.

48 years ago, there was a national Presidential debate between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon. Those who heard it on the radio believed that Nixon won. Those who saw it on TV hailed Kennedy as the winner. Kennedy then became the last sitting U.S. Senator to win an election until this year.

Now here I am on Election Day morning wondering if things haven't changed much at all since then. This year, as in the past, the candidate who played better to the camera is victorious. Image wins. Style beats substance. Cool beats cucumber. And it's largely due to the media-driven culture we live in.

USA Today has a great holiday movie preview story running today which lays out the best of the upcoming movie season in two categories: "Oscar-worthy flicks" and "Box-office biggies."

Nicole Kidman's "Australia," Sean Penn's "Milk," Clint Eastwood's "Gran Torino," and Brad Pitt's "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" head the list of Academy Award favorites.

Box-office biggies include the newest James Bond ("Quantum of Solace"), Adam Sandler's "Bedtime Stories," the next Madagascar ("Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa"), Jim Carrey's "Yes Man," and "The Spirit" starring Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, and Gabriel Macht.