WHY CROSSFIRE IS BORING
Returning to blogging with a reading of Tucker Carlson's new book, David Frum wonders "why Crossfire has faltered so badly" and suggests some reasons. His conclusion:
Is it possible that the brilliant original formula that made Crossfire a success in the 1990s--all opinion, no information--is out of date in a world in which Americans are threatened by dangers about which they crave information. You can learn things by listening to Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity, or by watching the Fox News Channel or CNN's Aaron Brown. But who has learned anything from Crossfire" recently? It may be that the show has failed by doing something that TV executives used to sneeringly insist was impossible: by underestimating its audience.
I think Crossfire went wrong years ago, when it began to consistently book political spinners touting the message of the day rather than wonks who might think independently and actually know something. Wonks aren't celebrities, and they can occasionally get too technical. But the ritual incantation of the line of the day is BOOOORING, no matter how much you pump up the volume.