Hatewatching "The Newsroom"

"Are you sure you aren't just a massive bag of douche?" - MacKenzie to Will during the finale of this season's "The Newsroom" on HBO

There are some shows on television that I watch because I love them. "Mad Men," "Game of Thrones," "The Big Bang Theory," "Orange is the New Black," and "House of Cards" to name a few. ("Breaking Bad" will probably be added to this list if I can ever get around to watching it on Netflix.)

There are some that I'm not crazy about but can tolerate because there might be at least one character that I am invested in - "Boardwalk Empire" and Richard, for example.

Then, occasionally, there are shows that I actively hate and yet I still watch them, because... I'm not sure why. Because they are there? Because it's the hour that I've designated for television watching and I'm a creature of habit? Because they are like train wrecks and I just can't turn away? I think that last one comes closest to the truth, at least as it pertains to the train wreck which is HBO's "The Newsroom."

Last night was the finale for this season. Thank goodness. So that's one hour of torture I won't have to endure on Sunday nights for a while. But I understand it is supposed to be back for a third season, (HBO pulled the plug on the excellent "Enlightened" after two seasons and this "bag of douche" gets a third??? Truly, life is not fair. Neither is television nor HBO.) and, yes, I'll probably be at my post on Sunday nights watching the slow-motion disaster once again.

It wasn't supposed to be like this. When I first heard about this show, I thought it was an interesting idea and one that might translate well into a weekly series. Moreover, it had actors that I knew and had enjoyed watching in other things. Then I saw the first few shows of the first season. And from then on "The Newsroom" was firmly relegated to my "hatewatch" category.

My objection to the show can be summed up quite succinctly: the women. The women of the newsroom, supposedly highly talented and highly intelligent individuals who are proficient at their craft, teeter around on their tippy, tippy toes all day long in four-inch heels, breasts thrusting forward and butts protruding backward due to the laws of physics. And, of course, their necklines are all plunging toward their waists. The physical image would be bad enough. The intellectual and emotional image is even worse.

These women, who have worked their way to the top of their profession, are complete clumsy ditzes. They constantly say the dumbest things in a breathless rush, while the Great White Men of the show stare at them as if they are aliens and they are trying their best to understand them. And understanding them is a problem because Aaron Sorkin seems to be in a contest with himself to see how many syllables he can cram into a minute in his women's speeches. They all talk like this. Their words tumble over each other as if the speaker is afraid she's going to be momentarily interrupted. And if you are the character named Sloane, you certainly will be. She's hardly ever allowed to finish a sentence.

Of course, the women of "The Newsroom" often burst into tears or get into delightful pickles from which they have to be rescued by the Great White Men. A woman watching this show can only assume that Aaron Sorkin hates women and wants to make them look as ridiculous as possible. He certainly has no understanding or appreciation of the hardworking professionals who are female and who manage to get up every morning and go to jobs where they have to excel above and beyond any standards for males in order to have their efforts noticed. They are tough and they definitely do not burst into tears at the drop of a hat.

Much has been written of Sorkin's inability to write realistic women. Some even accuse him of outright misogyny. You might as well accuse him of racism as well because all of his strong characters are Great White Men. Personally, I don't know what his problem is. Maybe he just isn't a very good writer. And yes, I know he's won a ton of awards. Hmm...I wonder who were the judges for all those awards?

Anyway, my judgment of "The Newsroom" is that it is a mess and it should have been allowed to die a merciful death after last night's show, but apparently Sorkin will be forced to write more of those ditzy dame scenes.

Speaking of scenes, the only ones worth watching this season were the ones between Jane Fonda and Sam Waterston. They were rather fun, but I think they would have been fun even if those two pros had just been reading the phone book.

Poetry Sunday: Don't Hesitate by Mary Oliver

How about we share another Mary Oliver poem? After all, you can never have too many of those. In this one, the poet seems to acknowledge that it is often hard to simply live in and enjoy the moment, perhaps because we are afraid it can't last. She urges us to give in to that moment and fully experience the joy. Although "much can never be redeemed, still, life has some possibility left." Don't Hesitate by Mary Oliver If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it. There are plenty of lives and whole towns destroyed or about to be. We are not wise, and not very often kind. And much can never be redeemed. Still, life has some possibility left. Perhaps this is its way of fighting back, that sometimes something happens better than all the riches or power in the world. It could be anything, but very likely you notice it in the instant when love begins. Anyway, that’s often the case. Anyway, whatever it is, don’t be afraid of its plenty. Joy is no...

Poetry Sunday: Blackberry-Picking by Seamus Heaney

My mother was a farm wife and a prodigious canner. She canned fruit and vegetables from the garden, even occasionally meat. But the best thing that she canned, in my opinion, was blackberry jam. Even as I type those words my mouth waters! Of course, before she could make that jam, somebody had to pick the blackberries. And that somebody was quite often named Dorothy. I think Seamus Heaney might have spent some time among the briars plucking those delicious black fruits as well, so he would have known that "Once off the bush the fruit fermented, the sweet flesh would turn sour." They don't keep; you have to get that jam made in a hurry! Blackberry-Picking by Seamus Heaney Late August, given heavy rain and sun For a full week, the blackberries would ripen. At first, just one, a glossy purple clot Among others, red, green, hard as a knot. You ate that first one and its flesh was sweet Like thickened wine: summer's blood was in it Leaving stains upon the tongue and lust ...

Poetry Sunday: Hymn for the Hurting by Amanda Gorman

You probably remember poet Amanda Gorman from her appearance at the inauguration of President Biden. She read her poem "The Hill We Climb" on that occasion. After the senseless slaughter in Uvalde this week, she was inspired to write another poem which was published in The New York Times. It seemed perfect for the occasion and so I stole it in order to feature it here, just in case you didn't get a chance to read it in the Times . Hymn for the Hurting by Amanda Gorman Everything hurts, Our hearts shadowed and strange, Minds made muddied and mute. We carry tragedy, terrifying and true. And yet none of it is new; We knew it as home, As horror, As heritage. Even our children Cannot be children, Cannot be. Everything hurts. It’s a hard time to be alive, And even harder to stay that way. We’re burdened to live out these days, While at the same time, blessed to outlive them. This alarm is how we know We must be altered — That we must differ or die, That we must triumph or try. ...

The Nature of Things

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