The Newsroom

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The Newsroom is the latest Aaron Sorkin project, which airs on HBO and just finished it’s first season. I love Aaron Sorkin the same way I love John Williams – they are amazing visionaries and I will at least try to like everything they do. Weird Al is also included in this group. Unfortunately for Sorkin, The West Wing was seriously one of the greatest television shows of all time, which makes anything else he tries comparable to The West Wing and obviously not as good. Studio 60 barely made it through its first season and, to be fair, it was not good. I enjoyed it because of Matthew Perry and Bradley Whitford, but everyone pretty much agrees that it was a failed attempt. I wonder if it was because Sorkin was trying so hard to change it up from The West Wing that he went a little too far. Or maybe, since his wheelhouse is politics, doing a project about a late night sketch comedy show just didn’t work out.

However, The Newsroom is back where he belongs – politics – but coming at it from a different perspective. The show, starring Jeff Daniels who is AMAING as a newscaster, chronicles the events of an Anderson Cooper-like show that, for lack of a better turn of phrase, starts telling the truth. There are some problems, mostly in casting, but overall it is an interesting concept. Using real news instead of fake news is cool way to stay current but also have longevity, but the news events are from 2011. I remember them happening all too much and that makes it lose it’s nostalgia and become a bit rote and dull at times. Also a little preachy. Thinking back on The West Wing, that show was also super preachy, but for some reason when it comes from Martin Sheen’s mouth, it’s golden no matter what.

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