This article was originally posted on my other blog, dirt sweat soul.  Click here to see the full article.

[Edit: In retrospect, I should have titled this post Morning Ho.']

In a refreshing move of candor, MSNBC’s weekday talk show, Morning Joe (hosted by conservative pundit and former Republican Congressman Joe Scarborough), has officially dropped the pretense that it is a news program. Instead, the show is explicitly marketing itself as exactly what it is - a vehicle to generate advertising dollars for General Electrics-owned MSNBC. Of course, all commercial news programs exist simply to provide filler content in between their lucrative advertisements, but Morning Joe is the first to announce it to the world by emblazoning the Starbucks coffee logo all over their program. The show is now Morning Joe Brewed by Starbucks. In addition to the coffee-makers logo being placed within the Morning Joe logo, Starbucks will be mentioned throughout the broadcast according to Broadcasting & Cable, an industry periodical.

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Whatever you think of Steven Soderbergh, you have to respect the director’s pathological experimentation. One could arrange his films in three broad camps: 1) the big budget Hollywood vehicle ala the Oceans 11 franchise, 2) medium budget indie-type films like Traffic or The Good German, and 3) low budget experiments like Full Frontal or Bubble. Soderbergh’s most recent release, The Girlfriend Experience, is decidedly in the latter category, having been shot on video in only a few weeks using mostly non-professional actors. The movie was filmed in New York towards the end of the 2008 presidential election at the height of the financial collapse. These real-life events are woven into the storyline as the film explores the transactions of a high-dollar escort prowling through the posh lofts, restaurants, and boutiques of Manhattan.

In a move of clever casting, the escort, Chelsea, is played by adult film actress, Sasha Grey (it’s hard to say if that makes her a professional or non-professional actor.) Miss Gray is apparently famous in equal measures for her honest, unflinching eloquence regarding her porn career and her enthusiastic willingness to perform almost any act in that profession. That she is a slightly baby-faced 21 year-old makes both of those traits somewhat unnerving, and I’m sure Soderbergh hoped this tension would find its way onto the screen. It should be said, however, that there is not a great deal of sex in this film and only a few fleeting moments of partial nudity. The film focuses not on the sexual aspect of prostitution, but instead the commerce. In fact, The Girlfriend Experience is primarily obsessed with transactions, negotiations, and exchanges.

As Chelsea moves from one wealthy client to the next, many offer advice about how she should invest her money amidst the financial crisis. “Traditional” commerce only serves as the film’s underpainting, however. What this film really enjoys exploring is the commodification of the very humanity of the characters. The title of the film refers to an acronym, “gfe,” used in the parlance of escort services. A “girlfriend experience” is a term that advertises a more personal, intimate experience beyond simply sex. In a sense, Chelsea tries to act as a modern day Geisha, seeking to project herself as a cultured, well-bred woman who is as emotionally engaging as she is sexually desirable. However, she is very much a western, capitalist Geisha paying great attention to the brands of her lingerie and hiring multiple trade consultants to help her grow her business. Despite her occupation, Chelsea is in a committed relationship with her personal trainer boyfriend, Chris (Chris Santos), and the film takes great pains to draw parallels between the two professions. Of course, each job focuses on the physical body, but they also blur the lines between friendship and client resulting in awkward negotiations between the characters’ personal and professional lives. (end of excerpt…)

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(dirt sweat soul is my blog devoted to the intersection of politics and culture.)

From chicagobreakingnews.com:

Retired Chicago police Cmdr. Jon Burge was arrested at his home near Tampa, Fla., today on charges of lying in a civil case about whether he and other officers under his command tortured and physically abused suspects in police custody dating back to the 1980s, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.

Burge was charged with two counts of obstruction of justice and one count of perjury in a three-count indictment unsealed today following his arrest.

The charges alleged that Burge lied and impeded court proceedings in November 2003 when he provided false written answers to questions in a civil lawsuit alleging that he and others engaged in torture and abuse of suspects.

Burge, 60, now living in Apollo Beach, Fla., near Tampa, was expected to appear later today in U.S. District Court in Tampa.

“There is no place for torture and abuse in a police station,” said U.S. Attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald in a news release. “There is no place for perjury and false statements in federal lawsuits. No person is above the law, and nobody–even a suspected murderer–is beneath its protection.”

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I’m embarrassed to say that I didn’t realize until reading the Boston Globe article linked below that Maddow was “Dr. Maddow” and a Rhodes Scholar to boot. We desperately more credentials like that in broadcast media, as opposed to former politicians and party hacks (see Pat Buchanan Paul Begala, etc.)

Olbermann, for all of his faults, has proven that a leftward point of view can succeed in the commercial marketplace. I’m hoping that Maddow can prove that reasoned, intelligent analysis and debate from the left can also compete. Frankly, it’s an open question. I just pray that she doesn’t succumb to “Oddball” type fluff and self-serving, over the top “Special Comments” to generate ratings. If what she has to offer (intelligence and thoughtfulness) doesn’t generate the numbers that MSNBC needs, maybe she can shift to PBS or, better yet, help generate a new home altogether for intelligent analysis from ALL points of view.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost