60 Minutes interview with Iranian President Ahmadinejad -- Black propaganda in its most obvious form.

Is CBS correspondent Scott Pelley jonesing for a job at Faux News? Or is he simply trying to out-Stossel John Stossel? After viewing Pelley’s interview with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad last night I was thrown aback at several comments made by Pelley and the overall effect of the Neo-Con puff piece. I even wondered which White House flunky was given the task of briefing Pelley before his trip to Tehran.

The propaganda of Pelley’s interview was in plain view, complete with faux outrage and the Neo-Con talking points showing themselves at various points. The aggressive tone of Pelley at times made me wonder out loud, “Would Pelley have the balls to be this direct with his own President, or would he just cave and kiss his ass?” What is more frightening to me than Iran’s nuclear intentions or Pelley’s lapdog story is how many people may have watched the interview and not recognized the black propaganda at work.

At one point Ahmadinejad appears to recognize the tactics of Pelley as being propaganda and he jabs back at him by equating his questions and tone with the work of the CIA. It’s foolish and naive to think that the Agency would not be interested in talking with Pelley or his crew after their return to the states, or to see the raw tape of their trip. With this in mind it’s interesting to note his sly smile and measured pacing of his responses and the comments themselves.

I’m not going to put my head in the sand and declare Ahmadinejad an innocent because he is not an innocent. This man is a carbon copy of our own President. Both are radical extremists with no conscience and they manipulate religious extremists into following their dangerous, hateful example. Neither man will be satisfied until the world is engulfed in flames.

What is depressing about the Pelley piece is the way it highlights the continual slide our Fourth Estate makes as it toes the corporate line; and the loss of insight that we cannot gain because our press stays on topic to suit the politicians and corporations and their agenda. At one point Pelley has the gall to tell the Iranian President, “I am just a reporter. I am a simple average American reporter.”

No Mr. Pelley, you are not just a simple average American reporter. I’m sure that if we compared your yearly salary with 95% of the American press corp we would see that you aren’t average. You would be in the financial elite of the class. As for proclaiming yourself as simple, please spare all of us the ridiculous self-depreciation. Show me a talking head who is not self-obsessed and far too complicated and I’ll show you a talking head who works the news in Chattanooga or Sioux Falls or a Class II or III or IV market.

The Pall Malls are on the house

Sad news this morning from the world of TV. Interviewer Tom Snyder has passed away. I became a really big fan of his back in the early 80’s when he brought on a wide variety of rock & rollers for interviews. He wasn’t condescending no matter how outrageous or controversial they were. From these interviews his style grew on me and when his 90’s show aired following Letterman at CBS I spent many a sleep-deprived night listening to his warm tone and genuine curiosity for the people he was interviewing.

Back in the early 80’s I saw on his show The Clash, The Grateful Dead, The Plasmatics, John Lydon, U2 and I even remember seeing Adam Ant during the days when the art school girls all had the hots for him. He never seemed out of it even when he was clearly mystified by the performer and it was always obvious that a key to his style as an interviewer was getting to know his subject. The good-natured humor and understanding of a generation gap seemed to make his interviews all that more vital. In many ways he seemed like an old friend in his interviews.

On the strength of those rock and roll interviews alone I would say that if anyone wants to know how to properly interview a musician, especially a young musician, for the television format, look to Snyder for your guiding light. He allowed the musicians to explain themselves and have fun and be themselves. All the while he probed from the standpoint of being a middle-aged man, who was confused by all the hub-bub and it brought out the performer’s ability to explain their music and what they were doing it for.

He never kowtowed to the guest, never talked below the viewer and always seemed to match wits with whoever was in the chair opposite. The show could be smart, light, cutting, deep and entertaining all within the time frame between commercials. He was more fun than Charlie Rose and much more at ease with his guests than Travis Smiley. He could be more insightful than either man and he was much less conspicuous in showing his intellect than they are. The man just had a great presence and a great style.

Adios, Tom. The Pall Malls and martinis are on the house.

Synchronicity, The Sopranos and the VaTech massacre

Viewers of last night’s episode of The Sopranos were given an unsettling look at the phenomenon of synchronicity. Both of the plotlines in the episode had striking similarities to the events in Blacksburg this past week. While it could be argued that the producers re-edited the episode to heighten this coincidence, I don’t think that is the case. When films are recut in a way that drastically changes the original intent of the filmmaker the effect is always jarring and unfocused. Last night’s episode was tight, focused and ominous and falls in line with the production quality of the two previous episodes of this season.

In the first incidence of synchronicity, which takes place in the mental health facility where Uncle Junior has been placed, a young Asian male in his early 20’s befriends Uncle Junior. The young man has problems with controlling rage and the details of why he is in the facility are unspoken but inferred. However, based on the back-story that is told about this character it appears that his rage control issues exploded over some type of oppressive Father issue, problems that the character had with making friends and allusions to the characters perceived lack of success in life.

The second incidence of synchronicity involved a long and very tense scene on a boat where Paulie Walnuts came close to being killed by Tony Soprano. In this scene the first weapon that Tony considers using, or it is inferred that he is considering using, is a mysterious claw hammer that is secured to the bulkhead of the fishing boat that they are on. Of the photos that the VaTech killer sent to NBC one of the most odd photos shows the killer with a large carpenter’s claw hammer, raised above his head with a menacing glare on his face complete with an angry snarling expression.

The effect of the new character, his violent attack on Uncle Junior later in the episode, his inability to make friends, rage control issues and the inferred threat of violence with the ominous long shot of the hammer were quite jarring to me. It also brought up in my mind the issue of the photo of Cho with the hammer from the NBC package. As out of place as it was among that set of photos it has stuck in my mind as a disconnected fragment, which makes little sense in the bigger theme of guns and posturing in the photos. Other than the obvious symbolic relationship with the Norse God Thor and the title of an Arthur C. Clarke novel, I can’t make heads or tails of the symbolism of this image.

Before last night’s episode the last time I can remember a film or TV show foreshadowing events in the real world as eerily as this one was The China Syndrome in 1979. Did any of you see last night’s episode or have any thoughts on the issue. I’d really like to hear what you say as this was an unsettling experience.

Plans for a quiet, relaxing weekend

My biggest task this weekend will be making a grocery store trip to play E-coli roulette with my health, all in the name of nourishment and that full tummy feeling. Other than that I'm planning one of those lovely weekends to lounge around in my boxer shorts and old ratty bathrobe and watch the tube. Unless a wild hair gets the best of me or something brews up in the national news, the posts this weekend will be on the fluffy side, save for one.

Bill Maher is on tonight, Formula 1 qualifying is tomorrow morning in Bahrain, and the Thrashers play game 2 against the Rangers tomorrow afternoon. Go Blueland! Sunday morning will be the Formula 1 race (Go Kimi, Fernando, Lewis and Kubica!) and Sunday night is episode 2, season 6B of The Sopranos. I'm going to sprout roots on the sofa and drink copious pots of tea.

One thing to also look forward to on Sunday is that it marks the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson's first Major League game. I'll post some comments about this on Sunday along with some thoughts about Henry Aaron, my greatest childhood sports hero and one of my true adult heroes.

Television - Jonestown documentary to air tonight on PBS

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/jonestown/?campaign=pbshomefeatures_1_americanexperiencejonestownthelifeanddeathofpeoplestemple_2007-04-09

Aficionados of cults, mind control and CIA studies will have the chance to watch a new documentary this evening, produced for PBS' American Experience series. The documentary will include interviews with former Peoples Temple members, including survivors of the massacre.

I may take notes and post some thoughts here on the blog.

Don't drink the Kool-Aid, folks.