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TALKING POLITICS

Name: TALKING POLITICS
Author: Liz Cunningham
ISBN: 0-275-94187-6

CHOOSING THE PRESIDENT IN THE TELEVISION AGE

by Liz Cunningham ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 1995

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Some interesting exchanges and provocative observations arise from these interviews with nine prominent broadcast journalists and one politician about presidential campaigns. Although numerous issues surface, freelance journalist Cunningham notes that the question of character—and the capacity of television to illuminate it—resonates most powerfully with her interviewees. Public television's Robert MacNeil, for example, observes that Dan Rather's famous on-air battle with George Bush in 1988 allowed the candidate to shed his image as a wimp. Conversely, Dave Sirulnick, director of MTV News, observes that in Bush's 1992 appearance with MTV's youthful Tabitha Soren, he ``looked like someone's father `scolding' his young teenage daughter.'' In a different take on the character issue, MacNeil/Lehrer Newshour essayist Roger Rosenblatt suggests that Bill Clinton's stance on capital punishment and flag burning better illuminate his character than the Gennifer Flowers scandal. More trenchant is Linda Ellerbee, late of ABC, who rues that the press protects those in power by not reporting on their failings and vehemently denies charges of the media's liberal bias: ``The national press is centrist if it's anything.'' By contrast, ABC's Jeff Greenfield reflects that TV news is hardly all-powerful, noting that reporting on Reagan's gaffes did not lessen his public support. Former vice- presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro, the subject of much media scrutiny, observes that questions about character should concentrate less on personal behavior and more on how candidates feel about ``moral issues'' like feeding the hungry. Cunningham concludes with a brief epilogue, noting that criticism of the media can and should help improve coverage. A small potpourri, but with more substance than most in this format.

Pub Date: May 1, 1995

ISBN: 0-275-94187-6

Page Count: 192

Publisher: Praeger

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1995

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.