From Washington's chopping of the cherry tree to the O.J. murder trial, the misadventures of American heroes have held our attention through the centuries, inspiring folklore and influencing our national mood. How the media portray these events is a two headed beast that both reflects what we feel and affects how we feel. Considering how much our technology has grown in the last century, especially in communications, it's no wonder that our morals and ideals have been shaped by what we see on the nightly news. We've come a long way from our puritan past. Where it was once uncouth to speak aloud of pregnant unmarried women and men who sold their souls for money, we can now view open discussions about such subjects on our televisions every morning, afternoon and evening.
Talk show are big business, and they're getting bigger.
Next season, new shows will be hosted by George Hamilton and ex-wife Alana Stewart, and Partridge Family graduate Danny Bonaduce, who openly admits he once had a drug problem. So now we will have more talk shows gathering together more people with shameful secrets and dark pasts who just can't wait to share them with an entire nation. I hate to break it to you, especially if you abhor the talk shows like I do, but the monster is us. We forgave Washington Mayor Marion Barry for doing coke with a prostitute. We pitied John Bobbitt and forgave his long-suffering wife Lorena, and bets are already being place on whether or not Mike Tyson can win his first boxing match after a few years of incarceration.