Reality Show: Inside the Last Great Television News War

If you are interested in the competitive frenzy that goes on between the various network news outlets each weekday, then you will understand why I have given Mr. Kurtz's book five stars. For example, while I perhaps should have known (given that each network broadcasts' first feed is live), it came as a surprise, frankly, that one broadcast might actually change its "script" and scheduled coverage--while on the air--to cover a story that one of the other shows decided to highlight. Each newscasts monitors each and every word and picture mentioned and shown on the other broadcasts. Kurtz is especially descriptive in profiling each of the three broadcast networks' evening news anchors--Brian Williams, Charlie Gibson and Katie Couric. Brian is described as someone who wanted to be an anchor since he was in high school, Charlie as someone who didn't know that he wanted it until he thought it might go by default to Diane Sawyer and Katie, well Katie didn't know she wanted it until Dan Rather crashed and burned and started to get bored with "Today." No detail is too small here. While Brian seems to have substantial respect for Charlie, he is painted as someone who sees Katie as an interloper. (P.S. to Brian: You'll probably prefer competing against her than Anderson Cooper or Scott Pelley). Parts of this book give the impression that the three broadcast networks are re-living the modern equivalent of the "Front Page" newspaper era. But sadly, that's the rub: The three evening newscasts are not modern equivalents of anything because as Kurtz points out, technology seems to be on the verge of making these shows relics. The average viewer is nearing 60 and that is the same problem that today's leading newspapers have. So the fight goes on and Howie Kurtz does an admirable job telling us how we got here and where we may go.

I found this book very interesting and very hard to put down. I finished it in 3-4 days after picking it up at the library. I love "insider/backstory" books and this is one of the best I've read. I gained a lot of respect for the work necessary to create a nightly national newscast, and all the conflicting pressures that go in to shaping it. Kurtz keeps my interest from page one.

I found out very provocative and fun. It all depends on your expectations. Good reading during the holidays, if you want to decompress from all the stress associated with shopping, flying, bad weather, etc.