I. Punditry | II. False Equivalence | III. This Just In
Written for and premiered by Bearthoven, November 2016
A serious note:
When some ideas are repeated incessantly, they become familiar, like conventional wisdom. When others are repeated incessantly, they become more and more disorienting.
A less serious note:
“Donald Trump may not be good for America, but he’s damn good for CBS.” – Les Moonves, Chairman of CBS
Scene: Kenneth, an NBC page, sits in a boardroom with several television executives, about to pitch an idea for a new TV game show.
Kenneth: It’s called Gold Case. It’s Deal or No Deal meets Millionaire. There are 10 models, each holding an identical briefcase, but one of them is filled with gold.
Nameless NBC Executive: Have you pitched this idea to anyone else?
Kenneth: Well I talked to moonvest at CBS.
Executive: Les Moonves, president of CBS, knows about this?
Cut to scene of Kenneth in front of CBS headquarters talking about his show idea to a homeless man wearing a vest adorned with moons. Cut back to the boardroom.
Executive: We’ve got to move fast. Mr. Parcell. We love “Gold Case.” How do we make your show?
—from 30 Rock
Another News Cycle was written for Bearthoven (Karl Larson—piano, Pat Swoboda—bass, Matt Evans—Percussion) and premiered by the group at Rose Recital Hall, The University of Pennsylvania, on November 16th, 2016. The piece received the David Halstead Award for Music Composition at the University of Pennsylvania.
Kevin Laskey 