I'd Rather Not

A good portion of what I do every day is find ways in which the internet and television can merge. Sometimes, that takes on a unique hybrid; other times, it's an embarrassing shot-in-the-dark. But what we talk about constantly is finding ways to get the television to mention the website -- as often as possible. It's become a media mantra: "For more on this topic, go to our websites...."

That's why Barb (ahem) scores serious anti-synergy points for catching a moment of convergence anathema on tv tonight. Apparently, after George W. Bush finished his mea culpa over stem-cell research, Dan Rather on CBS said, "Obviously, this is a very complicated subject. It's the kind of subject that, frankly, radio and television have some difficulty with because it requires such depth into the complexities of it. So we can with, I think, impunity, recommend that if you're really interested in this, you'll want to..."

...and what to you think he said?

...c'mon, guess.

Bzzzt, wrong. He said, "You'll want to read in detail one of the better newspapers tomorrow."

The kids in the backroom of CBSnews.com must've wanted to rip out the old geezer's eyeballs. "WHAT'S THE FREQUENCY, KENNETH?" Too bad, too, because the site tends to have really good explainers on topics like these.

(Oh, hell, what's the difference? Robots will write the news in the future, anyway.)