New book and The Sopranos

After spending months on the same book I bought a new book today (which I've been waiting ages for in paperback) and read the first 60 pages. The book is Flat Earth News by Nick Davies. It's the type of book that I've been waiting to be written, given my own opinion and analysis of the news. It focuses on the respectable Big 4 English papers (The Times, The Guardian, The Telegraph and The Independent) as well as the popular The Mail. It takes for granted that there's little truth in the tabloids.

Perhaps one day I will present my own case against the tabloids distortions. They use inflammatory and defamatory adjectives almost covertly. For example, "Shamed pop singer". Who is to judge shame? It's applying a judgment.

I've just watched two episodes of The Sopranos. Unfortunately, it's Season 3 which is the weakest of all 6 Seasons. It lacks the season long story arcs which make the other seasons so much better. It's a collection of one-off episodes rather than a series of episodes which contribute to a greater whole. This, I believe, is in large part due to the fact that the actress who played Tony's mother died shortly before filming began and her storyline had to be exorcised. The show always placed great emphasis on the relationship between a gangster and his mother, and loses itself when it loses this relationship. It's still the greatest TV show of all time, however.