US Presidential Election, Nov 5th 2024

[hilts]

Yeah, well I’ve watched past ones with Fox, in the Bill O’Reilly days, and used CNN last time. But we also have what looks like an interesting offering from Ch4, as well as radio options like LBC, R4/5, Times. I did wonder about one of the regular US channels like NBC for a change.
I think the main UK channels like BBC, ITV and Sky also tend to pair with a ‘sister network’ from the US anyway.

I never bother tbh but I've heard Fox are mental, but that is from posters on here so how mad they are I couldn't say. I presume GB news is our version, haven't seen that either.

BBC news when I'm up tomorrow morning before work.

 

[Gareth Barry Conlon]

which is astounding considering the amount of money he could scam if he went down that route

Russell Brand likes this post.

 

[SebastianBlue]

I know exactly what you mean, but even pre-Trump the West Wing was always a very rose-tinted view of Clinton-era politics. I love the show and that's part and parcel of it. Even the credits music is so unnecessarily over the top 'positive America'.

It struggled to find its voice post-9/11 and went down a weird direction in its latter seasons with several "action" storylines that didn't really make sense for that show. I assume this was down in part to 24 becoming a massive hit around that time and the studios thinking "we should have a bit of that".

Indeed. That was part of my admission that I originally watched it as a more naive and idealistic younger man.

Regarding the slide in to poorer quality writing and stories toward the second half of the series, there was definitely a struggle to maintain its voice as politics in general became more dark and the public’s approach to government became far more critical and suspicious again. There were also some other general shifts in TV viewer culture (a few you have alluded to) that I think made it more difficult for the show to keep pace, given it was begun and somewhat anchored in a previous era in many respects.

But, on the production side, Sorkin also stepped away from writing or even actively producing episodes after the third season, with the John Wells of ER fame taking point early on afterward, which saw the tone of the show change. And I think the quality of the dialog—which was one of the main elements of the show driving its success—suffered because of that shift. Tommy Schlamme (real name) also begin to have an even bigger influence on the story lines and production in that initial period, which was a Sorkin protege, but tended to like more bombastic narratives.

Anyway, this is obviously more a discussion for a thread on the Off-Topic forum, so I’ll just say I wish I could watch the show again through the eyes of a young, not yet jaded Seb.

 

[Gabriel]

That’s like “Since 1967 City have beaten a team in red just once on a wet Wednesday”

Well it wasn’t away at Stoke…

 

[fulabeer]

People who proclaim themselves to be 'Alpha Males' tend to be Alpha Cockwombles as far as I can see.

Those the ones who try to do a death grip when shaking hands.
A normal firm handshake is ok. Anything more tells me they are compensating.
Tells me everything thing i need to know about them etc.

 

[hilts]

Whos on the half time show?

Is Diana 'messi' Ross still alive and kicking(wide)

 

[TonyM]

Indeed. That was part of my admission that I originally watched it as a more naive and idealistic younger man.

Regarding the slide in to poorer quality writing and stories toward the second half of the series, there was definitely a struggle to maintain its voice as politics in general became more dark and the public’s approach to government became far more critical and suspicious again. There were also some other general shifts in TV viewer culture (a few you have alluded to) that I think made it more difficult for the show to keep pace, given it was begun and somewhat anchored in a previous era in many respects.

But, on the production side, Sorkin also stepped away from writing or even actively producing episodes after the third season, with the John Wells of ER fame taking point early on afterward, which saw the tone of the show change. And I think the quality of the dialog—which was one of the main elements of the show driving its success—suffered because of that shift. Tommy Schlamme (real name) also begin to have an even bigger influence on the story lines and production in that initial period, which was a Sorkin protege, but tended to like more bombastic narratives.

Anyway, this is obviously more a discussion for a thread on the Off-Topic forum, so I’ll just say I wish I could watch the show again through the eyes of a young, not yet jaded Seb.

But were pussies grabbed and were cats and dogs eaten. Get to the exciting shit man. USA USA USA!

 

[somapop]

The West Wing is one of my favourite shows of all time and, at the risk of being ridiculed for admitting it, I have watched every episode at least three times. I am also a bit of an Aaron Sorkin fan (and critic, at times).

But, despite having the full Blu-ray series set (and it being fairly easy to watch online, as well), I have not been able to bring myself to watch even a single episode since 2018.

I tried after Trump was elected, but I found that it had become depressing to watch. It is a very aspirational depiction of government, politics, and public service in general, as opposed to the likes of House of Cards, VEEP, or The Thick of It. And, I think it is reasonable to say it actually makes the show less realistic (though, in the best way), as politics has always been a very seedy profession, and people like Jed Bartlett and members of his staff tend to get nowhere near the top echelons of power in real life. And I watched it when it was still airing as a younger, more idealistic and optimistic person that had not yet been beaten down by experience.

And trying to watch the show now, many years later, after years of effort to affect positive change in various realms and locals with very mixed results, and during/after Trump’s presidency, is like watching videos of a close mate that has recently passed on: they don’t necessarily capture the whole reality of your friendship with them (most of the bad bits will have not been recorded for posterity), and most often represent an idealised version of them as a person, but they do generally reflect what you loved about them, what you desperately miss now that they are gone, and watching them just reminds you of the deep loss you feel.

Didn't watch much of this (wished I had actually) but I have started to watch Veep from the start.
Both a brilliant and funny show.

 

[blue b4 the moon]

General question.

I'm assuming the electoral college numbers per state are accessed and adjusted from time to time as the population moves around the country?

 

[Trevor Morley's Tache]

General question.

I'm assuming the electoral college numbers per state are accessed and adjusted from time to time as the population moves around the country?

Distribution of Electoral Votes

Allocation among the States Electoral votes are allocated among the States based on the Census. Every State is allocated a number of votes equal to the number of Senators and Representatives in its U.S. Congressional delegation—two votes for its Senators in the U.S. Senate plus a number of votes...

www.archives.gov