New Bond - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - The name of the new James Bond film, "Quantum of Solace," has fans and critics everywhere scratching their heads. It's not just an opaque name. It marks a significant change in the direction of the James Bond character and franchise. Not since George Lazenby has there been a more unpopular choice of actor to portray Bond than Daniel Craig. His first Bond film, "Casino Royale," restarts the character from the beginning though it is set in modern times. The movie relied much more on story and character than the action and stunts Bond films are known for. "Quantum" continues right where "Casino" left off. Bond seeks revenge for the death of his love Vesper. Producers promise more action in this film but the die is cast for a new Bond. It is too soon to know if this will work with fans. If "Quantum" is a success then we can expect Bond to continue down a darker brooding path. If it flops we may see the return of Roger Moore slapstick. Hopefully Bond will find a happy medium. Kent Ninomiya

The Daily Show - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - The Daily Show is always brilliant. Tonight they were especially inspired. They notched up their commentary on media responsibility showing anchor after anchor crowing on and on about outbursts and meltdowns on the presidential campaign trail. The anchors suggested Bill Clinton and Mitt Romney "lost it" on reporters. Jon Stewart then, in a way only he could, showed what really happened. Both men were calm and rational. Both discussed their point of views in a controlled manner. The Daily Show called the news industry on their tendency to exaggerate. It was funny and it made us look foolish. No wonder no one believes us anymore when we say the sky is falling. "Chicken Little" should be required reading in J-school. Being a journalist is a tough job. We are supposed to make news interesting as well as informative. This is especially challenging when the news really isn't very interesting. The problem is when we go too far and make story into something it is not. When we do that we lose the public trust. Thank you Jon Stewart for reminding us to keep it real. Kent Ninomiya

Michael Chang Honored - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - Michael Chang is elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame. This is a big moment for Asian American athletes. It validates the landmark career of this amazing athlete. Chang was just 17 years old when he won the 1989 French Open. He is still the youngest male player to win a Grand Slam title. Chang was also the first U.S. champion at the clay-court Grand Slam since Tony Trabert in 1955. It was an amazing thing to watch. He was so exhasted during his five-set upset of number 1 seed Ivan Lendl that he had to serve underhanded. Still he beat the best player in the world at the time and went on to defeat Stefan Edberg in the final. He never won another Grand Slam but finished runner-up three times at Grand Slam tournaments and won 34 singles titles. Chang reached a number 2 ranking in 1996. Not bad for a kid who was just 5'9" and 160 pounds. In an era when male tennis players were huge and dominated with power, Chang got it done with hustle and heart. Just like Tiger Woods with golf, Michael Chang inspired a generation of Asian American kids to enter the world of competitive tennis. Congratulations Michael, you deserve the honor. Kent Ninomiya

The Suspension Craze - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - Suspending TV talent for off hand remarks seems to be in vogue these days. Now it's ESPN's Dana Jacobson who is on the hot seat. The co-host of "First Take" on ESPN2 is reportedly serving a one-week suspension for comments made at a January 11 roast of ESPN Radio personalities Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic. Jacobsen is said to have made vulgar comments about Notre Dame as a joke. Jacobson is a Michigan graduate who often kids Notre Dame alumnus Golic about the rivalry between the schools. Apparently it went too far. Jacobson reportedly made a number of apologies the next day to Greenberg and Golic, and issued a statement saying, "I am sorry. My remarks about Notre Dame were foolish and insensitive. I respect all religions and did not mean anything derogatory by my poorly chosen words. I also deeply regret the embarrassment I've caused ESPN and Mike and Mike." The apology wasn't good enough for ESPN.

The question I have is: would Jacobson have been suspended if the Golf Channel's Kelly Tilghman had not been disciplined for her comments about Tiger Woods recently. Then Golfweek ran a cover of a noose to exploit the controversy. Editor Dave Seanor got fired for approving it. It seems to be a feeding frenzy on TV talent.

I watch Dana Jacobson on a regular basis. She is a classy professional who presents herself well while doing hours of live television involving contentious debate. She was making jokes at a roast. Did she go to far? Maybe, but come on, it was a roast. A McCarthy style witch hunt is brewing in the broadcast industry where everyone is hypersensitive about what they say and intent is determined by public opinion days after the fact. We need to be careful not to lose our freedoms of expression and press by pandering to "pile on" outrage. They are just words. Let's not make them about something they're not. Kent Ninomiya

Cheap Imitators - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - Mixed Martial Arts are exploding on the scene. The undisputed king of the genre is the UFC. They deserve to be where they are. They endured while the league struggled with lack of interest, economic viability and lawmakers who wanted to shut them down. Like a true MMA champion they survived it all to thrive. Even though I am a martial arts purist, I confess to enjoying the UFC. I don't watch their reality show because I don't care about the private lives of the fighters, but I like watching these amazing athletes show off their skills. They are professionals and highly trained. Unfortunately, wherever there is success there are cheap imitators. Several inferior leagues have popped up trying to cash in on the UFC's popularity. Some of them are downright sad. For example, I was watching HD Net Friday Fight Night. It was worse than amateur hour. The fighters are pathetically bad. Some are downright fat. They look like they just put down their beer and pried themselves off the couch to fight. Predictably most of the fights last just a few minutes since they have no skills or conditioning. The winners then have the nerve to parade around like they've vanquished Mohammad Ali in his prime. I saw one guy with a 1-6 record win and act like he was the champion of the world. I witnessed another guy with a 6-5 record act like a punk taunting his downed opponant. The worst part about watching it on high definition is that it's crystal clear how pathetic the whole scene is. It made me wish I had an old blurry black and white TV. Kent Ninomiya

New Era for Media - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - The two month old Writers Guild of America strike threatens to change every aspect of our media. That includes TV, movies, Internet, and much more. All indications are that both sides are digging in for a long fight. The union would not give exemptions for awards shows like Peoples Choice and Golden Globes. They promise to take a hard line on the Academy Awards next month as well. The studios aren't blinking. They have canceled dozens of writers' contracts suggesting they are willing to concede the fall line up. Ordinarily networks are ordering new shows this month but nothing is happening now. The Directors Guild of America just agreed to a tentative three year contract. The studios hope to hold that over the writers and force them to make concessions on the issue of revenue on digital entertainment. For now neither side is budging and it is laying waste to the industry.As stockpiled TV shows are drying up, favorite programs are going into annoying reruns or disappearing altogether. Reality shows are becoming more popular and successful. This is tragic for lovers of sitcoms and well written dramas. Nightline is enjoying a ratings resurgence at the expense of late night talk shows that disappeared for a while. Many viewers are turning off the TV for other forms of entertainment. Video game and DVD sales are up. The Internet is seeing a remarkable increase in activity. If this continues for months what will be left of television? That isn't clear, but whatever it is, it will be drastically different than it was before. When baseball went on strike in 1994 they lost a significant chunk of their fan base. It took MLB a decade to regain fan trust and flourish again. Likewise TV may see changes that take years to undo. It may also lose forever many of the programs and genres that were once adored. The way we entertain ourselves may never be the same again. Kent Ninomiya

He'll be Back - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - The new Terminator Sarah Connor Chronicles TV series has sparked my interest in the upcoming Terminator 4 movie. It's tentatively titled "Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins." It's expected in 2009. I'm not the only one interested. Internet searches are way up for everything Terminator. Information on the new film is limited and mostly rumor. The poster here is not official. It's from someone's imagination. This is what I was able to find on the internet: "After the drastic effects of Terminator 3, the story continues as John Connor and soon to be wife Kate Brewster begin the creation of a resistance organization with Earth's remaining survivors against the army of cyborgs slowly being built up by Skynet. As they are building this resistance, one survivor happens to be a traitor in disguise, and has a secret that nobody would ever come to suspect." I can't wait. Kent Ninomiya

Seacrest Tidal Wave - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - Back in 2001 I did a rather silly dating feature story while working in Los Angeles. The producer arranged for me to follow a man and a woman on a blind date. I can't remember what the point of the story was. I can't remember who the lady was. I do remember the guy. He made quite an impression on me. It was a young deejay named Ryan Seacrest. I imagine he agreed to be set up on the blind date and do the story to get publicity for his blossoming career. At the time he had hosted a few television programs but was relatively unknown nationally. That would change soon. I remember being surprised by how soon. Seacrest got the American Idol gig a short time later. It exploded into an American phenomenon. There are a lot of player haters out there who make fun of Seacrest and his success. Say what you want but the guy is special and it was obvious to me before he was famous. He is charismatic, insightful and smooth as silk on live programs. Although it would be easy to assume he made a pact with the Devil to get his success, that would be unfair. Seacrest is no Brian Dinkleman. Do you remember him? Probably not. Dinkleman was Ryan's co-host on the first season of American Idol but was dumped for the second. There is good reason we never heard from him again and we can't escape Seacrest in the media. The reason has nothing to do with luck or the Devil. Kent Ninomiya

Terminator Back - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - As predicted, the new Terminator Sarah Connor Chronicles is creating some buzz out there. Yahoo buzz says searches exploded after the show aired Sunday and Monday. Traffic increased by 400%. Actress Lena Headey, who plays Sarah Connor, doubled her hits. Thomas Dekker who plays John Connor increased 256%. Summer Glau who portrays the hot good terminator went up +346%. Searches also popped for the Terminator movies. Terminator 1, 2, and 3 rose along with request for information on the planned T4. We'll see if the show can maintain its momentum, but for now it looks pretty good. Kent Ninomiya.

New Terminator - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - I must confess that I was skeptical as I watched the premier of the Terminator, The Sarah Connor Chronicles over the past two nights. After all, most movie franchises turned television series are pretty lame. I must also confess that my skepticism was unwarranted. I was a fan of the Terminator movies and I am now a fan of this new TV show. The writers obviously spent a lot of time pounding out the time line and plot line. They must know that hard core fans will tear them apart if they are not true to the original story. The writers did a fine job. This series is at first set two years after the second movie in 1999. In an ingenious bit of writing it then fast forwards to 2008 thanks to a time machine that was made by another soldier from the future who was sent back in 1963 by the future John Connor. As a notorious skeptic of poorly conceived science fiction writing, I am difficult to convince. I bought this plot line completely. Granted they do take liberties with the characters. In a reversal of the original roles, the bad terminator is now the huge male robot while the good terminator is the hot girl. She acts more like a girl than a terminator so I will need a little more convincing there. The actors playing John and Sarah Connor are quite good and do their characters justice. The big test is whether the story will justify a continuing television series. I don't know how long this show will be able to maintain their momentum, but they are off to a fine start and I am eager to see the next episode. Kent Ninomiya

Lynching Golf - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - A few words about the suspension of Kelly Tilghman. The Golf Channel anchor will leave partner Nick Faldo and the network for two weeks as punishment for her comment that golfers should "lynch" Tiger Woods "in a dark alley" if they want to catch up to him. It was a stupid thing to say but no one believes she meant it literally. Tiger Woods, through his agent, said it was a non issue. The Golf Channel treated it as if it was no big deal and kept Tilghman on the air for several days after the comment. It wasn't until the next week when there was a public outcry and Rev. Al Sharpton called for Tilghman's firing that the Golf Channel took action. Suddenly they condemned her words. They released a statement saying "there is simply no place on our network for offensive language like this." Hmmm... such outrage. Why did it take them so long to feel it? I see hypocrisy here. If there is no room on the Golf Channel for that language then Tilghman should have been yanked from the air immediately. If it was a non issue then she should not be suspended. If you are going to take a moral stand then you have to make up your mind. You can't have it both ways. The late suspension was a compromise to hopefully get angry African Americans off the Golf Network's back. Tilghman's suspension conveniently ends just in time for her to work the Buick Invitational on January 24. It will be Tiger Woods' 2008 debut. I guess the Golf Network's timing isn't completely off... not when it comes to scheduling their outrage. Kent Ninomiya

Is the Strike Working? - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - Is the month old Writers Guild of America strike working? Anyone saying it hasn't had a significant impact on the industry is lying. It was sad watching Queen Latifah make a fool of herself with her fake canned enthusiasm during the People's Choice Awards "press conference" on Tuesday. The ratings were predictably sad. Only 6 million viewers tuned in compared to 11.3 million last year. We can expect more of the same at Sunday's Golden Globes "news conference." People tune in to these awards ceremonies to see the celebrities. They want to know what they're wearing and share the expressions of victory and defeat on their faces when the winners are announced. No press conference will replicate that. The Writers Guild promises more of the same for the Academy Awards in February. Even though producers of the Oscars promises a stage show as planned, no one believes that's possible without the stars in the seats. There is a lot of money at stake here. That's enough motivation for both sides to get things done. I predict this strike will be all wrapped up before the Academy Awards, though it may be an eleventh hour last minute agreement. Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - Here's a link to a blog you might find interesting. The author seems to have a good grasp on some pressing sports issues of our time. http://oldschool.tblog.com/post/1969970957#comment_anchor

Golf Channel Anchor - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - Should someone lose their job and career for saying the wrong thing? Is it right that years of unblemished service be wiped out by a single off hand comment? The answer is... it depends. Last Friday, Golf Channel anchor Kelly Tilghman said young pro golfers trying to catch up to Tiger Woods should "lynch him in a back alley." Naturally this comment sparked outrage since Tiger Woods is part African American. The anger further intensified as Tilghman was allowed to appear on the air all day Saturday as if nothing happened. She issued an on-air apology Sunday and said he apologized directly to Tiger Woods, however she remained on the air that day. The Golf Channel issued a statement saying "we regret if any viewers were offended by Kelly's choice of words."Tiger Woods is apparently taking the high road and not making an issue out of it. Woods' agent is quotes as saying "It is a complete non-issue. Kelly and Tiger are friends. It might have been a poor choice of words, but there was absolutely no ill intent whatsoever."It is entirely reasonable to assume that Tilghman did not mean to offend anyone and is not a racist. It was most likely a slip of the tongue and she did not realize the context of the word "lynch" when she said it. So then, what should be her "punishment" if anything? The Golf Channel is obviously concentrating on intent. Since she has no ill will then it's a simple matter of apologizing. The fact that their viewer base is primarily white and not overall offended by her remark anyway also limits their motivation to dole out any punishment. To some this makes the Golf Channel seem apathetic and racist. Other groups out there are horribly offended and want Tilghman's head. It doesn't matter to them that Woods himself says he's not offended and is willing to drop the matter. They want to make an example out of Tilghman as if punishing her will stop others from making slips of the tongue in the future.I have worked in television for more than 20 years now. Many comments have passed my lips that came out differently than I intended them. When you talk for a living on live television you sometimes say stupid and inadvertently offensive things without realizing it. Is that a punishable offense? One time in San Francisco I was chatting on air with my co anchor about a man who found several stolen Oscar statues in a trash dumpster. His reward for returning them was an invitation to the Academy Awards ceremony in the next day or two. I commented that I hoped he had time to find something nice to wear since the Academy Awards are all about what people are wearing. The man happened to be African American. One viewer was greatly offended by my comment and wrote a letter accusing me of being a blatant racist. He said I claimed African Americans are too poor and stupid to dress themselves. I have quite honestly never had that thought in my life and was not thinking about the man's race at all when making the comment. I was talking about clothes. Despite this the viewer was irate. I personally expressed my regret to the viewer if my comments offended him and explained that I did not mean what he believed I did. It did not satisfy him and he continued to be angry and convinced I was a racist. Nothing I could say or do would satisfy him. He just wanted to be offended.I have also been on the other side of misspoken words. I was hired to be a primary anchor at a television station in Minneapolis and partnered with an African American woman. The general manager who hired me was a visionary. He was willing to create an all minority main anchor team in an overwhelmingly white market. When asked about this, he said when it comes to anchors it didn't matter the color of their skin or the "slant" of their eyes. Columnists and Asian American groups around the country took it upon themselves to be offended by the "slant" comment. Some called for the general manager's firing. They didn't bother to ask me if I was offended. I wasn't. I knew this man to be honorable and brave. He took a huge risk hiring me and was in no way a racist. His words came out wrong. That's all. The story diminished what should have been a hugely positive story about the landmark all minority anchor team in Minnesota. Those who were so offended missed an opportunity to focus on a positive accomplishment by being petty and negative.The bottom line here is that words are powerful, but they're just words. A sum of a person's character and accomplishments can not be reduced to a single inadvertent comment no matter what it is. If there's a pattern of offensive behavior or words, that's different. If it's a single off hand statement then it should be judged in the context under which it is said. Making a big deal about an innocent statement harms the movement for equality. If the mainstream sees minorities as over sensitive and unreasonable then they will ignore legitimate complaints. Likewise, the mainstream needs to understand that offensive comments do harm us all and use these incidents as opportunities to focus on removing them from our lexicon. There is work to do on both sides. Kent Ninomiya

Is the Strike Working? - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - Who says writers don't have pull? The writers go out on strike and bring the mighty Golden Globes to their knees. It wasn't surprising to hear that politically active actors like George Clooney refused to cross picket lines and attend the awards show. However when enough selfish celebrities jumped on the bandwagon and it was enough of a boycott to call off the whole show... that was a shock. A lot of people are losing a lot of money without the Golden Globes. Remember, it's the warm up for the Academy Awards... the Superbowl for the movie industry. Is it too far fetched to imagine a canceled Academy Awards show due to the writers strike? I didn't think the Golden Globes would fall. If indeed the Golden Globes are a warm up for the Academy Awards then prepare yourself. There's a lot more money involved with the Oscars. If that's not a motivation to settle the strike then I don't know what is. Kent Ninomiya

Unforgiving Celebrity Culture - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - What is an innocent man supposed to sound like? Do we know? If I asked what a guilty man sounds like I'm sure I would get all sorts of answers, but an innocent man is harder to identify. This is the no win situation facing Roger Clemens. No matter what he does he will look and sound guilty to many just because he was accused. This is the gross injustice inflicted by our media culture. While the courts are supposed to assume innocence until guilt is proven, it is the opposite in the media. Public perception is always to assume guilt. The tragedy is that even if a celebrity is later proved to be innocent, people generally don't remember that. Roger Clemens seems to realize that he is ruined no matter what he does. Still he is releasing statements, holding news conferences and suing his accuser. He is doing what he can to clear his name even though he realizes it will never be enough. Celebrity is an unforgiving double edged sword. It will slice you a path to the front of the line then cut you down where you stand. In my career I've witnessed countless lives ruined by unsubstantiated accusations. I do not know if Roger Clemens is guilty or not, but I will strive to give him the benefit of the doubt while due process is observed. I do this even though I know my media colleagues wont. I urge my fellow journalists to consider what they do on a daily basis. Our job as journalists is to uncover the truth and report the facts. Giving false impressions by repeating unproven accusations as fact is wrong. Let's do the right thing. Kent Ninomiya

Miss America Reality - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - Miss America is now a reality series. That's right. The 87 year old standard by which all beauty pageants are judged has gone reality. From what I observe it's got the same format of every other reality series on TV. There are 52 contestants (one for each state plus Washington DC and the US Virgin Islands). They stand before a panel of unworthy judges who belittle and degrade them constantly. These once elegant women are reduced to performing "challenges" to prove their worthiness to wear the crown. I must admit that I was horrified at first glance. Miss America was special. Sure the women portrayed on unrealistic image, but that's what the pageant was all about. Are you fake by dressing up for your wedding? Of course not, and they are not fake for showing their best for a national beauty pageant. No one ever watched Miss America wishing the women showed what they were like in every day life. It's about seeing them at their unrealistic best. So why then tear them apart on national television for everyone to see? Here's another confession. The show is unexpectedly addictive. Yes, I'm horrified, but I'm also curious. It's like watching a train wreck. I don't want to watch but I can't turn away. My guess is that the contestants are thrilled to be a part of this experiment. They are getting far more exposure than contestants ever received before. No one ever entered a pageant wishing they had less exposure. So will this be the first of the "realitizing" of other American institutions? Why not have the presidential election be a reality show? It would be fun to see Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and Rudy Giuliani living in a house together performing daily challenges. Oh the horror of what we've become. Kent Ninomiya

Spears obsession - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - America's obsession with celebrity is proving to surpass the entire justification for celebrity in the first place. The news is filled with stories about Britney Spears and her personal troubles as well as her sister's teen pregnancy. The only justification for doing these stories is that they are famous. Their troubles are no different than troubles facing American families everywhere yet their troubles are front page news. Brittany became famous as an entertainer yet she hasn't done much entertaining lately. That is unless you consider her troubles entertaining. Indeed many Americans do. They look at people like Brittany Spears or Paris Hilton or Lindsay Lohan and take delight in their woes. They somehow feel better about themselves knowing that the rich, beautiful and famous are suffering. What does that say about us? Notice the news value of the following story on the AP. If you find any let me know.

(AP) Britney Spears was derailed yet again in her struggle to get her career and personal life back on track. Hauled away from her home by paramedics and police, the 26-year-old pop star remained hospitalized Friday as attorneys met in Superior Court in her custody battle with ex-husband Kevin Federline over their two young sons. Lawyers spent 30 minutes in the court commissioner's chambers but made no comments to reporters afterward. A court hearing was scheduled later Friday.
Federline's attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan, told The Associated Press that Federline would not attend the hearing "unless it's absolutely necessary."
Federline has temporary custody of 2-year-old Sean Preston and 1-year-old Jayden James because Spears, who has limited visitation rights, has defied court orders.
Kaplan said he had been at Spears' hilltop home late Thursday before an ambulance whisked the singer through a throng of paparazzi to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center after a nearly three-hour standoff with Los Angeles police.
"I was up at the guard gate where (she) lives. I did not go in" to the home, Kaplan said. "I was up there only to bring a document ... that identified the existing court order" about the couple's custody arrangements and visitation schedule. He gave the document to a security guard.
Kaplan said he later went to Cedars-Sinai, but he declined to provide any details about Spears, her ex-husband, or their two sons.
Spears' mother, Lynne Spears, also would not disclose any information about her daughter's condition. "Just say prayers," she told the celebrity news show "Access Hollywood" by phone Friday.
Hospital spokeswoman Simi Singer wouldn't confirm or deny reports in entertainment media that Spears would be held for 72 hours for psychological evaluation. The reports didn't identify their sources.
Spears' latest troubles began around 8 p.m. Thursday when officers were called to her home because she refused to turn over her children to Federline as dictated by their custody agreement.
It took two to three hours to resolve the conflict, said Officer Ana Aguirre.
"There was a time where she was within the residence and wasn't available to be speaking to the officers, apparently," she said. "There was no threat to the children."
"Police resolved the conflict," Aguirre said. "Both children were turned over to her ex-husband Kevin Federline for custody, and she was in fact taken to a local hospital for medical treatment."
Early police reports said officers thought Spears might have been under the influence of some substance but Aguirre said there was no evidence of that.
"Our understanding is that was not the case," she said.
Officers at the scene determined that paramedics "needed to be called" but it was unclear why, she said.
"We're not aware of any type of injuries that she sustained" and she was not combative with authorities, Aguirre said.
Spears wasn't arrested in connection with the custody dispute, Aguirre said.
"There was no actual crime that was involved," the police spokeswoman said.
Spears and Federline were married in October 2004. Her life has spiraled downward since their divorce in July. She has been photographed without underwear and appeared to be drunk and out-of-control in public. She shaved her head, beat a car with an umbrella and spent a month in rehab.
She had hoped to regain her pop crown with a much-hyped performance at MTV's Video Music Awards in September, but it was universally panned by fans and critics.
Still, Spears latest album, "Blackout," earned positive reviews when it was released in October and brought Spears her first No. 1 hit in years, "Gimme More."
However, Spears remains a paparazzi target for her bizarre antics, which include frequent stops at gas-station bathrooms and holing up in a hotel room with a paparazzo.
Her 16-year-old sister, Jamie Lynn, made headlines last month when she announced that she is pregnant.

The Oprah factor - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - Barack Obama wins a convincing victory in the Iowa caucuses squashing his closest rival Hillary Clinton down to third behind John Edwards. So how did he do it? No Obama supporter has a higher profile than Oprah Winfrey. Oprah openly endorses Obama giving him valuable air time on her uber popular show. Considering Oprah can make a best seller out of any book she says she read, it's safe to assume she has the potential to make a president out of a guy she says voted for. It demonstrates the unprecedented power wielded by this media Goliath. Oprah started out as a news reporter, moved on to local talk show host, then syndicated goddess. If Obama wins the white house she can add "kingmaker" to the list. Is there any way to quantify the "Oprah factor?" I'm not sure, but there is little doubt that Oprah's support of Obama helped his numbers in Iowa. Let's see what she can do for him in New Hampshire. I will be curious to find out whether there is a direct correlation between Obama appearances on Oprah and his poll numbers. Kent Ninomiya

entertaining college football - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - Make no mistake. Sports is entertainment. It isn't just sports. It is entertainment. It is live entertainment. It is TV entertainment. It is the subject of movies and fictional programming. In many ways it is the purest of drama. It is more exciting than any script and more real than any reality show. It also offers us a wonderful variety of genres within every sport. Over the weekend I found myself watching several football games at the same time. I flipped back and forth from channel to channel after virtually every play. Some of the games were professional NFL match ups while some were college bowl games. When compared side by side the differences in the games are striking. The pro game is cleaner and streamlined. Defensive players make tackles, receivers run their routes, quarterbacks throw the ball where they intend to and kickers rarely miss. It's almost too sanitary and downright boring when compared to the free for all of a college game. Even a good college team gives you the feel of a playground picked squad sometimes. The ball is tossed up for grabs, fumbles and bad snaps happen at unexpected times, blocked kicks and big plays abound. I watched a team intercept the ball only to give it right back with an interception on the next play then get it back on a fumble a few plays later. No lead is safe when a high powered offense is on a roll. It's very exciting and any team can beat any other. This upset laden season proves that. Given a choice give me the college game any day. I morn the end of the season. Kent Ninomiya

Happy New Year! - Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya - I would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year! I hope your 2008 is fullfilling and fruitful. Let's all treat each other well and work toward peace and harmony. Kent Ninomiya