Just been watching Channel Four News' report on the rather half-hearted fudge on identity cards by new Home Secretary Alan Johnson, who seems determined to waste money on this foolish scheme.
For some reason, Gary Gibbon's report was introduced by Jon Snow with a graphic of Gibbon's face inside an identity card.
After a serious and interesting report on the decision to make identity cards voluntary, cut back to studio and bizarre Gary Gibbon/identity card graphic, with Jon Snow saying "Gary Gibbon, with his own identity card, there."
I remember a few weeks' ago a news report, which I think was also by Channel Four, commentating on Gordon Brown as a lame duck prime minister.
For some reason, footage of a yellow plastic duck had to be shot, with the duck caught by the reporter at the end of the piece.
Television news needs viewers, especially advertising-supporter commerical channels.
Are they relying on the easy option to chase viewers in this multi-channel and Web 2.0 age, or is it a sad indictment of today's generations that they need stupid gimmicks to be lured into the news?
I fear it is the latter.
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