hey there little buddy! i'm gonna eat you!
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7415766n&tag=contentMain;contentBody
please watch the above video (you only have to endure the beginning ad and then abou 38 seconds for me to prove my point). mo rocca is doing a story on barbecue in miami, havana style. the first part of the story involves the suckling pig, a centerpiece in cuban cuisine... and a horror show to some. oooooOOOOooooo!!!!!!!
so here comes CBS's double-edged sword of political-correctness. at 14-15 seconds into the segment, the camera shows a local miami cook pulling a suckling pig out of the oven, with the little guy's face right up in the camera. the segment even pauses the shot and spells out P-I-G with the crispy, succulent suckling pig starting you right in the face. although considered inhumane and gruesome to people who don't eat pork or find it sickening to cook little baby pigs, they put it right out on the table for you. or do they???
so let's endure about 23 more seconds of mo rocca's lisp and quirky humor to get to another shot with mo sitting at the table with the same cook. at 37 seconds in, notice the blur in the middle of the table - what would be the very same suckling pig, filtered for your protection.
now, here's my conundrum: how is it socially/politically/ethically/morally inappropriate to show the pig on the table (just the pig itself - none of the carved meat is blurred out) when you can clearly see two omnivorous human beings carving up and actually EATING the meat?!?!?! that is just outrageous. clearly there is a profane lapse when just 23 seconds before, you get a close-up shot of the very same pig coming out of the oven, right up in your face. so, the question i pose is: what is the point?
what is the point of even running a story about barbecue if you refuse to the very product that is one of the focal points of the journalistic work? what is the point of blurring out the pig in one shot, where you actually show the pig being disassembled and devoured, but blatantly putting the very same pig in clear view in what actually could be considered a much more "disturbing" or "tasteless" view? why can't someone who is truly offended change the fucking channel rather than force a news corporation like CBS blur out the feature image of a story? we've gotten so used to pandering to every movement group's feelings that we're becoming a weak-stomached nation.
the duality in this journalistic/editorial mishap on CBS's part lies at the heart of the debate over censorship, the media, and focus groups constantly whining about any and everything. while CBS may find that they could possibly disgust or offend people with showing the face of a fully cooked suckling pig, i have to watch mo rocca flounce around in a cheesy getup that every touristy white person would wear to miami. why can't we blur him out? his voice is annoying enough. i'm not going to sit here and tell anyone what should or shouldn't be shown on tv, but this little episode made me think: i can't stand mitt romney, for instance. his voice is more offensive and disgusting than a fully cooked pig. why don't they censor his voice with a voiceover by, say, Morgan Freeman. at least the nonsense spewing out of his mouth more pleasurable to endure. also, barak obama's public speaking and his excessive "uh's" are horrendous. why can't we bleep over them or simply cut them out of his speech. better yet, why can't he cut them out? public speaking professors should start a big to-do about this just like any other anti-pork person would whine and moan about a suckling pig being shown on tv.
and just to boot, the stories we get to hear about the tragedy in Aurora, CO, are riddled with pictures of people bloodied and shot. a truly horrendous scene - and we get full details on how someone methodically killed a dozen people and injured even more. and this doesn't make you sick?
but please, CBS Sunday Morning - for the love of god - don't do any stories on open air markets in any other country than the united states. i wouldn't want anyone to see what a skinned rabbit looks like because they're just so darn cute. and tasty, i might add.
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