In the News last week:  Jussie Smollett

In the News this week:  Jussie Smollett.

In the News next week (you’ll never guess):  Jussie Smollett.

In fact, week after week after week after week:  The Misadventures of Jussie Smollett is THE news…to my utter dismay.

What can I say?!  I am so tired of hearing about Jussie Smollett, his arrest, his hoax, his release, his existence and anything else to do with him at this point.  In fact, hearing his name makes me sigh involuntarily.

Don’t get me wrong; it’s not that I am not a fan or that I am a fan or that I have ever been or not been a fan.  Truth is, I’ve not seen one episode of Empire…and have no plans to change that anytime soon.  Thus, I have no particular attachment, emotion or loyalty to him, the show or to his character.  For me, the problem is simple…the overkill.  Enough already!

From the outset of this ‘made for TV’ spectacle, it was clear that whatever had taken place (or had not taken place as the case seems to be) would be played out in the media and not in a courtroom.

Remember courtrooms?

You may have heard of them.  They are places where potentially criminal cases are tried in front of a judge and jury, with one side mounting a defense and the other prosecuting.  I hear they’re really big overseas.  And, at one point, they used to be big here too…before they were replaced by a jury of social media.

At this point, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the Nigerian brothers (somehow easily confused with white attackers) who were supposedly hired by him to commit the alleged “crime.”   Now, they would have us believe that the “brothers” had been hired by Smollett himself and paid via check (of all payment methods available today).  Seriously?  A check?

I’m surprised they didn’t try to convince people the “memo” section of the check stated “Payment for media hoax.”  I mean, why not?

Who on Earth would pay for any such services with a check in 2019?  Could anyone possibly be that stupid in this age of CSI (and the like)?  Why are we even considering this foolishness?

Wait a minute…

With that last question, I’m left with an even more horrific thought.  While the country was being entertained by this and other tomfoolery, what other, way more important things were taking place behind the scenes?

What programs were being cut, what leaders were being ousted, what ordinary citizens were starving, homeless, jobless, being killed, etc. while we were ODing on foolishness?

Frankly, this felt a little too much like a daytime soap opera being presented as something actually newsworthy.  To be honest, I’m tired of entertainment being called news.  Let’s face it, Jussie Smollett’s case is not new or news!  In fact, it is quite typical.  Imagine a black man being targeted, mistreated or beaten by racist whites in America?  Now imagine that case being ruled unsolvable or some kind of figment? I mean, is any of that really farfetched?

Regardless of that, shouldn’t news provide useful information about current events that will affect the viewer…instead of gossip, innuendo and/or propaganda aimed at keeping us entertained rather than informed?

Shouldn’t major issues of politics and international relations and trade be always be pushed to the forefront of people’s minds?

Shouldn’t I be able to turn on the television or go online and immediately find out what I need to know about the world around me?

Who is dating whom in Hollywood or some Dynasty level drama isn’t exactly what I had in mind.  How about you?

Has anybody else had enough of this madness?

Can anybody hear me?