Austin360 blogs > TV Blog > Archives > 2007 > March > 02 > Entry
Anna Nicole story lives on … despite burial
Don’t think for a minute that today’s elaborate, pink-flower festooned burial of Anna Nicole Smith will be the end of her.
No, this story has the longest, most energetic legs of any story we’ve seen in the tabloid genre for years. The Voluptuous One’s death Feb. 8 was such a big deal that CNN’s Wolf Blitzer turned over his two-hour political show, “The Situation Room,” to her demise that day.
“Entertainment Tonight” has opened a virtual Bahamas bureau dedicated to Mark Steines’ way-too-sympathetic coverage of Howard K. Stern, Anna’s weepy beau and one of several possible fathers to 5-month-old Dannielynn.
The fight for custody of the body of Texas Playboy model and celebrity extraordinaire may be over (she’s being buried in the Bahamas, not returned to Texas where mom Virgie wanted her), but we’ve still got at least two major developments on the horizon: the toxicology report, due next week, that will tell us what caused Anna Nicole’s death, and the results of a California paternity test to determine who really did father the baby girl.
These two lingering plotlines will be enough to keep The Anna Nicole Story going.
But what if the mainstream media decided to ban further coverage of Anna Nicole? Would the world collapse?
The Associated Press decided to ban its celeb-obsessed coverage of heiress-model Paris Hilton. The blackout started Feb. 19, and apparently none of the AP’s clients cared — or requested new Paris stories. When the famous-for-being-famous girl was popped for driving without a license on Feb. 27, the ban was lifted.
A blackout of Anna Nicole coverage would be oh-so-refreshing, but I’m living in the real world and don’t for a second think that will happen. We’re stuck with this sordid melodrama for a very long time.
Permalink | Comments (0) | Post your comment | Categories: News coverage
Comments