Coverage of Anna Nicole Smith's death last week came in third place in its share of the news hole, according to the PEJ news coverage index. News outlets overall only devoted more time to Iraq policy and events. Oh, and the index considers the whole week, and Smith died Thursday, meaning it took only two days for her to almost catch up with Iraq.
The question of why we care about Smith has already been asked and answered by many: Marilyn, tragedy, rags-to-riches, blah blah blah. But, does any of that really ring true for anybody? I mean, come on, can't we just admit to why we really liked to hear about her? Drugs, boobs, money and sex. You don't have to be a diapered astronaut to understand the allure. But, as the story accompanying the PEJ index points out, the talking heads attempted to justify the double-D onslaught by trying to find "deeper meaning" in the stories of Smith and Lisa Nowak, an effort I find completely phony and pretentious. I can find deep meaning in my toenail clippings if need be, but why should I want to do that? We need to take these stories at face value and stop pretending that they say something about the American Dream. Nowak is a diaper-wearing, bat-shit crazy astronaut, for Christ's sake. Isn't that enough?
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