girl, interrupted from her fanaticism

No, I haven't abandoned this blog (yet). It's just that with the advent of Hala's activity on social networks (on Facebook and Twitter), the fun, speculative point of this blog (what the hell she could be thinking, why she disappears from programming) is pretty much a moot point. And since she's the dedicated anchor to the International Desk (airs daily, 1900CET), it's no longer a matter of looking for her, as it used to be when she was just one of the many anchors for the weekend news. The fun part, the guessing part, has been taken away.

Plus I think CNN's building her up to be one of their more important (read: visible) anchors, so... yeah.

So, yes, unless something dire happens, or Hala and Richard exchange outstandingly quippy comments with each other, I probably won't be updating. I won't delete the blog, though, because you never know.

In the meantime, there's always Linking to Hala and the fan forum.

on the bright side, we got to see her iPhone

First of all, I suppose if you read this, then you've already come across this. Congratulations, I guess?

Moving on.

I am a fan of the internet (clearly). I like the anonymity of it (i.e., that I can type this, and people still think my name is Tiff), I like the vastness of it, I like that I can watch the Care Bears movie in its entirety in so many parts on YouTube.

Then, of course, there is the fallout of said anonymity, which is that people can spew vitriol and be mean and not reveal anything about themselves.

This reaction stems from Hala's directive on her Twitter feed to "read the comments" on an interview she conducted.

Here's the interview:


Now, before you go and read the comments on the link Hala provided, trust me: When Hala says "Wow", she frakking means it.

(But that headline: "Atheist calls for Pope's Arrest" is not helping. At all. It's a tad too sensationalist to be in good taste.)

Someone once said that an important element of journalism is that you can't be good at it unless you're willing to take criticism. I suppose that's generally true, but it's generally easier to accept criticism from people you respect, people who are in the position to have an opinion.

Yes, I have my opinions on how the people on CNN (and yes, Hala) present the news, and it's not always positive. But I keep those opinions to myself because, haha, what do I know about broadcasting and journalism? Trust me, this shallow discourse is better for all of us.

And, yes, I know Hala has to hone some more her interview skills, because this is not the first time that her interviewing has spawned this kind of commentary. Yes, I admit I've often found funny how she's handled some interviews in the past, and I'm sure I'm not the only one who's seen how some interviews she's conducted seem to end abruptly.

Besides, being an interviewer is hard. You have to control the conversation, but still ensure that the interviewee keeps on talking to get to the answers you know you need. Plus the trouble of ensuring that the answer you want to get to is the core of what the interviewee is really saying, and not what you as the interviewer want to hear.

But I understand what she was trying to accomplish here, which is a tried and true interviewing tactic: if the answers seem vague, or there seems to be a bigger picture, ask and re-ask, to try to get to the core of the thesis statement. The problem with the news cycle is that everyone is relegated to trying to get a soundbite, and in a 3-5 minute interview, that's just asking for trouble.

Richard and Hala together. I've missed you.

Okay, Christmas... gods, spirits, whatever. I haven't been in a very seasonal mood lately, and it hasn't quite been my year, but I must say, it's too late for Thanksgiving, but thank you.

Did anyone else see Hala and Richard at CNN London? So, thank you Boeing 787, and thank you, BA unions, because that meant the developing stories were both related in detail by our dearest Quest.

(Sorry, BA passengers. Hope those negotiations go well for your sake.)

No, I don't have screencaps yet, but Thot has video, and I leave you with this little gem that reminds me why I loved BizNews so much:

(on the Boeing 787 test flights)
Hala: I was told we have 90 seconds left, that was a minute ago.
Richard: Try not to get too excited.
Hala: I can't help it, Richard. It's a plane taking off.

It's not quite "there is a world outside the Richard Quest universe", but it'll do. I've missed Hala's dry wit.



... She's hosting the first Inside The Middle East for 2010, so don't miss that.

more clothes talk

Yes, some people really do pay attention to the anchor's clothes.

we interrupt this senseless blog for a message from the blogger

People who are leaving comments for Hala, or those who are asking me for Hala's personal contact information: this site has no official affiliation with Ms. Gorani. I am a fan. That is all.

Now, if you were really a fan, you would take all the "get in touch with us" information Hala tells all us viewers at the end of each and every episode of International Desk and use it. 

That is all. 



(Alright, maybe you're totally inept, or your DVR totally ends five minutes before the end of the program) So:

Blog: CNN.com/IDesk
Twitter: HalaGorani
Email: IDesk@CNN.com
Facebook: CNN I-Desk

because context is boring.

Remember the old days, when anything Hala said regarding the Middle East was considered propaganda by some paranoid viewers?

In the spirit of things-Hala-says-that-get-taken-out-of-context, I bring you The CNN twofour54 hoopla:

It all started with an interview. 

Then came an announcement. 

Then came the confusion. 

Oh, Hala. I doubt this kind of chaos can surround, say, Fionnuala. Or even Becky. 

But that is why I think you are fantastic, and think not so much so of them. 

I miss Zain.

I'm sorry, and it's really weird that my first entry for 2009 would not be about Ms. Gorani, but I have to share: Zain makes a hilarious error.

tiger print? really?

I don't care if it's not quite what one would consider as proper clothing for a news anchor, but what the hell: I think I kind of want that top.

No, I think I really want it. Sure, it could be tacky, it could be interpreted in so many ways, but I think it's kind of awesome. 

And it certainly distracts from that new set. 

did you see that?

It's a tad (a lot) late after the fact, but Hala and Richard talking/exchanging viewpoints/arguing about business! *Squee!*

Good times, good times.



Screencap, as usual, courtesy of Thot.

time to bail

Unfortunately, this isn't about Hala.

Because I'm sick and taken the day off work, I'm home to see Richard Quest throw down with Monita Rajpal and Max Foster on the UK bailout. I've missed them all, and I miss how much more expressive the people in London are about their opinions and analysis on the news they report. Sigh. Maybe it's just Monita, but I am loving her refusal to just accept the report she's delivering. Of course, everyone does so, but has anyone else noticed that the London people are less likely to just drop a subject than they are in Atlanta?

But since I've already mentioned Hala, I must query: this is the second straight month she hasn't hosted Inside the Middle East. This makes me :-(
But as of the last time I saw Hala, her neckline seems to have returned to basic cable levels. Thanks, Hala, for looking all professional again.

I've missed Monita's necklaces and Max's atrocious color matching. I miss watching these two.

Hey, Matthew Chance. Hello there. And, haha, good call, Russia, suspending stock market trading in light of such volatile global markets.

anchorwear

I love Hala, I do, but I must draw the line on what I feel is appropriate clothes for news anchors.

Because low necklines, I think, should be different for regular people, people who have the rights to wear low necklines, people on TV, and people on TV who should be taken seriously.


As one online writer noted, and even singled out Ms.Gorani as an example, of how even news anchors have been lowering their necklines.

I know I whined when Hala showed up in this:

and I recall asking if it can be deemed proper "anchor wear", with at least two people agreeing that it's too casual. And I realize that it's harder to be a female TV personality because you can't just go with the suit-and-tie ensemble that men can get away with, but she's pulled off being a fashionable-yet-discreet anchor for some time now. But I found her charming back when she was taking herself seriously (even if it's possible that she was just acting as a counterpoint to Richard Quest), and wore that awful awful checkered beige top (please don't make me look for it. It should be on some forum archives). And her clothes since moving to Atlanta have been pretty cool.

Which is why I take pause on her new, lowering neckline: She doesn't have to. I understand if she feels confident enough to wear it at that level, but, seriously; she's not on TV as a sex object. She doesn't need to play up the Pretty card to get people to watch. Or, more accurately, she shouldn't have to. She's a journalist, and despite the many detractors on her continued sometimes-partial take on middle eastern politics, she has been a pretty solid one, in my opinion. The fact that she's a pretty face just helps in taking in the chaos that is the world news.

But maybe it's just me.

What do you think?


(today's pix borrowed from the forums.)

a little redundant, don't you think?

I loved the forum, as Hala seems to have evolved quite well as a moderator. Some of the earliest forums she had moderated have been lacking, but this time she seemed to be in her element, at ease, confident and all kinds of awesome.

And I do believe that was Schams in the audience. Beside a rather striking woman (shall we say, of a certain age?) who, upon first sighting, my mind immediately went to: "Hala's Mom?" Not sure, and unless someone confirms it, I'll settle for the Schams sighting. (screencap can be found on the dotorg.)

And if I got the opportunity to do a forum in such an excellent location, I might have tried harder in my debate classes.



But I do have one beef with the whole thing, and I think this would annoy anyone: It's a forum on France. Yes. We get it. They have French names, they're at the French Senate, the forum is part of a feature called Eye on France. So why, oh dear CNN producers, did you have to put in, ad nauseam, the panelists' profession to be "French (blank)"? Why not just cite, "director", "tennis player", etc? WHY must it be "French director"? Seriously, why? If the pronunciation of their very French names (well, except for Marie Drucker) didn't tip viewers off, surely the accent would have. I mean, really. This would be understandable if you were airing this randomly, but we all knew what we were watching, and Hala didn't mind reminding us: the forum caps off the week, a week featuring France. And, gosh, didn't every other question posed (if not all of them) have the word "France" or "French" in it?

We get it.

Oh, and another thing? Why did Hala keep on calling some panelists (Amelie Mauresmo the most obvious) by their whole names? But this is minor beef, unlike the Kobe beef just mentioned.


Although, you know I couldn't turn away, because, well, Hala speaking in her French accent. What can I say?

au revoir, Eye On France.

photo courtesy of Thot from CNNfan.org

Why, Miss Gorani, I do believe you were flirting with that young man (Raphael). The body language, certainly, implied some subtle flirting.

Also? Hot damn, Miss Gorani, that's quite some leg you're showing off there.

I've mentioned before, and I don't hesitate to mention again, that I love Hala when she speaks French. And this week has been bliss in that respect. It was also nice to have Hala seem so relaxed, so at ease with the on-location reporting, and she seemed to generally get along with the people she interviewed.

photo courtesy of Thot from CNNfan.org

And, really, how (stereotypical) Parisian can that black top be?

You can go to the .org and browse the forum to find links and check out the different interviews Hala has been doing in France, and enjoy the Hala-speaking-French of it all. It's really a lot of fun, even if you can barely understand the language. Does anyone else on CNNI get this much media exposure?

A fun fact I didn't know and surprised myself by actually appreciating? Hala is well aware that Becky speaks French. A throwaway comment Hala shared, saying that new music acts are so in tune with their French roots, that they only choose to sing in the language, which Becky knows(!). And the easy banter was also surprising, because while I never caught the ice that some forum peeps mention, I don't recall them being this friendly. And did I mention Becky also speaks French (although the idea of her speaking French doesn't bring me to a warm fuzzy place the way Hala speaking French does... but I digress).

Last stop: France on the Move debate, which Ms. Gorani will be moderating. (air times: june 8 - 2000h, june 9 - 1200, 2100 CET... schedule which you probably already knew. heh.)



...
But, going back to the first picture, can somebody please tell Hala that, yes, we all love and adore her, but can she please button up and lower the hemline a bit? It's becoming rather alarming, and while we all love her (and her fab figure), she's still a news anchor, and the amount of skin is showing is really quite disturbing distracting. Feel free to wear it on your different appearances, just not while on the air interviewing, ok?



And, OMG, you can play Six Degrees from Stephen Colbert to Shihab Rattansi. It's disturbing, it's weird, and I can't believe I care. Oh well.

behind the anchor persona

Where can a fan begin when they stumble upon a Hala Gorani interview that reveals the person behind the anchor, and not a profile on an anchor?

How do I love about Hala's interview on Gulfnews? Let me count the ways.
1. Her love of American Idol -

"American Idol is so entertaining and I know I'm not the only one who thinks it. There are other closet fans at CNN but my life wouldn't be worth living if I revealed names."

- I don't like the show myself, but look: signs of personality beyond the news.
2. The text message template she sends regularly to her mother. Awww. (The description of her looking up pleased with herself is an expression I can imagine, and, again, haha. So Hala.)
3. Her admission that contradicts her oft-stated career option if she weren't a journalist of being a teacher:

"Actually maybe not — I don't think I'd cope very well with children having tantrums. I'll stick to journalism for now."

Haha.


And let's not forget, next week CNN is showing Eye On France, where CNN will profile a nation. Hala back in France (I hope)! And Hala pronouncing French words and names! This is a sign of loads of fun.

what is monita wearing?

I like Monita. I do. How can I not like a CNN anchor who knows her Star Wars? I like her relaxed disposition, the way she can segue from serious to lighthearted in the time it takes to switch camera angles.

But what is up with her outfit yesterday?

(picture courtesy of Houston on CNNFan.org)

Because when I first saw it, my instinct was: Voltes V?

Then it occurred to me that it's more akin to the costume of old of the beloved X-Man, Nightcrawler:

Oh, Monita. Everything was working: the natural look, the hair (although it shows signs of a possible bad hair day. Was it?) And, okay, in retrospect, it's not THAT bad. But the V shape, the puffed up non-sleeves... never again, OK? Deal?

what would Sleepy say?

Oh, Richard. Honey, no.

What the frak were you thinking?




ETA 2 weeks later: the thought process chart. :) Enjoy.

maybe the snowball was Republican

Is it wrong to think that Hala Gorani, Middle East Winter Correspondent, makes for a fine visual? Yes, I realize that's her Davos wardrobe, but come on.

And I'm sure we all caught the last few seconds of IME, when someone hit Hala with a snowball. Twice. The first time, when she turned to the innocent bystanders behind her demanding who did it, was a thing of hilarity, because, really, who'd 'fess up to that? I mean, seriously. And we all saw that it came from the 7 o'clock angle, which means it came from the side of the camera. Interesting, I think, for someone to risk that. After all, back in the days of Design 360, Hala has allowed birds to interrupt her, but shown amusement and/or annoyance when people pass in front of her. To toss a snowball at her is just asking for trouble.

Which brings us to the second snowball. That was just... Her expression? And the way she was holding on to the snowball in her hand, you know the person had it coming. (The background music also gives a lovely sense of foreboding.) Although Hala looks like she has bad aim, snowball-wise. Even if she did sink that b-ball shot a few editions back.

I also love that the shortcut to the IME blog is cnn.com/hala. I did not know that, and it is very cool.



and if anyone gives me flak for the entry title, you need to learn irony, humor, and find another blog to read.

i resume posting and all you get is a lousy five sentences.

Did anyone else worry for the welfare of a CNN staffer, or have fear strike their hearts when Hala's phone interview was interrupted with her snapping, "stop talking!" in the middle of it?

I must say, Hala and Jonathan Mann seem to be off so far on the fist hour of YWT. Particularly as a tandem: they've been overlapping cues, interrupting reports...

Miss Gorani, hate to go all Go Fug Yourself on you, but that top just makes you look frumpy. Thank goodness everything from the neck up is lovely as ever.

danger, Will Robinson. danger.

This worries me. Because as I've previously noted, Hala and Inside the Middle East seems to be polarizing without meaning to be. People react strongly to whatever the program presents, and no matter what they do, nobody seems to be truly happy. Or, shall we say, too few seem to truly "get" it. It's untold stories. Because different strokes and different folks, there will be always contrasting reactions.

So People of the Year? That's fine. That's great. Show the different opinions of the people. But the part where the IME team will share their own? That's worrisome. Because you just know someone's going to react.

And again complain about Hala being "too pro-Middle East".

not yet

This is going to be a poor excuse of an entry, but I just want to reassure everyone that I have not yet abandoned my blind worship of Miss Gorani.

But I must say this: reading other blogs that mention Hala, it's funny how polarizing Hala is. Some think she's too pro-Middle East, other too pro-Western World. All this while being a talking head and in interviews not reveal her own opinions to preserve her talking head status.

Does Hala carry a bias? Maybe. But this is blind fanaticism, people. Don't make me think about serious issues. This blog is all about how lovely Hala looks when she's in blue, and not about the subliminal message behind Inside the Middle East's programming.

Unless the subliminal message is Hala's continued maintenance of her weight loss.