Attracting

Saturday, February 04, 2023

The header image is of a female Fantail Beta in my small aquarium. It’s a perfect capture of grace and beauty.

Public Television has ignored viewers like me in changing from “Plus” to “World.” One of my favorite PBS shows is Amanpour & Co., which appeared nightly at the awful hour of 10 p.m. Awful because I had to stay awake waiting for its start.

I had this same problem with the wonderful 10 p.m. PBS series that preceded Amanpour, the nightly roundtable interviews by Charlie Rose. He was one of the brightest and best interviewers ever. His talent and guests were legendary until several years ago when Rose disgraced himself. He was discovered using his influence to be a sexual predator.

My disappointment at Charlie’s exit from PBS softened when his replacement turned out to be Christiane Amanpour. Her past experience included a wealth of international frontline reporting. A talented interviewer, she routinely could ask direct tough questions and could respond appropriately.

In its change from, Plus to World, PBS reset Amanpour & Co., so that now, it’s at 1 a.m. So, I must catch it on sleepless nights or on another day online with PBS Passport.

Years ago, I asked PBS why Charlie’s interviews didn’t have an earlier time slot. I learned that Charlie didn’t have enough viewers. It’s probably the same with Christiane’s series. Now that it’s in a more awful time slot, I’ll be saved by Passport. I always will wonder why great shows don’t attract more viewers.

Dear Friends: On reflection, viewing is influenced highly by one’s politics and worldviews. Diana