Like Sugar And, Oh - Let's Say

"more Fun Than A Barrel Of Monkeys." Has Anyone Ever Stopped To Think How Cranky, If Not Downright Vicious, A Barrelful Of Monkeys Would Be, Especially Once Released From The Barrel?

Perhaps Western Civilization Is In A Post-decline Phase, Or Maybe The Decline Is Just Taking A Really Long Time, Like The Roman Empire's Did. The Romans Had Gladiators And Christian-hungry Lions And That Sort Of Thing. We Have Mtv.

Like Sugar And, Oh - Let's Say The Most Tabloidy And Gossipy Reality Television Programs - Credit Is, For Millions, Genuinely Addictive.

No Matter How Much Programming Improves, However, Media Savants Tend To See The Medium Living Out Numbered Days. It's Feared That The Internet Will Do To Tv What Tv Did To The Movies In The 1950s. But Instead Of Panicking, The Networks Are Finding Ways To Co-opt The Web.

Obviously Neither 'american Idol' Nor 'dancing With The Stars' Is A Variety Show In The Classic Sense, But The Way They Incorporate Elements Of Drama, Comedy And Suspense Is Moderately Ingenious.