Americans care about reality TV more than reality

Last week, President George W. Bush made one more desperate attempt to sell his privatization scheme to the American people. He finally revealed the meat of his plan (private accounts do nothing to address the major financial discrepancies of the system, even proponents admit). The new, creative solution? Benefit cuts for the middle class. When you and I retire, Social Security will pay for about three Taco Bell meals a month.

But even those civic-minded citizens who tuned in to hear Bush's plea for support might not have received the whole message. Instead, they were treated to an airhead heiress, a billionaire with a bad hairpiece, or a dozen sexy morons stranded on a tropical island. Television networks decided that one hour was enough time for the commander in chief during a week vital to their ratings and advertising revenue. So, as the president stammered and pontificated through reporters' questions, networks switched to their regular primetime coverage.

Before the cry of "Liberal media bias!" is sounded, take notice: administration lapdog Fox cut away to important programming consisting of everyone's favorite celebutante, Paris Hilton. Red-staters hoping to catch the end of the president's remarks were forced to venture into uncharted territory on their dial; ABC and PBS were the only broadcast networks to remain with the press conference until the bitter end.

It is not the case that the current White House demands much prime-time airtime from broadcasters. He is notoriously uncomfortable with spontaneous questions from legitimate reporters, and his handlers try to keep him in scripted and supported forums as much as possible. In fact, this was the president's first prime-time news conference in over a year, and one of few in his presidency that didn't involve invading something.

Still, Donald's Apprentice trumped the president. So did Survivor: Palau. While networks are in the business of selling advertising, they utilize the public airwaves. Though the freedom of the press should allow networks to accommodate the president at their discretion, it is a failure on their part to preempt such an appearance for more of the same trash that they air every day.

As a critic of most everything he stands for, I want the president's message to get out so Americans can see his plan for the baloney that it is. I also want to see his response to tough questions from the press. Perhaps this slight is a net benefit for Bush - he has won two elections on the votes of the misinformed, and decisions like the ones made by CBS, NBC and Fox contribute to our national political ignorance.

Anyone complaining that Survivor: Palau was delayed should have been forced to reapply for citizenship. No, Social Security reform is not sexy. Only political junkies like me get a thrill out of yelling at the president on television. But issues like this do affect our lives, and we have say in them. Unfortunately, most Americans "know" about politics only what they hear in the few weeks of campaign commercials every four years.

I suppose to more actively engage the electorate, politicians need to use techniques that suit the public taste. So, when I am elected president, I will demand one half-hour of prime time from the networks monthly to explain my agenda for the country. And they will give it to me, for at the end of each press conference, I will eat a bucket of cow eyeballs and toss one Congressman into a tank of electric eels.

Harrison Case is a columnist for The Daily Athenaeum at West Virginia University.