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Robert Abele at the LA Weekly wonders if the new character introduced in "The Closer" this season would be Sam Zell's idea of a model reporter.
What’s with the inane, lazy portrayal of the journalist in the fourth-season opener? Introduced at the scene of a raging-wildfire/possible-arson as an LAPD-approved media shadow on its next big investigation, this L.A. Times–identified character is another pitiful example of Hollywood’s cluelessness in depicting reporters. This “journalist” not only tips the detectives about his story angle, but he also shares his notes with the people he’s covering, doesn’t even take notes in many scenes and, when confronted about interviewing a key suspect, blabs how he did it, brags about how he helped the police, needlessly antagonizes the cops, and then pushes them to make an arrest. With so much that’s valid about the delicate relationship between law enforcement and the press, why manufacture such a ridiculous stereotype of boneheaded news-hound aggression?