Must-Cry TV--anchors human, but is that what we need from a reporter?

TomPaine.com - Must-Cry TV: "Cooper (and Smith and Rivera and so on) could have reported just as thoroughly, and just as well, without making their feelings part of the story. Their tears were, simply, unprofessional, and the fact that their bosses seem to approve is a sign of how corrupted TV news has become, how insecure it is of its own relevance. Peter Jennings, Tom Brokaw and Dan Rather were not without their flaws. But it is impossible to imagine Jennings and Brokaw, at least, so utterly abandoning the ideal of objectivity, and that is why Americans listened to them respectfully for as long as we did. But of course, Anderson Cooper isn't the anchors of not-so-long ago. He's more like Oprah, with richer parents and no weight problem. As Jonathan Klein points out, Anderson Cooper may well be the next-generation anchorperson. Assuming network news makes it that long."