They're Our Valentines

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A teary 41 and his tough cookie of a first lady, interviewed by their granddaughter

No Short Shrift

Attesting to the abundant good sense of the American people, of the 300,000 who gave the Today Show their opinion, 87% said it was okay for the First Lady to wear shorts on vacation. Only odd thing: Largest response ever received by the Today Show.

Truth In Positioning

The Today Show just did an item about Carrie Prejean's revealing photographs, saying that these "might not sit well with her conservative supporters." Interesting, however, that they didn't present testimony from any of them. Instead, to plumb the social conservative soul, NBC presented a reporter for E! News, who said:

She can continue to advocate for causes, but I don’t think these causes are going to advocate for her.

We'll see. As the Today Show knows full well, conservatives, sensing another MSM putsch against another of their icons, will probably rally around her all the more. It would have been more honest if NBC had reported, "We anticipate that her apparent hypocrisy on moral issues -- posing for racy photos while preaching against gay marriage -- will discredit her not among true-believing right-wingers but among open-minded people who may not necessarily agree with her views but thought that up until now, she'd been rudely treated." But that might make it look as though the Today Show had an agenda, huh?

"Sharon Stone Is In Town...A Sense of Family"

We knew the media would be beside themselves today and tomorrow. Allowances must be made, and distinctions as well, between worthy coverage and not so much. The Today Show ran a charming piece by Jamie Gangel about Presidential entertaining; look for President Nixon at the piano during his famous birthday party for Duke Ellington. Gangel warns Sasha and Malia to follow Amy Carter's lead and bring a book to the parties. Unfortunately, the segment was followed by an interview with a society editor, Susan Nixon (no relation), that may have you reaching for the on-air sickness bag.

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A New Word For A New Era

Call President Bush's speechwriter: On the Today Show this morning, while interviewing Doris Kearns Goodwin, Natalie Morales said the times we're living in are "monumentous."