60 Minutos

"60 Minutes" is definitely the originator of all the great television news magazines. Every Sunday night for several years I have either watched the show or listened to it on the local CBS radio affiliate here in Los Angeles. To me "60 Minutes" works in two different ways. The first is as an investigative program that looks hard at very controversial issues that the public should be made aware of. The show also is great at doing wonderful celebrity profiles. It really allows the general public to look at the lives of various celebrities and show what they are like once the spotlight is off. Of course, the show has its detractors who say that it has become very self important, but this will always be to me one of the most influential shows in the history of television.

This is the news show to which other news shows aspire, and none has ever even come close. This show has been on for 35 years because people trust it. They know that what they see and hear will be the unvarnished, unbiased truth; while a fatuous blowhard like Bill O'Reilly can call his show "The No-Spin Zone" when it is actually nothing BUT spin, viewers know that "60 Minutes" doesn't "spin" anything; it's not afraid to take on powerful people, institutions and corporations, and in fact has even raked its own network over the coals on more than one occasion. The show has a reputation for integrity that is unparalleled in the history of TV, and the fact that it has often elicited howls of protest from both the right and the left because of its coverage or investigations of issues or people "sacred" to those particular political philosophies is testimony to its effectiveness. This show is as good as it's possible to get.

With the explosion of news magazine shows on the prime-time airwaves, it is useful to remember the long-running program that producers are trying to emulate: 60 Minutes.

This show combines investigative journalism, celebrity profiles, and features about interesting organizations and events. When it's a serious subject, you feel like they have fairly and objectively reported the story. Even with lighter topics you get the impression 60 Minutes has captured the essence of the story.

Each segment is about 15 minutes long; we get three in every one-hour show. When the subject is something serious, the viewer has the option of following up in detail on other sources.

Sure, it's a formula, but the 60 Minutes people perfected the formula. No one else on commercial television does such good journalism.

Why has this show consistently placed near the top of the ratings for three decades? Because it's damn good. Why do people tune into 60 Minutes every week, despite the fact that during football season it is often delayed due to long-running games? Because they know that 60 Minutes will deliver.

Jack and Shana's debates in the 70s were a little much to take, and I can't stand Andy Rooney's musings, but the core of the show has remained solid.

60 Minutes is one, if not the, classic show that tries to convey topics and contexts to viewers with investigative journalism and a longer airtime. One of the few programs still running that really journalistically deals with the world and what is happening in and on it, but does not always hit the nail on the head and has unfortunately become more and more sensational. Nevertheless, a show that is still worth paying attention to.

I watch "60 Minutes" every week, but it's probably better now that Mike Wallace has retired. He always seemed too self-righteous and biased (maybe even sort of creepy); Lesley Stahl wasn't much better. Morley Safer, Steve Kroft and Ed Bradley are OK, but Andy Rooney...he's truly the show's highlight (I really like that he recently called for a massive reduction in military spending).

I wish to assert that some of their most important stories aired right after September 11, 2001. An example was an interview with Iraqi politician Tariq Aziz, who affirmed that Saddam Hussein's regime would never harbor Osama bin Laden (unfortunately, the Bush administration got many people to think otherwise). Another example was a look at Kuwait ten years after the Gulf War, and how the US was no longer very popular there. But also, their interviews with Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert were really insightful.

All in all, "60 Minutes" is a news magazine that I recommend. Just as long as you understand their occasional biases.