Kansas City Playlist: Local TV News Advice

Tonight, for our most loyal readers we share a quick peek behind the curtain which MIGHT offer an important perspective on how the local news game works.

Recently, we noticed an interesting trend on our blog . . . Local TV news gives reaches out to our readers . . . Take a look:

An even closer glimpse . . .

Now . . . Maybe we're getting too sentimental in our old age but we're going to take this as a compliment and an honest effort to further engage the local discourse across the Internets. 

For realz . . . TKC thinks Kansas City residents should be reading/watching as much news as possible and we realize denizens of our blog community are the biggest news junkies in the metro who are looking for every bit of information they can find given that "the algorithm" has become increasingly focused on hiding information from mobile phone users.

Moreover . . .

TV News might be the last, best hope for THE COWTOWN FREE PRESS given that this town's daily newspaper is now owned by a hedge fund and caught in a progressive echo chamber death spiral.

Even better . . .

TV news has always been nice to TKC . . . There have more than a few local mentions over the years, a couple of interviews and passing reference in more than a few reports. 

And so . . . 

Realizing the TV news helps locals understand our discourse in a quick & convenient way. We take just a moment but HUMBLY offer a few tips of what we'd like to see along with opening up the comments to www.TonysKansasCity.com readers for the remainder of the weekend.  

A quick list of suggestions . . .

- Don't be afraid of contradicting local politicos. Too often elected leaders rely on TV news to merely share press releases because they know that TIME is the biggest disadvantage of the format. However, even the BRIEFEST clap back will be appreciated by viewers. 

- Man on the street interviews will never go out of style -- Yes, elitists always mock this TV news tradition but merely as sociology we LOVE TV NEWS because so many journalists starting out are forced to get down & dirty and gauge opinion from the plebs rather than the suits. 

-  We miss reporters hounding politicos!!! There is NOTHING better than watching an elected official run from a reporter & cameraman. Again, this is a time honored tradition that we hope our broadcast friends bring back. 

Of course we hope for even better suggestions from our blog community because, as noted, TV news might be the last hope for saving locals from Silicon Valley domination and bringing the conversation BACK to local streets.

And all of this inspires our playlist tonight on the topic of personal growth.

Here's as good of a place to start as any . . .

Released in October 1978 . . . "I Will Survive" was written by Freddie Perren and Dino Fekaris and performed by disco star Gloria Gaynor. The song's lyrics describe the narrator's discovery of personal strength following an initially devastating breakup. The song is frequently regarded as an anthem of female empowerment, as well as a disco staple. For tonight's playlist we're using a 1990s cover by Cake which Gaynor didn't like because some of the words were replaced by F-bombs.

Because the local news game has never been a walk in the park or a path to glory, we include an often overlooked track: Robert Tepper's "No Easy Way Out" from the Rocky IV soundtrack. This song wasn't a big hit or an "anthem "but if you're a dude over 40 . . . The tune remains a guilty pleasure affirmation to crank up when nobody else is listening.

"Them Changes" by Buddy Miles inspires us to keep up with the evolving local news scene and this clip from the old Playboy After Dark show is a late night indulgence of a long gone era . . . About the music, critic Steve Kurutz called the album "quite simply, one of the great lost treasures of soul inspired rock music... definitely worth the extra effort to try to locate."

A rock classic has a really interesting bit of back story that might not be newsworthy but remains important to talk about regarding human potential for change or maybe just admitting the MSM "heroes" are never perfect. Check-it: 

"In a 1980 interview in Playboy with John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Lennon, when asked about the song, said that the song's lyrics came personally from his own experience abusing women in relationships in the past. He states: "It is a diary form of writing. All that 'I used to be cruel to my woman / I beat her and kept her apart from the things that she loved' was me. I used to be cruel to my woman, and physically – any woman. I was a hitter. I couldn't express myself and I hit. I fought men and I hit women. That is why I am always on about peace, you see. It is the most violent people who go for love and peace. Everything's the opposite. But I sincerely believe in love and peace. I am a violent man who has learned not to be violent and regrets his violence. I will have to be a lot older before I can face in public how I treated women as a youngster."

Finally, "I'm Still Standing" is a song written by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin . . . It's regarded as an 80s testament to resilience of the human spirit but it's also remains the most openly gay and fun video ever produced in modern music that STILL appeals to old-school hetro/normie dudes who appreciate anybody offering up an authentic vision  . . . OR maybe this clip might spark further "exploration" amongst our readers for the late night. Either way, it's good stuff . . . 

As always, thanks for reading and have a safe & fun Saturday night.