HBO's 'The Newsroom': My high hopes diminished.

It's interesting to see how other people and TV producers perceive the inner workings of a career.  Police officers are rugged, handsome, plain-clothed vigilantes with attitude and doctors are attractive and...Lustful of other doctors. Now, another profession is tinged with Hollywood glorification: journalism. 

When I first found out HBO produced The Newsroom, I was excited and curious to see how other people viewed the profession I have studied and worked in for years. What do people think goes on in a newsroom? I decided to give the first season a watch, but I couldn't bring myself to enjoy it because of my overbearing skepticism of its discrepancies. 

In a way, The Newsroom is an ideal example of everything that's wrong with the news.

• Will McAvoy, the main character is basically a liberal parallel to Bill O'reilly. You can tell from the season premiere when he gives his angsty speech for college students, bursting his vulgar opinions on the state of the country. Instead of getting fired for the outburst, like any normal person would, he gets praised for his genius spout and is advised to change the entire approach of his segment. Throughout the show, you can tell McAvoy has no

  

  Are we really?

  credentials to be a reporter. He's a lawyer. He's not a journalist. He's a TV personality.

• "And with a straight face, you're going to tell students that America's so starspangled awesome that we're the only ones in the world who have freedom? Canada has freedom, Japan has freedom, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Australia, Belgium has freedom. Two hundred seven sovereign states in the world, like 180 of them have freedom."- A segment of Will McAvoy's college speech.

• It's considered "News" to invite multiple Tea Party representatives on the show simply to bash them. The only thing realistic about these segments is how unprepared the hyper-conservative guests are to answer any hard-hitting questions. They really are that dumb in real life. One for you, Newsroom. Granted, that's not news. That's entertainment.

• The way women are portrayed in this series took me aback. It may just be the feminist in me, but the majority of women in the show were man-dependent, clumsy and slightly ditzy. 

It's okay. I like to call my colleagues "girl" too.

• MacKenzie McHale sent an email to the entire staff discussing her FORMER relationship issues with Will. At least use personal email. Let's be real, here. Not to mention she's constantly vying for Will's attention by faking an entire relationship with another sorry man. I was beginning to think she only took that job to reignite her relationship with Will. A very sound reason to uproot yourself into a new career. You go, Mac.  

• Nina Howard solicits herself sexually to Will and then makes it a column story when he turns her down and makes fun of her job as a gossip columnist. Need I explain more?

But really, don't do it.

• Men aren't redeemed in this series, either. Will is nothing less of a slovenly, sexist womanizer. He goes through three episodes of cycling through tens of women half his age. I seriously lose hope in Will as a credible character for his severe lack of judgement. Smoking marijuana, pointing a gun at and sleeping with  an undercover columnist probably wasn't a good career-booster, but at least he got to sleep with her. That's all that matters (to him). Not to mention, Don is also a huge jerk.

  

  Okay, at least they're outside. Jim is a class act.
  Whenever she kisses Don, they happen to do it
  in everyone's work stations.

  
  

• The unadulterated display of immature, adolescent emotion in this show is ridiculous. In any newsroom, this would just be unprofessional at the least. In between make out sessions with Maggie and Don in the newsroom, they're constantly breaking off and reaffirming their joke of a relationship... In the newsroom. I thought I was watching Degrassi, but then I had to remember that they were "professionals." My bad.

We're always told not to make assumptions of a career based on what they do on the big screen. This really seems no different. I'll just stick to Walking Dead.