Newsworthy?

Confession: I love my People magazine as much as the next girl. The pictures, the gossip, the fashion, and yes, of course, the "Sexiest Man Alive." Perfect mindless reading for a long flight, indulging in a mani/pedi or sitting on the beach with a piña colada.

But I prefer entertainment in its place--in People and US Weekly, on E! and Entertainment Tonight--NOT in the arts section of my local paper, on CNN or heaven forbid, in The New York Times.

So, imagine my shock when I logged onto msn.com a few days ago and watched my computer crash from what almost certainly had to be "breaking news." And what was this earthshattering event? The final determination of a Democrat presidential nominee or finding survivors of the devastating earthquake in China or cyclone in Burma? Of course not.

Apparently, Brad Pritt and Angelina Jolie are having twins. I mean, I could find it slighty newsworthy if they were adopting another orphan from an impoverished country, building eco-friendly homes in New Orleans or lobbying on behalf of refugees in Darfur, but for procreating? For being just another couple to use pregnancy as publicity?

I'm tired of sub-par journalistic standards. A search for "breaking news" on CNN results in stories about forthcoming plotlines on Desperate Housewives, Paris Hilton's escapades in London and American Idol host Ryan Seacrest's interiew on Larry King Live. What happened to poverty, hunger, famine, war, disease? Aside from the gold standards like The New York Times, The Washington Post and NPR, you almost have to search for real news amongst Britney's latest meltdown and Lindsay Lohan's incessant partying.

No wonder the average American isn't "smarter" than a 3rd grader...