TV Deals a Dose of Reality and I Resist the Urge to Flee the Internet
Note to TNT: Your fictional story-line just scared the crap out of me.
If you’ve seen our Blogger Review Board articles, then you know that our staff rarely “reviews” anything. But when TNT offered us a shot at viewing an advanced copy of the June 29th episode of Raising the Bar, because of the social networking and online privacy themes, I did that annoying thing where you raise your hand in the air and wave it frantically to indicate “Yes, please!”.
Online privacy, particularly how to relates to all those photos of kiddos that are floating around on the internet, is a hot button for me. I’m on Facebook, but I’m a pretty pathetic excuse for a Facebooker (Facebookie?). My friend list is small and there are a whopping 4 photos of my kid on my profile page...my private profile page. My profile page is full of messages from friends trying to guilt me into posting more photos of my child.
I don’t really have a concrete reason for my reluctance to share, I’ve never had a bad experience, it’s just a general sense of “no, thanks, I’ll pass”. But 10 minutes into my screening of Raising the Bar I wanted to haul out my laptop and wipe out my meager online presence. As I watched, the lawyers after-work drinks morphed into a round-robin of sorts, with each lawyer outlining scenario after scenario of how the creeps and criminals of the internet could misappropriate an innocently intended bathtub photo of a child.
These are the nightmare’s of every parent with an online presence.
The world wide web is certainly full of some creepy stuff. But it is also populated by generous, caring, creative and enriching individuals that blog or participate in social networks with the intention to reach out - to grab onto like minded individuals to offer encouragement, entertainment and support.
Yes, the online world can be scary. But blogs can be made private and the most popular social networks give you ample opportunity to be the gatekeeper of your own information and images. But you have to take the time to get familiar with your platform. If your going to participate, take 5 minutes to make sure that you’re only sharing what you want to be sharing.
Still with me? Let me climb down from my soapbox for a moment to tell you about my other hot button...yes, I love me some good TV. My schedule rarely permits live viewing, but I can rock the DVR during my kiddo’s weekend naps like nobody’s business.
Recommended for You
Raising the Bar is INTENSE (not surprising from the network that is also home to The Closer). If you’re holding back because you can’t get past your Zack Morris-poster-past, let it go - you’ll be glad you did. Give Mark Paul Gosselaar one episode and you won’t be able to see him as anyone but public defender, Jerry Kellerman.
The “Makes My Skin Crawl” award goes to Currie Graham as prosecutor Nick Blaco. Hate lawyers? Unleash all your bad mojo on this guy...he’s like Lord Voldemort in a courtroom...but with less charm.
And my favorite - Gloria Ruben as Rosalind Whitman. Jerry’s boss is the kind of woman that quietly stirs her coffee while plotting diabolical revenge on the people unwise enough to mess with her flock. We should all be so lucky to have a boss like this.
Save yourself from wasting away in front of that drivel referred to as “reality”...summer is turning into a stellar time for TV.
Oh, and continue to share and make friends online...but double check those privacy settings, people.
-Erin O.
Managing Editor, TodaysMama.com
*Find me on Twitter and Connect. I like microblogging...all the fun of blogging without the pressure to take and/or appear in photos.
