Working at the Northern Star, I can understand it is sometimes difficult to find stories to cover. I would expect the same for big news companies such as CNN and MSNBC … to an extent.

There are a few things I saw this past week on CNN Headline News that disgusted me.

Let me start by telling you I make a habit of watching CNN Headline News. With the unfortunate abundance of stupid sitcoms, there really isn’t much to watch. I do not watch MSNBC because I do not like to support Microsoft’s monopoly in any way. So I usually put on music, turn on CNN and mute the television. I don’t sit and watch it, but I do carry on with whatever I am doing, glancing at the headlines occasionally so I can think I know what is going on in the world.

And an example of a headline I see on CNN? “Bling Bling White House.”

Now unless Jay-Z performed at the White House, I don’t see that headline as a proper way of delivering news. The screen showed the White House with a fireworks show behind it (undoubtedly for a celebration of some sort), but I didn’t hear what it was about. CNN is a highly respected news channel and it should take its status into consideration. Ungrammatical English is no way to improve appearances. CNN’s credibility nearly was ruined for me.

Then, I turn it on again the next day and what are they talking about? Michael Jackson’s nose! Absolutely preposterous. Why would anyone in their right mind care about how many surgeries Michael Jackson has had on his nose? The worst part was the reporter trying to make it sound like it was real news, saying they believed that Jackson had five nose jobs.

What am I to think of CNN now? It would be different if stories like these were on shows like Entertainment Tonight or Extra. Instead, it was covered on CNN, a name that many Americans trust with delivering accurate, pertinent news.

Is all of this just CNN’s attempt at reaching a younger audience? I don’t know about Jackson’s nose, but the “bling bling” certainly seems to be a pathetic attempt at reaching a younger demographic. If it is, I would have loved to see the headlines that came out when the ridiculous Clinton scandal hit the news.

So, I have officially vowed never to take CNN seriously. I don’t take anyone who says “bling bling” seriously, nor do I take seriously anyone who finds somebody’s nose to be interesting. Actually, if someone asked me what I think about his nose, I wouldn’t even dignify it with a response. I would just walk away, and that is exactly what I am doing with CNN.

What really hurts me now is that I have to watch MSNBC. I don’t like it, but at least it has its priorities straight.