Don't call the Brett Kavanaugh hearings political theater

The New York Times

Supreme Court nominee Kavanaugh and his accuser Christine Blasey Ford's testimonies before a U.S. Senate subcommittee culminated "in a raw, draining day, even by the standards of a raw, draining era," says James Poniewozik of TV's all-day coverage. "There is a tendency, not just among TV critics, to describe live events like this as 'political theater,'" he adds. "On NBC, Megyn Kelly, a former lawyer, said the morning’s testimony had produced 'No Perry Mason moment.' It’s understandable. TV has become our model for telling legal stories and for politicians to structure narratives. But this isn’t Law & Order; this isn’t theater. It’s a real thing happening to real people, dredging up real trauma for a host of survivors. The day’s coverage was filled with reminders of this, too."

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• Trevor Noah: “Emotionally, it was taxing. If anything, it was like a sad Super Bowl"
• Jimmy Kimmel on Ford's testimony: “People were crying in front of their televisions so hard you’d have thought Milo Ventimiglia got killed by a Crock-Pot"