Changes

Heard a news story yesterday that says Katie Couric is leaving CBS - the Wall Street Journal report may, in fact, be true.

Network execs are not happy that she has "performed" better, citing her $15 million annual salary.

But really, what did they expect? For her to perform miracles?

I'm not a big fan of Couric; after her years on morning television, I did not think she had the gravitas to do the evening news. On Today and in other interview programs, I heard her ask some of the stupidest questions ever. CBS hoped she would pull over a younger demographic, but the fact is, evening news has changed over the years. Today I heard a report about these broadcasts - they are down 20-30 million viewers over the last two decades. But let's face it - we live in a different world than we did in 1980 or 1990. By the time you get home at 6.30, you already know the name of Eliot Spitzer's "friend"; you've heard about the plane crash or the stock market. Thanks to the Internet, no one has to wait for anything.

I think it was a lot to place on one person's shoulders. She'll get the blame - and at $15 million a year, she deserves some - but you can blame the changing times on one person.

*****

Believe it or not, I do not like to complain. I do it here - it's my blog - but in person, I don't care for it. I avoid confrontation - it's not worth it to me. But as I sat at Sylvia's soccer game, I was seething.

It's a rec league, meaning all kids should play the same amount. (If this were a competitive league, this would all be different.) But the other night, the play was decidedly uneven. Not just my child - there were a couple of other girls who barely played.

The coach is a high school student. At the beginning of the season, several parents complained that she was not taking it seriously enough - she was on the sidelines giving the girls piggy-back rides. Monday night, the game was against a team her friend coaches - a good-natured rivalry, but a rivalry, none the less.

During most of the game, I sat quietly. But toward the end, I was annoyed. So, egged on by Kerin (she is a baaaad influence on me), I finally decided to say something. (Kerin has had her own issues with the team this year, but rightly so - thus she was thrilled to send me over to say something.)

Which I did. The coach immediately apologized - in a glib way - which led me to believe she knew exactly what she was doing. She became very defensive, saying that with four subs it's hard to get all the girls in to play (not true); she said it's tough to keep track of who has played. Let me tell you, I've been watching kids' soccer since 1996. It is not tough to know who has played; it is not tough to keep track. And it's your job - learn how to do it, and do it right.

I sound mean, but if I don't advocate for my children, then who will? Maybe she'll think twice before letting a few kids monopolize the field next time.

As for me, I'm worn out for the entire week after that. Sigh.