Music Sets the Mood
by Chuck DeVoreWhen I was a kid, my favorite show was PBS’s NOVA. As a child I expected to be on the show as an astronaut – I can imagine my youthful disappointment that I was to appear on NOVA as a politician.
NOVA’s “Big Energy Gamble” aired January 20th to rave initial reviews in the DeVore household. The show detailed California’s effort under Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent in 11 years while the state is expected to grow by 20 percent.
I was the show’s skeptic. I maintained that it is physically impossible to reach the governor’s lofty goals without first lifting the state’s obsolete ban on the construction of modern, safe, and reliable nuclear power plants.
The NOVA producer, Cass Sapir, was a delight to work with. He seemed genuinely interested in his topic. Producing a top-quality show was important to him. The film crew was wonderful, and the lighting, angles, and sound quality were excellent. I enjoyed the 90 minutes of interview and B-roll they filmed in my Irvine office, but was worried that, with all that material, I could easily be made to look awkward or foolish given that I was likely to be onscreen for three minutes at the most.
After the show aired last week, I exhaled in relief and exalted to Diane, my wife, at the quality of the episode. Not so fast, she said. Did you notice the music? Diane is a music teacher with a degree in music composition. She and a couple of musician friends of hers who compose for the online gaming industry noted that, when mention was made of nuclear power, the music turned pensive and ominous. When solar or wind were being discussed, the music was light, hopeful, and evocative of technology.
I reviewed the show online and, of course, they were right. The music was a tad unsettling around the first two portions I spoke. Check out this YouTube we made of my three segments on the show. At 0:40 into the segment, they discuss California’s economic distress and the music is somber then at 1:12, they cut to nuclear power and the scary music starts. At 1:33, they begin interviewing new Energy Secretary Steven Chu who gets his own hopeful motif – Dr. Chu says we need nuclear power as a bridge before effective large scale renewable energy comes online. The same motif is carried over for my last segment at 1:53.
I should be thankful that it was only the music. A review of the political donations from the staff at WGBH, the PBS affiliate that produces NOVA, shows that for the past 18 years, not a single donation was made to a Republican or conservative cause by any employee there – and liberals wonder why conservatives are often hostile to government-funded broadcasting.
To see my NOVA debut on YouTube, click here.
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24 Comments
Good call Chuck, and thanks to Andrew for this site.
I really liked Stan’s comments above!
When Jennie and I watched the show we could barely hear the words because we were so distracted by the music selections for the different segments!
Arnold is a big disappointment to us. He started off on the right foot, asking for two ballot initiatives that would allow him to balance the budget. They were, of course, voted down by a population that seems to enjoy being taxed and running huge deficits. I give him huge credit for that, but since then, he’s been a very weak governor, nothing like Brown or Reagan or Wilson, three tough leaders who had the real gravitas to get the job done.
The Governator is feeding at Oprah’s trough and has been now for years. He’s only tough on film or in a bar fight. Are ya reading this, Arnold? We need some HELP here.
This pie-in-the-sky notion that we can save the planet AND the country AND the economy all at the same time is just nonsense. If Obama, Arnold, Pelosi, and that cadre keep this stuff up they are going to assure a Republican majority in Congress in two years. FRANCE is using nuclear power plants, for crying out loud.
Yes, what John said.
“The one shiny bright spot to California’s economic demise, this will finally end Kingdom Hollywood’s hegemonic imperialism once and for all.”
No, I’m afraid it won’t. Hollywood with continue to thrive. It’s we normal folk who will suffer.
Errr, that would be will continue to thrive. Not with. Should never type when handing out minerals to students…
Actually, the “ominous” music background has long been used for nuclear plant documentaries. I remember when nuclear power was making it’s strange journey from high tech source of our bright future to death dealing monstrosity in the 70s, the mainstream documentaries often used music more appropriate to a horror movie. This was one of my first recognitions that the MSM was not only turning left, but dragging the entire culture along with it.
Assemblyman DeVore, thank you for having the fortitude to step into the adversarial lion’s den as a voice of reason, logic and necessary skepticism. This strength of your character is just one of the reasons that as a California resident I am proudly supporting you in your candidacy for the U.S. Senate in 2010! It is crucial that we the people take next year’s election as an opportunity to unseat Senator Barbara Boxer and put an end to her corrosive policies! And a great place to start is by visiting Assemblyman DeVore’s campaign site: http://www.chuckdevore.com!
PBS biased?!! That can’t be! An organization dependent upon political patrons for its production funds?!
Music cues can make or break a film and an audience’s feelings. Your wife speaks the truth.
I couldn’t agree more, and I’m very happy to see that someone has pointed this out. However, this is one small aspect of how the liberal socialization machine has invaded the media. Audio cues are heard in commercials, movies, radio, television, cartoons, etc. and very biased against a conservative view. Using the background music is a subtle way programs can show a bias when they say they are being unbiased.
I hope that bringing this to the forefront will make more people aware of what is happening on the subconscious level, and force them to really look at the issues.
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Chuck, your tax calculator is excellent. Well played sir.
I am such a closet PBS fanatic and could probably dumb everything else (except xbox live Netflix downloads) and just settle with PBS……
Now with that being said, as long as it’s about a duck with a bad wing, a lone wolf in Yellowstone, or a mechanix from Anchorage who goes and builds a cabin in the Yukon…..Then there is Glenn Ifill, Frontline, Charlie Rose, Global Warming blah blah blah…..When these are on, I watch other things or do other things and turn off my TV. And no, I am not some hermit….I watch these new HD shows on my 73″ Mitsubishi DLP and just relish in them.
Ok, now with all of this being said, I am a middle class schlub who has been saving money for 15 years that I would normally donate to PBS…..nope – watching it grow in various investments – yes there are still some out there.
Every year that PBS has the telethon for donations, I sit and watch the specials and call them every hour or so and tell them I would like to donate $5000.00…..well they are usually surprised to say the least. Prior to giving them the money (and I would) I ask them if they can promise me that they will stop covering Liberal points and start to show some opinions of Conservative thought…..they say no – so I do to.
We are already paying these fools with our tax dollars – if they want money directly from my pocket then they better wise up.
(p.s. sorry for the many flubs in the text and grammar – in a hurry and need new batteries on the wireless keyboard – whoops!)
Well stated comments, Driefromseattle! Also, while we may not be able to vote for our favorite out-of-district/state political candidates, we can still make financial contributions to their campaigns. I’ve personally done this with select candidates who were running key campaign battles and needed support from across the nation (i.e. U.S. Representative Tom McClintock, U.S. Senator Norm Coleman.). Looking into the future… while not within my district, you better believe that the Republican candidate who goes up against Representative Nancy Pelosi when her congressional seat comes up for re-election will definitely be receiving a financial donation from me! I may not be able to give a lot, but every dollar helps in our candidates’ campaigns. And absolutely, never underestimate the positive power of prayer!
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