On notice: CNN.com

To borrow a phrase from fake news pundit Stephen Colbert (because we know how testy he gets if you borrow a phrase and don't credit him), I am putting CNN.com "on notice." In fact, I am calling a time-out on them. In addition to the newspaper and NPR, I rely on online news as a way to pick and choose among the headlines that matter to me without having to sit through what passes for TV news these days.

Lately, I've noticed that the video clips offered by CNN.com are increasingly sensationalistic, and today their "news" reached a new low in my book. Let's see, which would I want to watch first...."Mechanic sucked into jet engine," or "Cannibal says victim asked to 'be eaten alive.'" If either of these incidents qualifies as news, which I am not willing to grant without further discussion, what does it mean that people want to watch video associated with either of them? It really turns my stomach.

I getting very cranky as I watch news providers race to see who can sink to the lowest realms of taste to win the ratings race. It's time that we as media consumers demand better than this.