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Stripping for ratings

Published Tuesday, November 23, 2004 by seanlmccarthy | E-mail this post

Remember when the pay-TV channel Naked News seemed revolutionary? Now comes Cleveland anchorwoman Sharon Reed, who pulled a ratings stunt last week by baring all on camera for a nude group photo shoot. The shoot took place in July. The tape was aired in November. You don't even need to be a cynic on this one, as Reed and her bosses revealed the whole truth to a Plain Dealer columnist. The stunt was a hit, of course. But what does the FCC have to say about it? Remarkably little ... yet.

If this is acceptable for local TV news, then apparently the standards bar does not exist anymore, so long as a station slaps a "news" label on it. Which, if you were always curious how your TV personalities look naked, then great. But the more curious question is how a local TV station can even get away with calling that news. Unless the news peg is, see Sharon Reed naked for the first time on TV. And that would be news to me.

Related:
Fallout in Philly, Reed's previous place of employment.
Screen captures of the infamous broadcast here.