A sober talking head

S.J. CAHN

There are two great democracies in the world, Brian Lamb, chief

executive officer of C-SPAN, told the Orange County Forum on

Wednesday: Switzerland and California.

Lamb, who has guided the public affairs station for its nearly 25

years, said he was told this years ago because both places have such

direct voter-to-government systems, as witnessed in this state during

the recall election (and via all the measures and initiatives on our

ballots).

If it seems like people back East are laughing at us here, “that’s

just because they can’t do it,” Lamb said.

Lamb, of course, has presided over a relatively laugh-free form of

television, a point he was not afraid to lampoon during his talk,

such as when he quoted various reviews of himself that emphasized his

lack of charisma and color.

Although his talk was titled “C-SPAN’s Coverage of Our Government

at Work: Has it Changed the Political Process -- or the Mainstream

Media’s Commentary of Political Issues?” Lamb spoke off the cuff

(barely a note in sight) and covered as much the background of C-SPAN

and its development over the years as its influence on politics. He

did, at one juncture, make an interesting comment in response to a

question about whether he thought having cameras on the floor of the

House of Representatives had changed the atmosphere or actions of the

members of Congress.

While unsure if there’d been a change, Lamb turned the question

back to the audience and asked whether there was any reason to thing

the change was for the worse, as the question clearly implied.

I think it’s safe to assume that most of us would think that a

discussion or debate would be “lowered” by the presence of television

cameras. But it’s also logical that decorum would rise if

participants knew they would be captured on film -- if

counterintuitive.

Of course, equally interesting was Lamb’s next comment that he

thinks newer, smaller -- and thus less obtrusive -- cameras are

better because people will act more naturally if they aren’t

hyper-aware they are being filmed.

Whether C-SPAN has changed the political landscape, it certainly

has helped millions of people become more familiar with the process

and players. About one in 10 Americans are regular watchers, Lamb

said, and 15% are younger than 24, which “always surprises people,”

he said.

The goal at C-SPAN, Lamb said, is not to make money (which he

emphasized was rare). Instead, it is to produce programming that

creates smarter voters.

And, to that end, Lamb pointed out that regular viewers of C-SPAN

would be well-informed about the present pack of presidential

wannabes on the Democratic side. The station, for instance, has

covered 151 different events that former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean

attended.

“He hasn’t done anything surprising,” Lamb said of Dean. At least

to those who have been watching.

Those who have been watching also will know that C-SPAN follows

the money, to paraphrase from Watergate times. “Everything in

politics comes down to money,” Lamb said, except for a few issues

such as abortion. And, as a result, C-SPAN covers discussions about

money or where spending is being decided.

Finally, Lamb also described the proliferation of media -- whether

talk radio, TV channels or magazines -- as absolutely a good thing.

More media coverage of the government ensures America’s freedom, he

said.

And it makes people more responsible for their role in society.

“We are drowning in information, so the burden is on us to decide

what we’re going to watch,” he said.

And there’s no reason to think those choices will do anything but

expand.

“This business will not be the same in 10 years,” he said.

So stay tuned.

* S.J. CAHN is the managing editor. He can be reached at (949)

574-4233 or by e-mail at s.j.cahn@latimes.com.