Act Four: What is there left to ask O.J. Simpson?

We’re coming off an election season that was a lesson...

Alyssa Rosenberg on culture and politics   O.J. Simpson speaking in court in 2008 before his sentencing for armed robbery. (Isaac Brekken/Agence France-Presse via Getty Images) We’re coming off an election season that was a lesson in the downside of giving infinite media coverage to someone simply because they’re good for ratings. But the 2016 race for the presidency was hardly the first event to expose the moral and programmatic limitations to this wall-to-wall coverage approach. A flashback to an earlier cautionary tale is coming: O.J. Simpson has been granted parole, and apparently, television executives are desperate to land interviews with him upon his release. The reasons Simpson is a hot get are profoundly prurient. Such an interview would essentially be an opportunity to feed new data into the speculation machine that has surrounded Simpson for decades, the one that is concerned mostly with whether he really killed his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson; why he got off; and what everyone’s reactions to all of it mean. If Simpson talks about the Baptist services he conducted in jail, we’ll debate the sincerity of his efforts “to be a better Christian.” If he comes out relatively unrepentant, as he did at his Thursday parole hearing, we’ll talk about what that indicates about his character. If he talks about his children with Nicole, we’ll wonder if it’s all an act. In other words, our interest in O.J. Simpson isn’t really about him: It’s about us and the way we like to use him as a conversational object. Arguing about O.J. Simpson has replaced any actual engagement with Simpson himself. Obviously, there’s no way to stop television networks from going after this story; the only thing that could prevent it from happening is Simpson deciding that he’s done explaining himself and retiring entirely into private life. Maybe that will happen! But if it doesn’t, I hope whatever anchors catch this assignment think hard about what they actually want to ask Simpson, and to what ends. ‘The Trump Show,’ Season 1, Week 26, reviewed The interview at the heart of this week's episode was full of terrific, revealing writing. By Alyssa Rosenberg  •   Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT ‘Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets’ is crazy. That’s why you should see it. I don't even know how to describe this movie, except to say that other blockbusters could learn a ton from it. By Alyssa Rosenberg  •   Read more »   If you judge people by their taste in food, of course they’ll be sensitive about it What we eat is the ultimate, most literal, statement of taste and who we are. No one likes to be told that they're not good enough. By Sonny Bunch  •   Read more » ADVERTISEMENT The complete guide to faking your way through a conversation about ‘Game of Thrones’ From Arya to Varys, this guide will help you catch up on the basics. By Alyssa Rosenberg  •   Read more »   Even if you separate the art from the artist, stop giving R. Kelly your money You can separate the art from the artist. But you don't always have to fund the artist's lifestyle. By Alyssa Rosenberg  •   Read more »   Recommended for you     Get the Fact Checker newsletter Count the pinocchios. A weekly review of what's true, false or in-between. Sign Up  »         Share Act Four:    Twitter     Facebook Trouble reading? Click here to view in your browser. You received this email because you signed up for Act Four or because it is included in your subscription. For additional free newsletters or to manage your newsletters, click here. We respect your privacy. If you believe that this email has been sent to you in error or you no longer wish to receive email from The Washington Post, click here. Contact us for help. ©2017 The Washington Post, 1301 K St NW, Washington DC 20071