Tuning into reality

It's become quite fashionable to trash reality TV and predict its imminent demise. But, as Salon TV critic Heather Havrilesky points out, not many pundits try to explain why American viewers keep tuning in. To her credit, she tries and makes some excellent points.

On the one hand, Havrilesky writes, the better reality shows (e.g., "Survivor," "The Apprentice," "The Amazing Race") are actually entertaining, surprising and inventive -- unlike the majority of today's scripted dramas and sitcoms. But it goes deeper than that, she thinks:

The best reality shows transform ordinary places and people into dramatic settings populated by lovable heroes and loathsome enemies, and in the process of watching and taking sides and comparing the characters' choices to the ones we might make, we're reacquainted with ourselves and each other. Great fictional TV has the power to engage us, too, but the networks aren't creating much of that these days. When was the last time "CSI" sparked a little self-examination? Does "Still Standing" make you giggle in recognition at life's merry foibles?

Sour note for ringtone biz

Has Big Music learned anything about moving fast to take advantage of new revenue opportunities presented by new technology? Not if the custom-ringtone market is anything to judge by, according to the Wall Street Journal:

The ring-tone market, once seen as the industry's next cash cow, has become a dizzying free-for-all, stymied by nightmarish contractual disputes, conflicting technical requirements and the old specter of piracy. Losing out could be a big blow to an industry that most recently missed the opportunity to control the sale of music online.

Musicians have contracts with companies that own the underlying music and lyrics and also with companies who own the rights to a recorded performance. Sometimes many musicians are credited with writing one song. Getting all these players to agree on ring-tone rights can be a huge morass. Meanwhile, not all cell phones play all ring tones. No one can even agree on what to call the latest variants that play actual snippets of songs, as opposed to tinny beeps. They've been dubbed master-tape ring tones, ring tunes, true tones, hi-fi ringers and song tones.

Most popular, Sept. 6-12

Here are the most popular stories on SeattlePI.com last week:

Top clicks (most read)

1. Cheney backtracks on terror risk comment
2. Sony developing TVs that zoom in on image
3. Rolling wheat fields are also Wi-Fi country
4. Under new law, floating checks no longer float
5. Editorial: Where was George?
6. Ridge: Terrorists hope to disrupt election
7. Bush missed Guard duty, records say
8. Mystery man has Japanese island abuzz
9. Passengers help subdue unruly man on flight
10. Seahawks go big with final player cuts

Top picks (most e-mailed)

1. Garrison Keillor: Here's what happened to the Republican Party
2. Rolling wheat fields are also Wi-Fi country
3. Under new law, floating checks no longer float
4. The Obesity Crisis: A healthy diet often beyond the means of poor, hungry
5. Bush missed Guard duty, records say
6. Frank Olding dead at 40: Experienced climber fell in Grand Tetons
7. The symphony celebrates Gerard Schwarz's 20th season after a downbeat year
8. 'Ritual and party all in one' at Burning Man
9. Living Well: Blueberries trigger neurons that keep the brain sharp
10. In the Northwest: Victoria still treats Strait of Juan de Fuca as its toilet