Sign of the Times

I'm amused when the New York Times weighs in with a story explaining a pop culture phenomenon so that the elite readers who don't watch basic cable or visit YouTube can understand the trend. Such is the case with this week's NYT coverage of Project Runway and Brokeback Mountain parody trailers, employing the let's-treat-this-subject-like-an-object-from-outer-space style of reporting. Brokeback to the Future was quite enjoyable, but you're scraping the bottom of the barrel if you have to turn to the Swayze-Keanu pairing. And if the Times starts writing about it? Yeah, the trend is dunzo.

The late-in-the-game critique of Project Runway seemed off the mark. It didn't seem to recognize any of the fun or joy the show has...relying on a weak comparison to Survivor doesn't do PR justice. And just exactly what does the author mean when he says "The nationwide searches on American Idol have yet to yield the new Aretha Franklin." Why would we search for an aging, obese, embarrassment-at-the-Superbowl? I'm thinking that their allusions need some updating.

And speaking of finding fault with the NYT, I found today's travel feature on 36 hours in SOMA to be bit predictable. The recommendations are mainly for tried-and-true spots or new places with a high profile. Maybe I'm just smarting because the feature gives away the secret of two of my favorite places for weekend brunch in San Francisco: Town's End Restaurant and Yank Sing (although, for some reason, the NYT calls it "Rincon Center," which is its location, not the name of the restaurant known for dim sum).