Volume 4: White Devil Chapter 190 Clues that cannot be connected
"Welcome to Black News Today. I'm the host, Ron. Let's take a look at the first black news today..."
Tommy stared at the TV screen expressionlessly. On the screen, a black host in a suit and glasses was reporting the news in a clear and orderly manner.
This is an audition video made by BT TV to select hosts for its news program.
"Next game." Tommy said decisively without waiting for the other party to finish reading the first piece of news.
Martin hurried to the TV and changed the disc for Tommy.
This time, there was a black female host. Without even waiting for the other party to say the name of the program, Tommy just took a look at the black woman with exquisite makeup and simply waved his hand, signaling Martin to continue changing.
"Boss, this is the last one. All 17 audition tapes have been played." Martin took out the tape, shook it in front of Tommy, and reminded him.
Rick, who had watched all the audition videos with Tommy, uncrossed his arms and sat up straight. "All of these 17 candidates have experience as news anchors. The worst one has worked as a news anchor for a small TV station for at least five years. The best one is the black woman you didn't even give her a chance to speak. She used to be the anchor and news director for a late-night news program at a CBS partner TV station in Ohio. You should watch her audition. She's pretty good."
"Rick, I can see your efforts, and their resumes certainly meet our needs, but..." Tommy stopped talking halfway, put his fist to his mouth, stared at the TV screen that turned blue, and fell into thought.
Rick understood Tommy's dilemma, but he continued to work hard, hoping that Tommy could choose one of the 17 people: "They can broadcast various news according to the requirements of our TV station. Maybe they are not so eye-catching, but they will definitely not lose points among black audiences."
In Rick's opinion, BT TV now has enough program reserves , and its main programs are self-produced variety shows and dramas that can attract advertisers to pay for advertising. News programs are just dispensable vases. Finding a black host to read press releases shows the outside world that BT TV has self-produced news programs, and it is not just using bloody and vulgar self-produced programs to grab ratings. It is also willing to assume social responsibility.
As a result, he didn't expect that although Tommy praised the previous self-made variety shows that were obviously more eye-catching, such as "The Strongest Pregnancy Makeup King" and "Swap Couples", he never interfered. Only for the last self-made news program, Tommy actually gave his ideas seriously.
First, he required that the news program, which would seamlessly connect to the gathering during prime time, be called "Black News Today" and only report daily news related to black people.
Secondly, he asked to personally review the host's audition video and related materials, and he would decide the final candidate.
He has no interest in getting involved in programs that can obviously make advertisers pay, but is very interested in news programs that are obviously used to deal with garbage time. Rick always thought he saw through his boss, but now he finds that he still can't understand Tommy's behavior.
"They are professional, but they won't get ratings from the lower-class black people." Tommy was silent for a long time before he said the second half of the sentence.
Rick looked at Tommy and said, "We shouldn't rely on a boring news program to win the ratings of the lower-class black people. Tommy, our self-made dramas and variety shows are the best weapons to attract audiences."
"I understand. Give me a few minutes to think about how I imagine this black news program should be presented." Tommy did not discuss the ratings with Rick, but asked the other party to give him a little time. He closed his eyes and leaned back in silence for three or four minutes before opening his eyes again and facing Rick:
"The problem with these black anchors is that they are too professional. That's the problem. Cover their faces and only listen to their voices. Can you tell the difference between them and those white elite news anchors from CBS, NBC or even CNN? Impossible, because there is no difference at all."
"You mean, I want you to find a black host who stutters and takes a sip of marijuana mid-air?" Rick frowned and asked in confusion, "All the news anchors on the TV networks have this look on their faces."
Tommy held out his hand to Rick. "Give me the press release for the audition."
Tommy took the press release and read it quickly. Then he turned around and quickly wrote a press release on the mobile whiteboard next to him with a marker. Then he threw away the marker and looked at Martin, who was discussing with Page which black host looked more pleasing to the eye:
"Martin, move a chair in front of the TV and read the news on the whiteboard. You can read, right?"
"Yes, sir." Although Martin didn't understand why Tommy asked him to do this, he still obediently moved a chair and sat in front of the TV.
"Imagine yourself as the host of a news program and read out the news I wrote on the whiteboard." Tommy tapped the whiteboard lightly with his fingers and said to Martin.
Martin looked at the densely packed text on the whiteboard that Tommy had indicated he was going to read. He had no host aura at all and said with a pained expression, "Darn it! This news is harder to read than the most difficult question in my reading class."
But then he took a deep breath and said, "Welcome to watch "Nigger Today..." No, it's "black person News Today". Of course, viewers in front of the TV, if your eyes are fine, I hope you can first confirm whether your skin color is the same as mine. If it is different from my skin color, I suggest you change the channel, because... white people are not interested in news about black people. 3, 2, 1, okay, white people or others should have changed the channel. Let's watch the first news about niggers today."
"In Talahash, Florida, two years ago, Mike Barnes, a candidate for city council, defeated his white opponent Horace by a narrow margin of one vote and became the city's first black councilman. At that time, Horace criticized Mike Barnes for cheating on the ballot because, as a black man, his votes were much higher than the survey data given by previous polls. Horace applied for an investigation. Now, two years have passed, and the investigation is finally over. There are two pieces of news, one good and one bad. The bad news is, black compatriots, I must solemnly announce that the white man Horace did not lie. There was indeed fraud in the election two years ago. The good news is that the investigation evidence shows that the people who cheated in the ballot were supporters . These bastards used the names of their dead relatives to vote for Horace continuously, and they couldn't beat the black people even with cheating in the ballot. Mr. Horace, next time you run for election, you might as well use this sentence as your campaign slogan. Maybe many white people will vote for you out of sympathy because of your experience and low intelligence."
"From this news, we can see that it is not easy for us black people to be the masters of America. If we beat the white people, the white people will accuse us of cheating. In fact, they are the clowns who didn't clean their butts. This kind of cheating, which can be answered by counting the votes, dragged on for two years to give the results. Of course, it is because the other party is white. If it was a black person, I am sure that if he cheated in the morning, he would be in jail in the afternoon. The second news is from New York..."
After Martin finished reading the press release on the whiteboard, Tommy looked at Rick and said, "Did you notice? We need to be more colloquial with the lower-class black people, not elitist. They won't be interested. Our hosts need to be as approachable as the loudmouths in their communities, and use a joking tone to tell them what the black people in America have done today that deserves their attention."
"..." Rick looked at Tommy with embarrassment: "News should be serious."
Tommy ignored Rick's expression and continued, "It would be best if the host is a fat black man who likes to make jokes. If you can't find a suitable candidate on the news programs, go to the sports programs and find a few editors to re-edit the black news that is summarized every day. Don't make it in-depth or old-fashioned. The news commentary should also be simple and plain. The uneducated black people at the bottom of society can't understand the truth."
"Although I haven't had much contact with news programs, based on my understanding of news programs after joining BT TV, I know that news needs fairness and balance, not ratings. Moreover, news needs editors to write articles, which will cause those news critics to criticize that the news being written is not news, but a talk show." Rick advised Tommy earnestly.
If the boss likes to make fun of something, he can do so on variety shows, but news programmes should be more serious as they bear social responsibilities. If even the style of the news tends to be vulgar or frivolous, it will be easy for the TV station to lose the trust of the audience.
"No one stipulates that the angle of news reporting must be neutral, Rick. I believe that news critics will not cause trouble for us because they want to keep an eye on those TV organizations that have the right to interview the White House and find fault with those serious news. There is no black person in the White House. I am afraid that Black News Today will not be qualified to get the right to interview White House news for many years to come. News critics will not care about us who are only worthy of being watched by the lower-class black people. We need ratings, ratings for all programs." Tommy said to Rick.
Seeing Tommy's determination, Rick shrugged: "Of course, you are the boss, you have the final say."
"That's it, do as I say. I won't work overtime tonight. An important person is waiting for me." Tommy said, then stood up and walked out.
…
Dorothy stood at a loss beside the kitchen, watching with fear as Tommy put on an apron and personally delivered the dinner he cooked to the table one by one. This made her feel that this was a sign that her employer was going to fire her.
"Don't worry, Dorothy, Tommy won't fire you." Susan, who had returned from Canada and completed the broker's license examination, was wearing a dark blue women's suit and sitting at the dining table. She noticed Dorothy's nervousness and smiled and comforted her:
"He just likes to use this kind of warm means to show his affection to his friends. It's quite hypocritical, right? But everyone likes it. For example, at this moment, I know that he will arrange a lot of work for me to be busy, but I still feel very happy when I see this bastard carefully prepare a dinner by himself."
Tommy served the soup to the table, then took off his apron and threw it aside before sitting down. While picking up the decanter and pouring red wine, he said to Susan dissatisfiedly, "This is not hypocrisy, Susan. Hypocrisy is to use this method on everyone, but in fact, only three women have enjoyed my cooking skills, my aunt Melonie, Ottilia, and then you. Of course, if my mother was still alive, she would definitely be willing to try it, but unfortunately she is gone, so you are the third one."
Susan took the wine glass handed to her by Tommy. "I have had people test the CBET TV station in Windsor, Ontario, Canada many times. All the TVs in Detroit, Michigan can receive its TV signals. The cooperation offer for CBET is 35% lower than that of the American TV stations in Detroit. CICI TV station in Sudbury, Ontario can be received in most areas of New Hampshire, USA. And..."
Seeing Tommy, Susan habitually talked about the work she was in charge of before. Yes, the miser Tommy has never been a person who spends money lavishly. The quotes for some TV stations in large cities to join the BT TV network were too high, so Susan was sent to Canada by Tommy to find some cheap but equally effective alternatives.
"You won't be able to find a man to marry like this. No man will like a strong woman who can talk endlessly about work in front of delicious food and fine wine. Just like Ottilia has a couple of friends, and the husband hates his strong woman wife very much because every time even when the couple are alone, his wife will talk to him about politics, business and even the international situation." Tommy stopped Susan from continuing to report on her previous work in Canada.
"Bill Clinton and his lawyer wife? Ottilia has mentioned it many times when she called me over the past year or so to chat." Susan asked calmly, as if she had heard it before.
Tommy nodded. "His wife is the greediest woman I have ever seen. She offered to help Walmart solve a female employee problem in Arkansas by paying a thousand dollars as principal and getting a minimum return rate of 100 times in the financial market. Then, she miraculously made a profit of 120,000 dollars with the thousand dollars. In short, it is best to stay away from such people."
"It doesn't sound like you're too far away from them."
"I don't care. On the contrary, that woman and her husband are having some minor conflicts recently, and I am gradually getting closer to her."
"Family conflict?"
"I guess so. Bill hopes to sign up for the party primary and then run for president next year, because he has a lot of support within the party and some polls also show he has a good chance. Mainly because Gary Hart, who had the highest support rate within the Democratic Party before, couldn't control his golf clubs and was exposed for an extramarital affair scandal. He was forced to withdraw from the election, which means he no longer has any decent opponents in the party. However, his wife insists on not agreeing, so there are some conflicts between the two sides." Tommy talked about the recent conflicts between Bill and Hillary as if he was chatting.
Hillary would tell these problems to Ottilia, and Ottilia would tell Tommy as if she were telling a story. Of course, it was not because Hillary could not control her mouth and complained about her husband everywhere. She told Tommy the news, but also to see which side Tommy, the financial sponsor who silently provided funds, would stand on when conflicts between the couple emerged.
Susan asked curiously, "Why didn't she support her husband's campaign?"
"She feels that the time has not come yet. She hopes that Bill will devote himself to the work of the Democratic Party for four years and truly integrate the internal factional issues before running for election. The moderates, radicals, and reformists in the Democratic Party are only temporarily united because of Gary Hart's scandal. They are eager to find a replacement to fight against Bush, who will succeed Reagan in the Republican Party. In fact, because the factional issues have not been eased, they simply cannot have real fighting power. Hillary believes that Bill should now appear in the party with a more moderate image to ease factional conflicts and truly integrate the forces within the party. Moreover, he is still young and there is still time to wait and try to maximize his interests. However, Bill hopes to portray himself as a person who actively responds to the call and stands up for the Democratic Party when the party encounters difficulties. Otilia said that because of this issue, the two had a big fight, and Hillary was so angry with Bill that she drank a whole bottle of red wine."
"What was the result of the quarrel?"
"Bill will not run for election this term. He has no choice. His wife is the financial backer. Besides his wife, the attorney general has been advising him on his gubernatorial campaign over the years. There are also his wife's brother and sister-in-law. Let's put it this way, without his wife, Bill would have a hard time winning the gubernatorial election. Hillary Clinton envisions the best scenario where her husband follows her instructions and postpones his presidential run until 1992. After he steps down as governor in 1990, he will not seek re-election. She will run for governor of Arkansas, achieving a seamless transition. The benefit of this is that Bill can use the next two years to devote himself to the affairs of the Democratic Party, integrate factional forces, and ensure that he can run for election with more ease."
"It sounds like you did a lot of research and thought on this couple."
"A lot, indeed."
“Is it developing as I thought?”
Tommy looked at the curious Susan and laughed, "I think it's very difficult for you to guess my thoughts at the moment."
Susan sniffed the aroma of the red wine in the glass, then looked at Tommy. "I signed up for a wine tasting course before, hoping to learn how to taste fine wines of different years. But I found that after spending hundreds of dollars on tuition, I can only tell the taste of beer. To me, all red wine tastes the same."
"Most people who drink red wine are actually the same as you, but they won't say it directly like you do. Stephen gave it to me. He said it was a high-end product made from a local California grape farm in which his family owns a stake. So... Dorothy, please help me get a dozen beers, and then send the decanted red wine to Sophia. She likes to drink a glass of red wine before going to bed to relieve fatigue." Tommy pushed the wine glass aside and spoke to the maid.
When the beer was served, Susan opened it and took a sip of the cool beer, exhaling the alcohol happily: "What did you just say?"
"Don't always dress like a strong woman. It'll scare off the men who want to pursue you," Tommy said.
Susan shrugged off Tommy's words: "In the years I was a prostitute, I had sex more times than the average woman in her lifetime. How much interest do you think I have left in having sex with men?"
"Learn from Holly and find some gigolos to please you. Restoration therapy. You know, Mark and Jason both rave about restoration therapy."
Susan shook her head slightly. "Forget it. I heard from Holly that in order to vent her stress, she treated the gigolos like rag dolls and ravaged them. Every time, she would whip them madly with a whip, and only when they were exhausted would she lie on the bed and let the poor, bruised gigolos serve her."
"That's right. She's under a lot of pressure. If she keeps suppressing it, she'll go crazy sooner or later. It's normal to vent it out in time. If your mental quality is not strong enough, the pressure will crush all your nerves. Why do you think those brokers on Wall Street are so crazy that they work while taking drugs, and as soon as they get off work they'll contact a few high-class ladies to keep them happy?" Tommy said with a smile.
Susan obviously disagreed with Tommy's words and asked, "Then why don't I see you venting your stress like Holly, Jason, or those Wall Street brokers?"
"There's enough money in my accounts to live a carefree life. The worst possible outcome is to be a rich man, so I don't have that much pressure." Tommy spread his hands and said innocently, "Without pressure, there's no need to vent."
"I'm not under any pressure. No matter how bad it gets, it won't be any worse than my life was before I met you."
Tommy nodded. "To be honest, it's really boring to talk to you, Susan. It's even more boring than talking to Sophia. Let's continue talking about work. Those girls in Hollywood, remember? You have to save them. Don't worry about the expenses. Although I have invested a lot of money in the TV station recently, I promise that there will be no delay in your expenses. You just need to save as many girls as possible. The more the better. You have studied political science. After you do a good job in this job, I will find a good position for you to use your knowledge."
"Establishing a black TV station, helping injured actresses, making friends with presidential candidates... these things don't seem to be connected at all, they are all completely unrelated things." Susan muttered softly about what Tommy had invested a lot of energy and money in recently, and she couldn't make sense of it at all.
If Tommy had admitted in casual conversation that he had guessed correctly about the purpose of approaching the couple, then things would have been much clearer, but Tommy denied it and said that he had guessed the wrong direction of development, which made it impossible for Susan to find any clues to connect these things.
Tommy took a sip of his cold beer and winked at Susan. "You will see for yourself that I put all this together. When I only had 50,000 yuan in start-up funds, I set my eyes on Lotus greedily. Now that I have so much money, what do you think can attract my greedy eyes?"
