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real talk Spielberg-ian Society ‘Why We Hate’ Premieres on Discovery By Breanna Henry TV Media Society with a ‘Spielberg- ian’ ending: Here is a bit of irony for you — at the time of writing this, the trailer for Discovery’s brand-new, six-part, Spielberg- led mini-series “Why We Hate” had just one comment with two replies — two people calling each other names. For the past four years, Dis- covery has been in cahoots with the man who is quantifiably one of the greatest directors of all time — Steven Spielberg (“Lin- coln,” 2012). He and Alex Gibney (“The Clinton Affair”), Geeta Gandbhir (“I Am Evidence,” 2017) and Sam Pollard (“Ameri- can Masters”) have created the short docuseries titled “Why We Hate,” airing Sunday, Oct. 13, on Discovery. The show plans to delve into both modern and historical situations where hate reigned supreme in order to learn from past mistakes and move forward as a changed society. Nazis, slavery and white supremacy are just a few of the situations explored, but unfor- tunately those terrible things don’t only fall under the historical category. The white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, occurred just last August, and an estimated 40.3 million people are in slavery today. The “Why We Hate” team wants us to be faced with our failures as a species and, more importantly, as human beings, then dive deep into those failures rather than sweeping them under the rug. Inter- woven between images of a brain scan, monkeys fighting in the jungle, riots 20 | Screentime and fist fights, “Why We Hate” asks vital questions such as: Where does hate come from? How does it start? What fuels it? Spielberg’s plan is for us to uncover the mystery behind our actions and learn from them; if we hide from what we were, it will remain what we are. One can only hope that our society will go the way so many other things directed by Spielberg do — despite everything seeming to head towards certain destruction and horrible consequences, the pieces fall into place by the end and it all turns out OK. Went hunting, got hunted: I really can’t tell if Travel Chan- nel is prompting people to travel more or less with its series “These Woods Are Haunted.” I know I won’t be planning any vacations that involve stays in cabins, caves, woods or moun- tains any time ... ever. The short, nine-episode first season of “These Woods Are Haunted” featured more than enough ghosts, demons and big- foots to keep me in hotels for the rest of my life, but who doesn’t love a good old-fashioned camp- fire ghost story? The people on the show claim to be retelling their true stories about “real” things that happened to them. I’m the type of person who’s inclined to believe these stories, feel horrible for people who had to experience such terror, confu- sion and doubt, and then get some good mileage out of the phrase “better you than me.” The darkness, unfa- miliarity and general creepiness of the freaky places in “These Woods Are Haunted” can play tricks on the mind, but whether you choose to believe in Occam’s Ra- zor or the Occult, this Travel Chan- October 9, 2019 | East Oregonian and Hermiston Herald nel series is really fun to watch. Part of what makes the show interesting is the reality factor — these people truly believe they were chased by hell hounds or possessed. Do you think you can tell the difference between the truth and someone who believes their own lie? Even if you are a skeptic, give the creepy, paranor- mal reality series “These Woods Are Haunted” a chance when Season 2 premieres Monday, Oct. 14, on Travel Channel. Studio renovations: “Inside the Actors Studio” has been running for 22 seasons with the incomparable James Lipton (“Return to Peyton Place”) in the interviewer’s seat. After more than 24 years of the series, Lipton stepped down from the stage at the Michael Schimmel Center for the Arts and now Ovation intends to continue his legacy with a bit of a different format. For many, there isn’t anyone on this planet who could replace Lipton, and so Ovation has called out to many different actors to interview each other and act as host instead. Not much informa- tion has been released about the all-new 23rd season yet, but we do know that it will feature Alec Baldwin (“BlaKkKlansman,” 2018), Ellen Burstyn (“The Tale,” 2018), Jane Lynch (“Hollywood Game Night”) and Al Pacino (“Once Upon a Time... In Holly- wood,” 2019). It remains to be seen how the new hosts will try to fit into what I’m sure is a very deep groove in James Lipton’s chair, but these people are artists, legends and prodigies in their field, so I think they’re going to do just fine. Variety’s “Actors on Actors” has been going remarkably well, and the new plan for “Inside the Ac- tors Studio” is a similar format, though the audience that takes part in “Inside the Actors Studio” makes the atmosphere of the two shows very different. Catch the rebooted “Inside the Actors Studio” premiere Sunday, Oct. 13, on Ovation. Steven Spielberg creator of “Why We Hate” Late laughs Conan Merriam Webster’s dictionary has been updated to be inclusive of people whose gender is non-binary. While I applaud that action, I don’t see why they had to use my photo. Beto O’Rourke says he has a plan to legalize marijuana. Unfortunately, he can’t remember it. Everyone’s OK, but yesterday a Delta flight had to make an emergency landing after it dropped 30,000 feet in two minutes. Delta gave every passenger a free round-trip ticket and a new pair of pants. On the campaign trail — Bernie Sanders does not like to kiss babies. Yeah, according to babies, the feeling is mutual. In Kentucky, a woman was arrested for abandoning six kids at a Walmart. The Walmart spokesperson said, “The minimum is nine.” The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Senator Harris is one of the top Democrats in the field and I saw that she’s raised close to $25 million — that’s crazy. With that kind of money she could pay for one semester at NYU … almost. People are now calling for Brett Kavanaugh’s impeachment following new allegations of sexual misconduct. It’s good to know if this doesn’t work out, Kavanaugh can always sign with the Patriots. Actress Felicity Huffman was sentenced to 14 days in prison for her role in the college admissions cheating scandal. Huffman has asked for a low-security prison where she’ll have a six-by-eight cell, three roommates, a bunkbed and a small TV. Right now our entire crowd is like, “That’s not prison, that’s my dorm.” Removing pollution standards makes cars more environmentally friendly in the same way that removing the “poison” label makes arsenic an energy drink. The Late Late Show with James Corden A clerical worker in Ireland has now sued his employer for firing him after he skipped 400 days of work over two years. To be fair, he did make a pretty convincing cough sound over the phone. Jimmy Kimmel Live During last night’s finale of “Bachelor in Paradise” it was revealed that Pete the Pilot would be the next Bachelor. The show’s expected to premiere in January, but since Pete is a pilot for Delta, it’ll probably be delayed until March. Sometimes I feel bad for the dance partners on [Dancing with the Stars]. You know, they grow up working hard, practicing, dreaming of one day becoming a professional dancer — and then they wind up having to do it with Donald Trump’s dopey press secretary. The Late Show With Stephen Colbert Late Night With Seth Meyers Last night [Elizabeth Warren] held a rally in New York’s Washington Square Park which drew a crowd of 20,000 people — only 3,000 of which were there to smoke weed. Former White House press secretary Sean Spicer made his debut tonight on “Dancing with the Stars.” And Felicity Huffman is about to join the cast of “Orange is the New Black.” I’m not saying attacking Iran is the right thing to do, but I have never heard the commander-in-chief call U.S. military action “dastardly!” “Dastardly” is how you describe a villain in a 1930s two-reeler! Following her rally in New York last night, Senator Elizabeth Warren spent four hours taking selfies with supporters. Meanwhile, Bernie took one selfie that lasted four hours because the camera was accidentally set to video.
