Flicking around the channels last night during the news at eleven, we delightedly settled to watch a car chase. A lone driver lead at least, 14 or 15 black and whites, (ie the cop cars),  one cop chopper and a flock of media helicopters, along the 110, 10 and 60 freeways, until he finally stopped and the cops pounced, guns drawn and shotguns out. Wonderful!

The car chase is a staple of LA and its TV. Has been since OJ ran for it. The TV channels just love them. Me too. And since ratings go up when a live chase is on, count everyone else in.

You see, it's live for a start. We don't know how it will turn out. Will the guy make a break from the car?  Will the cops shoot? Will all the freeways be closed totally. What will the cops do to bring it to a close? So, its immediately compelling. It has a beginning, middle and eventual end. It's surprising. And it's now.

All the rest of the news is packaged and old. Much of the rest of TV s repetitious. After all, we have the Law and Order Network (NBC) facing the CSI network (CBS). TV's mass audience is fracturing downwards, and less and less speaks to "broad"casting except live; live sport, live events (the Academy Awards, State of the Union) and of course, car chases. With the decline goes the advertising base. Now network and channel TV is urgently in needs of a new set of ideas. What is there? It's more live.

So perhaps Les Moonves, the CBS boss, should start a car chase channel. It could  bring us car chases at all hours.From all over LA. More. All over the country! And why stop there. All over the world!  It's hip. It's now. And as we know form LA, its a broadcast ratings winner. What else is these days?