It says something about NBC’s fortunes that our first reaction to a friend’s IM: “do you still keep up with the west wing?” was, “hey, i write about the white house every day!” But it turns out that show about the alternate Clinton reality is still on. And still trying very hard to “rip from headlines.” Case in point, continued our correspondent, was last night’s episode, in which the Jimmy Smits character — according to Television without Pity — went to console the family of a black child shot by a Latino cop, during which he “throws out his planned speech and just says what is in his heart.” A character on the West Wing did that? No fucking way. Anyhow, our LA operative* points out that

the writers seem to have no concept of the actual boundaries of god’s country…lapd and the mayor of the los angeles would not be responsible for a family living in inglewood, california which NOT AT ALL REMOTELY IN LOS ANGELES. It’s like Bloomberg going to settle race riots in Newark. So annoying.

Oh, people in Washington know a little about having people you didn’t elect condescend them. It is annoying. Also: A TV show getting a factual detail wrong? No fucking way. MORE »