Watching Cable news or opinion shows is a frustrating experience. The host has a guest who is in a position to address the day's issue, but they never answer direct questions with a straight answer. Ask them anything, and they thank you for having them on the show and giving them a chance to set the record straight. Then, they talk about whatever they want to talk about, fending off any attempts at interruption until it’s time for a commercial.
Sometimes, there’s a panel of guests constantly overtalking each other and never conceding a point, no matter how logical or true. When not talking, they smile to make themselves likeable, looking for the moment when they can get in their verbal jab and monopolize the conversation until someone breaks in on them.
CNN often has two guests of opposite parties who alternate their propaganda, leaving viewers to choose which version of the truth is most likely correct. Fox News has a variation where they have from one to four Republicans and one alleged Democrat who tries to make a point but weakly concedes the point at the end. Sometimes, a Democrat gets on a roll and immediately gets shouted down by the others because, like the Washington Generals are never supposed to beat the Harlem Globetrotters, the Democrat is never supposed to win. A more apt comparison is a WWE match, which is scripted with the winner determined in an earlier production meeting.
My proposed show, Answer the Damn Question, would have a host interviewing members of Congress or the administration, and in a perfect world, members of the Supreme Court who never have to answer tough questions about their decisions or opinions. They are given microphones that can be muted by the moderator who chooses the first question and requires an answer. They will be allowed their hello and thank you, but if they don’t start to directly answer the question, they’ll be cut off, and the studio audience will shout out, “Answer the Question!”
If the guest still doesn’t answer the question, they’ll be cut off a second time and the audience will yell out, “Answer the Damn Question!” They are then blindfolded and walked to a special chair where you end up after failing to answer twice. A third violation will result in them being slimed or dunked into water, maybe tased, and the possibilities are endless, and nobody knows what the punishment will be until it happens.
Politicians and others will ultimately learn to answer questions directly, something they’re never forced to do on shows today. If they make it through an interview without being forced to answer a question, perhaps a donation can be made to their favorite charitable organization, provided it isn’t tied to white supremacy, MAGA, or the Nazi party. Some would argue they’re one and the same.
The moderator would need to be a fresh face, someone not tainted by refusing to force people to answer questions in the past. It goes without saying they have to be smart enough to know when they’re being gaslit and when they aren’t getting a straight answer.
I’m giving this concept away for free to any network that will produce it. My compensation will come from finally hearing the truth from those who have only ever provided talking points and lies.
This post originally appeared on Medium and is edited and republished with author's permission. Read more of William Spivey's work on Medium. And if you dig his words, buy the man a coffee.