It seems that T.V. has begun stooping to the lowest level of expectation as well when it comes to their audience. Any sort of talking head will do when it comes to history...
For example...
I was watching the Military Channel the other night and they were showing a special on Alexander the Great and their authorative source was Dale Dye. Dale Dye? You're kidding right? I like Dale Dye and he's made some great contributions to historical authenticity in movies, but he is a Vietnam combat veteran cum technical advisor to movies. You're telling me there is no one out there more informed about the Ancient World than Dale Dye?
Or, how about the History Channel using Professor Robert McGrath for a special on Medieval Warfare? If you're familiar with Professor McGrath, he's an expert on the Old West and teaches at UCLA. He got his start on T.V. on the "Old West" series on HC about ten years ago. I guess they needed someone with Ph.D after his name.
Or, how about Aryeh Nussbaum. He's got a Ph.D...he's a professor (darn young one) at RMC Sandhurst in Britain (but he's an American). He's a specialist in Mechanized Warfare...but the Military Channel trots him out all the time...on everything from World War One to the Civil War.
I guess it's called marketing or having a good agent. My point being that books are ALWAYS a better option than T.V. and be circumspect of what you are watching. I hate watching some special on World War One and they trot out footage of the U.S. Army c.1935 on manuevers and present it as "combat footage" for no other reason than the type of helmets they are wearing. They stuck a picture like that in our new U.S. History textbooks for high school and I just about vomited...shows how well they are edited.
We're ignorant, fat, and happy...I think that's how Rome started downward...
