is it really news-if you know the story before...

As you may have guessed by my writings here, I love politics. Yet my love affair is shaky. When I watch news programs especially during the past year, I feel like I know the ending of the story before it even starts. When I see interviews there is usually an attempt to have some sort of balance between both sides of the political spectrum. If you take the view of "balance" its pretty predictable as to what either side is going to say. First you know that there is going to be a lot of shouting. You also know that the participants are not really listening to each other. If you have a role or have the title of say "right wing pundit" and you agree with anything progressive, doesn't that kind of blow your gig? Who would you then be? How can you be adversarial if you agree with your adversary? Wouldn't there be kind of identity crisis?
There is no benefit for agreeing with the other side of the political spectrum or of seeing the value of the greater good. The process seems to distort the details. For example, look at the political fallout when Florida Governor Charlie Crist accepted bailout money and embraced President Obama because doing do was the best thing for his state-not for the Republican Party's needs but for what his state needed. In today's polical climate, this behavior is considerd both enlightened and politically damaging. Its suppose to be about governing not the results of the next election.
I often think of politics as theatre. Imagine that there is a long running show. Basically the actor are playing their parts and reciting their lines over and over. Unless the director tweeks things now and then,the words and the actors feel rote and tired.The essense of good theatre and acting-to see a show if it was happening for the first time) Now imagine if during a familiar scene, one actor decides to play the scene differently and delivers a line not in the script. Imagine what the other actor has to do. The other actor, actually has to listen. The actor has to re-act and not just act.
This would be great political theatre. The scene changes. Conflict which is the essence of any play changes. Now maybe,just maybe-the actors learn more nuanced, complexed roles and things actually get done for the greater good.