NewsRadio - TV-G

Fresh office humor worth tuning in to.

TV Rating: TV-G Network: Nickelodeon, Syndicated Cast: Dave Foley, Maura Tierney, Phil Hartman Genre: Comedy
Available on: DVDDownload

Common Sense Note

Parents need to know that this sitcom's office setting provides the fodder for much of its mostly tasteful humor. Most storylines are harmless in nature, ranging from an anchorman's addiction to age-unknown sandwiches in the building's snack machine to a new complaint box that handles more than its share of employee gripes. Ongoing elements include office romances and sibling-like rivalry between co-workers. Overall, the show's ability to make interpersonal relationships so funny while sticking to largely non-controversial subject matter makes it a rare find -- so rare, in fact, that we're giving it an "on" rating despite some "pauses" in the content breakdown.

Families can talk about forging relationships with someone very different from you. In what situations could you be forced to work side by side with someone who's entirely your opposite? How do you relate to someone with whom you have little in common? Families can also discuss the specific episodes. How did the characters handle the problems in this episode? How might you have handled them differently?

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Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Emily Ashby

NEWSRADIO is a sitcom that bravely and gleefully tackles a notoriously unfunny environment -- the office. It pulls humor from the workplace much as Seinfeld squeezes laughs from the mundane aspects of everyday life.

NewsRadio is set in the office of New York's (fictional) second-rated news radio station, WNYX. Eccentric station owner Jimmy James (Stephen Root) is a constant presence in the office but does very little real work. It's level-headed Dave Nelson (Dave Foley) who manages the often-unruly group and shoulders their many complaints while grasping at sanity with stolen moments of serenity behind his office door.

The rest of the WNYX staff is an unlikely group of colleagues whose interpersonal relations are the basis for the show's comedy. Ambitious, type-A overachiever Lisa Miller (Maura Tierney) is the station's supervising producer. Matthew Brock is a lovably dense news reporter portrayed in Andy Dick's typical awkward, slow-witted fashion, and Dave's assistant Beth (Vicki Lewis) isn't the brightest bulb, either, with her halfhearted attempts at work and off-the-wall additions to conversations.

In the anchor chairs are sassy Catherine Duke (Khandi Alexander) and egomaniac Bill McNeal (Phil Hartman), who maintain a fiercely competitive relationship (probably spurred by a previous affair). And cool guy Joe Garrelli (Fear Factor's Joe Rogan) is the station's engineer -- who usually handles technical problems with a whack of the wrench.

NewsRadio draws plot inspirations from the tedious aspects of a 40-hour work week. Episode topics include heat-induced daydreams brought on by a broken thermostat, the staff's near mutiny over the removal of free snacks from the lunchroom, and Lisa's obsession with her own intelligence, which forces her to retake the SAT as an adult.

Some episodes border on the absurd thanks to locale changes (pretending the station is in space or aboard the Titanic, for example) or outlandish storylines (like Mr. James taking on a Ross Perot persona and running for president). But somehow it works with this group.

NewsRadio benefits from thoughtful casting, an extremely talented cast, and sharp writing that plays to the actors' strengths and promotes the banter and sarcastic exchanges that keep the laughs coming. The show's humorous take on office politics will appeal to adults, and the mostly innocent topics make it a fine choice for families with older tweens and young teens to enjoy together.

Fans may enjoy other workplace sitcoms like The Office, Murphy Brown, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, or WKRP in Cincinnati. And there's always Seinfeld, the first sitcom to find hilarity in everyday tedium.

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Content		CS	adults	kids
Content
Sexual Content Flirting and sexual innuendoes accompany workplace romances. Characters occasionally have sex (all off-screen) in the office. Beth consistently wears short, skimpy outfits; Joe likes to comment on them (and other things, including Catherine's figure -- he can be a bit of a lech).
Violence Pratfalls and physical comedy, all in the name of humor.
Language Words like "damn," "hell," and "sucks" are used intermittently.
Message
	Social Behavior The group has mostly respectful working relationships despite very different personalities. Two out of three regular female characters are strong and ambitious and admired by their co-workers. The characters often play jokes on each other, almost always in good fun. Some characters (like Matthew) are consistently made fun of, and the characters can be petty at times -- all for laughs, of course.
	Commercialism
	Drug/Alcohol/Tobacco Drinking is alluded to but rarely shown (although characters have been drunk on screen in some episodes). One of the main characters smokes regularly, but rarely onscreen.