When it really comes down to it most talk shows serve little or no purpose other than to kill time. (Full Disclosure: I was just on YouTube watching Randy Savage's debut on Memphis TV circa 1983 so I am HARDLY one to condemn people killing time. I am just pointing out a few facts) Most talk shows – past and present – usually mix a bit or promotion (books, movie stars, musicians and other celebrities attempting to promote themselves and their wares) with serious issues (drugs, crime, sickness), or humorous "I didn't know that items (THE VIEW yesterday featured a caviar laced hamburger that cost $5,000. BTW – would a caviar cheeseburger be worth more or less?) Serious issues, however, have always proven popular in the sense that they offer a cautionary tale. Many times, warnings about drugs and promiscuity played heavily on the fears of the largely female audience that fretted about their kids suffering from the ravages such things could bring. While these types of cautionary programs have been criticized for capitalizing on a tragedy they do provide a somewhat valuable service. If the problems of drug addiction were not raised to the public would people even know how serious the problem was and remains.

There is, however, a fine line between cautionary tales and sleaze.

Sleaze is nothing new. Carnival sideshows made lots of money back in the day featuring freaks, oddities and geeks. People watched them in previous centuries and they watch them today. That's just the way it is and always will be. 

It has been said by many to let the marketplace ultimately decide whether or not a particular product is acceptable. In the case of the talk show boom of the 1980's the market eventually rejected the sleaze but only after the market made it wildly popular and made many modern day carnival barkers parading a wide array of freaks into millionaires. (MORE TO COME)