Maame G.! You got to write a current events blog. You got to!

Wonderful and insightful. The best of entries that I have read thus far. I would love to see more from Maame Gyamfi.

I want to see more from Ms. G!!!!

Insightful, beautifully written, more important than political punditry!

This is by far the best of the ten articles. It had a moral of the story and good color for a description.

Right on. Finally a good entry. So far the best one I've read. Interesting and a fresh perspective. Nice commentary. Good luck.

A funny, refreshing statement on our voyeuristic culture. Love the "breaking news" headlines that keep the drama dialed up. The article is itself an example of the issue the author is discussing--an impressive rhetorical feat. I want to read more from this writer.

Nicely written on drama we find ourselves in everyday, yet fail to realize. This is one of the better posts in the final group of 10. Good luck to you, Maame.

This was one of the best columns I've read so far. I agree that the choice of words could have been more accurate, nonetheless, it was a refreshing point of view. Best of luck to you!

I assume that at some point Ms. Gyamfi will read these comments, and for this reason I would like to thank her for a well-written editorial. This editorial was a delight to read and a pleasant contrast to a few other entries.

I am, however, a bit concerned about matters of substance. The phenomenon to which Ms. Gyamfi refers is both familiar and well understood. Personally I would refer to it as fascination with excitement rather than with drama specifically, but selection of words, at least in this instance, is a small matter.

Is there even one adult in the USA who does not number among his or her acquaintances at least one excitement junkie? I know several and suspect that most others do, too. Excitement junkies come in all ages, all races, in both sexes, and they are found in every conceivable economic and social stratum of society. They are ubiquitous.

Here in Cajun country there is even a word for the phenomenon. The word sounds as if it were spelled either comas or comass or perhaps comaz, with accent on the second syllable. It means the tendency to seek turmoil or excitement for the sake of turmoil or excitement and to define one's identity by means of participation in turmoil or exciting events.

I think it not surprising that so thoroughly acknowledged a phenomenon has been addressed previously and, moreover, addressed effectively. When I was in college, now some fifty years ago, I was introduced to the following quotation, which was attributed to the I Ching. I regret that I am in no position to confirm the attribution, but it is complementary to the concluding few sentences of Ms. Gyamfi's editorial. It is:

For if thou wishest to become a man, my son,
Thou must do so as have all others before you,
and that is in silence and in solitude.

Perhaps Ms. Gyamfi can be passed along to the second round by virtue of her demonstrated ability to delight at least some of her readers, but I hope that we will see a bit more substance in her next effort.

you dare to be thought-provoking and call it like it is. Good luck to you! We need more people with such insight!

This was a bit too preachy for my tastes.

Really refreshing take on media sensationalism. I could read her articles everyday, all day without getting bored. I get all my news from BBC, France 24, RT and really just want to read something fresh that deals with media hype. Maame should get the America's Next Great Pundit Award!

Juvenile and poorly written.

Good column. A real topic with a balanced just light enough to let people see what is going on here.touch Bring her back for another round.

Thumbs up for this columnist's right on observation. But Maame -- what do we do about it?

Another interesting column! Not self-serving, not pontificating -- it's a good read. One of my top four.

I like her voice, upbeat, clear, concise and poignant. I would like to read more of her writing.

If you can write a column like this on a regular basis, you should probably be America's Next Great Pundit. I could definitely get used to being a fan!

Of all the finalists, this one has something to say that isn't self-absorbed. This is the most human and down-to-earth of all the pieces.
She reminds me of Michelle Singletary. I want to hear more.

congrats on being top 10. Personally however... when reading the Post, I'm looking for something more than just a review of all the TV trash news. I want more insightfulness from Washington Post editorials. Something that I hadn't ever thought of myself.

Good Article, Maame! I think your article touched on something very human. In the nuclear age, the internet, Windows7, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook age, when something happens, and it catches fire, it joins all the "real" dramas and adds to our corporate anxiety.

Worse, the drama gets out their and suddenly a tidal wave of "push" comes from somewhere - the news, blogs, church, friends, political associations, radio, tv, etc. - to get you to take a position, choose a side, determine who you should be mad at, who you shouldn't talk to, listen to, perhaps make you sooooo upset you do something crazy - like comment on a newspapers opinion page.

Ha! Loved your article! Please write more!

How refreshing! An intelligent, yet entertaining piece. You go, girl!

An emphatic two thumbs up!

During the millions of years that humans spent wandering around in little groups of thirty to fifty members we developed certain tastes and habits. For example we have sweet tooths. This was fine before the days of unlimited sugar and corn syrup. Now we have an epidemic of obesity and diabetes.

Entertainment was sitting around the fire and telling stories...the great hunt, myths, whatever. We also developed a taste for gossip. The little tribes were "small towns" on steroids and it was actually true in survival terms that "anybody's business was everybody's business." That's why soap opera is so big.

But the 24-7 news industry has turned everything into soap opera and we lap it up while sitting in front of the tv screen with our sweet empty calorie soft drinks. Gossip-news has pushed out important news. People don't know anything about air safety but they know about the "miracle landing on the Hudson."

Stories are good but not to the exclusion of everything else.

I don't totally agree with this opinion piece because I think even the people who don't have empty lives can get caught up with the latest blond-girl-kidnapping. But I thought it was really well written and I would be interested to read more from this person.

I like Gyamfi's, Huffman's and Khan's entries for this round (not necessarily in that order).

Why are we so addicted to other peoples drama, because it makes us feel better about the drama that is occurring in other peoples lives. For those who have drama, it makes the rest of us seem important. Besides, people have an innate nature for gossiping.

The problem, however, is that major news and media outlets, such as the WAPO, along with the FOX news organization has now stooped to such low levels.

Great article and best of luck!

This and the one about the student hiring a personal assistant were the best.
Now can we vote some of the current Post columnists "off the island?"

"We find it easier to be consumed by someone else's life than to live our own."

This to me is the core of the column. I hope she has the opportunity to expand on this as the contest progresses.

Very good. It's obvious that many, many of us are taken with stories that are inconsequential to our own lives, and unimportant on a societal scale. I appreciate your recognition that this is not because people are stupid but because people need something that society is not giving them, so they have to look elsewhere for it.

Elegant writing. Important topic in everyday clothing. This writer is worth keeping.

Elegant writing. Important topic in everyday clothing. This writer is worth keeping.

Or have we given license to broadcast media to make some form of entertainment of any "news" so that it doesn't confront us with the harsher realities of life? When we accept undemandingly the sensationalized trivia and refocused serious events of the day, we are in effect giving permission to mess with the news. As a result, we constantly feel we do not have the necessary information with which to make decisions; and we don't. We make emotional choices when reason would better serve us. We act with mass hysteria when calm evaluation is more appropriate.

The kinds of "news" pumped out as the next new "drama" pays the purveyors only so long as we flock to it. We've got enough serious problems, you'd think we'd learn. Maybe there's some anesthetic effect yet to be discovered. Or maybe we're each so afraid of missing out on the latest thing, we can't stop ourselves. Whatever the case, it's in our power to bring it to an end and again become a serious people. I wonder what we'll choose.

I like them all, but I'd call this the best piece. I admired one other very much -- by Burton Richter -- but am not sure what other topics he will cover and how he can produce proposals of such magnitude on a weekly basis. We shall see!

This on the other hand presents a really interesting look at our daily lives, media, etc., in a fresh authentic and confident voice that gets right to the point in the first sentence. I want to hear more from you and have no doubt I will. Great job.

This is good: entertaining, yet thoughtful leaving a nugget of contemplation for us. I like the setup with the news highlight--a little dramatic perhaps? Oh, dear...

Our culture is addicted to stimulation of any sort, not just the myopia of the 24-7 news. Peace and serenity are the biproducts of making mindful choices and being grateful for life as we know it.
So far you have my vote.

Bravo!

Great analysis, and I love the way you've laid this out.

Best of luck.

"Instead, we are watching with the hope of feeling human and alive."

To me, this is the most intriguing line of the piece. When I read it, I thought: no, I don't think that's true. What I think we are looking for is a sense of community that we no longer feel in our own neighborhoods.
Because we put up fences and gates instead of building bridges. And, of course, because we feel more need for neighborhood watches than block parties. When the whole nation is watching the same story, that sense of continuity, community returns, if ever so fleetingly.

Re: the balloon story. I have a different perspective than most. For some odd reason, I missed most of the coverage of that one and did not see anything until the evening news, after it had been discovered that the boy was not on board.
My very first thought, on seeing the recap was "hoax." I did not have to be told what this story was really about. Because I had not been emotionally primed as those who had watched it all day long.

Best of luck to the writer. So far, I hope you win.

I agree with AverageJane, this one's a keeper! Great theme, well written.

TV is the Opium of the masses!

Very good points, they hit the mark. I look forward to reading more from this writer. WaPo please don't let this gem slip by.

Beautifully written. You have my vote for the next round.

NOTHING BEATS COMMON SENSE AND HEART.

Okay, I've now read all ten finalists, and to me it's a tossup between Maame Gyamfi and Courtney Martin (whose comment page appears to be broken). I'd love to hear more from either of them.

This is an AWESOME theme, and well executed. It's hard to tell of course from one column, but I would like to hear more from this writer.

Very good. I truly enjoyed youe writing. I wish you success!

It is best to let ones friends and coworkers who behave in this manner know that their mental credibility is damaged by such vacuous behavior.