There's a famous show on Apple TV+ called "The Morning Show" starring Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, and Steve Carrell. Some might think I have just emerged from a cave to discover this show as you are gearing up for season three ina . For everyone else, it is an exciting look into the lives of Morning TV News anchors and the production team. It is a perspective that I was not too familiar with, so this was one I continued watching through.

I can't say I strongly recommend the show, it is not for everyone. But if you have time, enjoy journalism or are a fan of one of the leads, watch the first episode and see if you feel it worthwhile investing more time in, it will likely not disappoint.

This post is not a review of the show, and one post cannot really do justice to the entire show. It is focused on Reese Witherspoon's character, Bradley Jackson. From the very beginning, it struck a chord.

The first incident where we get into Bradley's inside is when she extemporaneously unloads onto a fellow reporter who injures her cameraman, even if, accidentally. As a reporter, she is expected to behave "decently" but does not. It shows her passion, her imperfection, and her internal revolt. She comes from a dysfunctional family and has no one to share her frustrations with. This incident gives her the vent.

During that rant, she reveals the depth of her research on the piece of news she is about to cover and her intimate awareness of the situation at the coal mine. She puts herself in the shoes of the people she is reporting about. Another surprise! Isn't a reporter supposed to read from a script without deviation, tell the story and move on to another? Not Bradley Jackson!

Unknowingly, this whole episode is recorded by a citizen journalist on their phone and as the premier institution is looking for stories, a maverick scout finds Bradley and wants her to be interviewed for the Morning show. Long story short, that interview reveals Bradley's personality, and her naked ambition to get to the truth and tell it like it is. The host challenges her that she might have done all this just to get the attention of the Morning Show, but she comes out on top with the authenticity and sincerity of her responses.

A sequence of events and a complex intertwining of political, situational, people and circumstantial factors lead to Bradley becoming the co-host of the show! She becomes a fire-starter that catalyzes a bunch of changes to the culture, operational model and fate of the TV station.

So, what about this character makes her stand out? It is that there is a bit of Bradley in every single one of us. How the show put every one of those bits together in one character is mindblowing. What are these bits that we can relate to?

Fluke luck and a big break after years of normalcy

Perhaps it was her humble beginnings and rise to stardom. If I stopped there, this would be Disney's Cinderalla, except it isn't. Bradley did not get time to prepare for such a massive leap. She is a small-town reporter in a small station. She always got into trouble for not knowing how to be 'politically correct'. Have some of us felt this way when we enter the workforce or join a big company or work across teams? Sure!

Values are Non Negotiable

As a reporter, her personal brand, which she has cultivated over the years, is one of being fair and truthful. Those are not easy values to stand up for or reconcile with growing in one's career. The show has shown this nicely, where Bradley is pretty experienced and yet she has not made it on the newsroom rung beyond being a field reporter at a tier 3 station in a small state. Surely, someone of her talent, extempore, and capability should have made it much further? Not Bradley, as she has always found a way to get herself into trouble, possibly for upholding her values above growth or progression. Bradley isn't alone on this, in fact, she can be compared to any superhero in Marvel's comics or most recently Captain Pete Mitchell (call sign Maverick) who is exceptional but remained Captain for years. Don't we love all these heroes? That's why we love Bradley. It is incredibly frustrating to not be able to progress, but when it comes down to values, how can that be negotiable. This is why those who are not good in organizational politics do not hold fancy managerial titles.

Firestarter - if you see something, say something!

Bradley is like fire, she blows everything up. Sometimes the fires help catalyze a revolution, but other times, they bring everything down. This may not resonate with everyone, but no change is brought about without lighting fires. We see this in Bradley repeatedly. She is not worried about her job, her standing with management, coworkers or anyone.

She wants to do the right thing, whether it is in standing up for the truth, supporting the right cause, making people uncomfortable about sidestepping important issues, or just about anything. This hustle and whatever it takes mindset is rare, and can cause a lot of discomfort, but is a necessary ingredient for change.

Such sincerity from Bradley and her passion to change what is clearly wrong, affects the lead host, Alex Levy played by Jennifer Aniston, so much that she begins to feel defensive, subconsciously examining her own approach to journalism. Perhaps she saw a tinge of her ambition when she first started, but that was numbed over the years due to institutional politics or an intense will to get ahead.

Bradley is tapped into time and time again by her champion, the CEO of the network, Cory Ellison, who gave her some of her biggest breaks. She stays loyal to him as he does to her. This is a bit rare, but that's trust that builds between people that grow into their roles helping each other.

People and families are imperfect, *hit happens

Bradley does not kid herself by expecting anything to be perfect. She is perfectly comfortable with imperfection and does not crave the ideal. Yet, she has a few values that are uncompromisable. That in effect marks a conflict she has with herself. This has been shown very beautifully throughout the show and her character has ample opportunities to make tough decisions. She is almost a masochist in choosing the toughest path, situations that are most uncomfortable to tackle, and hardest to navigate. She faces this head-on, not hoping to solve anything, but more to attain some sort of closure that she can make peace with. So many of us, I would wager almost half of us can understand this sentiment.

The other half is portrayed by the lead character who shares the stage with Bradley, Alex Lewis, played by Jennifer Aniston, who has a completely opposite approach to life, she conceals her imperfections and wants to make herself appear as the perfect being. Totally opposite but that's something that the rest of us will relate to!

Bradley is conflicted between owning up to the issues that she has from her family, which is totally dysfunctional. But it is part of who she is and she has already cancelled half of it, what she has remaining, some part of her wants to hold on to, DEARLY. This is especially true of her brother, who is an addict but clings on to her to the point where he becomes a serious burden, a disgrace and a liability for her career. She is conflicted on advice she gets from her closest friends to leave her family behind to pursue her career. This is so reminiscent of the dilemma we have all faced in our lives.

Families are like a package deal or a bunch of grapes, you get the good with the bad all in the same package. You can't choose what you get, you just go along or branch off.

What makes Bradley relatable or memorable?

The botched-up Cinderella story, life is not all rainbows and unicorns that TV shows it to be. Some of us are just tired of the fiction of perfection shown in movies or series, which is good as an escape but does not exist in the real world. Even if you get the opportunity of your dreams, you are seldom prepared to handle it.

The unpredictability, or the sheer talent and pursuit of the truth. It may be that we don't get to play Bradley in our everyday lives. Or perhaps some of us aspire to, but can't or hold back.

This character has been written consistently throughout the show. No matter the situation, the dilemma, or the hard decisions that the character needs to make, she stays true to her principles. A rare and respectable trait that is almost impractical but we see role models from time to time that uses their platform.

The artist, Reese Witherspoon has given Bradley so much life, that makes Bradley Jackson extremely lovable, and totally relatable. No matter where we come from, or how we have evolved, there is some part of us that is Bradley. That's the magic of this character.

We consume a lot of media these days, and such characters leave a mark.

#themorningshow #bradleyjackson #reesewitherspoon #jeniferaniston

There's a famous show on Apple TV+ called "The Morning Show" starring Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, and Steve Carrell. Some might think I have just emerged from a cave to discover this show as you are gearing up for season three ina . For everyone else, it is an exciting look into the lives of Morning TV News anchors and the production team. It is a perspective that I was not too familiar with, so this was one I continued watching through.

I can't say I strongly recommend the show, it is not for everyone. But if you have time, enjoy journalism or are a fan of one of the leads, watch the first episode and see if you feel it worthwhile investing more time in, it will likely not disappoint.

This post is not a review of the show, and one post cannot really do justice to the entire show. It is focused on Reese Witherspoon's character, Bradley Jackson. From the very beginning, it struck a chord.

The first incident where we get into Bradley's inside is when she extemporaneously unloads onto a fellow reporter who injures her cameraman, even if, accidentally. As a reporter, she is expected to behave "decently" but does not. It shows her passion, her imperfection, and her internal revolt. She comes from a dysfunctional family and has no one to share her frustrations with. This incident gives her the vent.

During that rant, she reveals the depth of her research on the piece of news she is about to cover and her intimate awareness of the situation at the coal mine. She puts herself in the shoes of the people she is reporting about. Another surprise! Isn't a reporter supposed to read from a script without deviation, tell the story and move on to another? Not Bradley Jackson!

Unknowingly, this whole episode is recorded by a citizen journalist on their phone and as the premier institution is looking for stories, a maverick scout finds Bradley and wants her to be interviewed for the Morning show. Long story short, that interview reveals Bradley's personality, and her naked ambition to get to the truth and tell it like it is. The host challenges her that she might have done all this just to get the attention of the Morning Show, but she comes out on top with the authenticity and sincerity of her responses.

A sequence of events and a complex intertwining of political, situational, people and circumstantial factors lead to Bradley becoming the co-host of the show! She becomes a fire-starter that catalyzes a bunch of changes to the culture, operational model and fate of the TV station.

So, what about this character makes her stand out? It is that there is a bit of Bradley in every single one of us. How the show put every one of those bits together in one character is mindblowing. What are these bits that we can relate to?

Fluke luck and a big break after years of normalcy

Perhaps it was her humble beginnings and rise to stardom. If I stopped there, this would be Disney's Cinderalla, except it isn't. Bradley did not get time to prepare for such a massive leap. She is a small-town reporter in a small station. She always got into trouble for not knowing how to be 'politically correct'. Have some of us felt this way when we enter the workforce or join a big company or work across teams? Sure!

Values are Non Negotiable

As a reporter, her personal brand, which she has cultivated over the years, is one of being fair and truthful. Those are not easy values to stand up for or reconcile with growing in one's career. The show has shown this nicely, where Bradley is pretty experienced and yet she has not made it on the newsroom rung beyond being a field reporter at a tier 3 station in a small state. Surely, someone of her talent, extempore, and capability should have made it much further? Not Bradley, as she has always found a way to get herself into trouble, possibly for upholding her values above growth or progression. Bradley isn't alone on this, in fact, she can be compared to any superhero in Marvel's comics or most recently Captain Pete Mitchell (call sign Maverick) who is exceptional but remained Captain for years. Don't we love all these heroes? That's why we love Bradley. It is incredibly frustrating to not be able to progress, but when it comes down to values, how can that be negotiable. This is why those who are not good in organizational politics do not hold fancy managerial titles.

Firestarter - if you see something, say something!

Bradley is like fire, she blows everything up. Sometimes the fires help catalyze a revolution, but other times, they bring everything down. This may not resonate with everyone, but no change is brought about without lighting fires. We see this in Bradley repeatedly. She is not worried about her job, her standing with management, coworkers or anyone.

She wants to do the right thing, whether it is in standing up for the truth, supporting the right cause, making people uncomfortable about sidestepping important issues, or just about anything. This hustle and whatever it takes mindset is rare, and can cause a lot of discomfort, but is a necessary ingredient for change.

Such sincerity from Bradley and her passion to change what is clearly wrong, affects the lead host, Alex Levy played by Jennifer Aniston, so much that she begins to feel defensive, subconsciously examining her own approach to journalism. Perhaps she saw a tinge of her ambition when she first started, but that was numbed over the years due to institutional politics or an intense will to get ahead.

Bradley is tapped into time and time again by her champion, the CEO of the network, Cory Ellison, who gave her some of her biggest breaks. She stays loyal to him as he does to her. This is a bit rare, but that's trust that builds between people that grow into their roles helping each other.

People and families are imperfect, *hit happens

Bradley does not kid herself by expecting anything to be perfect. She is perfectly comfortable with imperfection and does not crave the ideal. Yet, she has a few values that are uncompromisable. That in effect marks a conflict she has with herself. This has been shown very beautifully throughout the show and her character has ample opportunities to make tough decisions. She is almost a masochist in choosing the toughest path, situations that are most uncomfortable to tackle, and hardest to navigate. She faces this head-on, not hoping to solve anything, but more to attain some sort of closure that she can make peace with. So many of us, I would wager almost half of us can understand this sentiment.

The other half is portrayed by the lead character who shares the stage with Bradley, Alex Lewis, played by Jennifer Aniston, who has a completely opposite approach to life, she conceals her imperfections and wants to make herself appear as the perfect being. Totally opposite but that's something that the rest of us will relate to!

Bradley is conflicted between owning up to the issues that she has from her family, which is totally dysfunctional. But it is part of who she is and she has already cancelled half of it, what she has remaining, some part of her wants to hold on to, DEARLY. This is especially true of her brother, who is an addict but clings on to her to the point where he becomes a serious burden, a disgrace and a liability for her career. She is conflicted on advice she gets from her closest friends to leave her family behind to pursue her career. This is so reminiscent of the dilemma we have all faced in our lives.

Families are like a package deal or a bunch of grapes, you get the good with the bad all in the same package. You can't choose what you get, you just go along or branch off.

What makes Bradley relatable or memorable?

The botched-up Cinderella story, life is not all rainbows and unicorns that TV shows it to be. Some of us are just tired of the fiction of perfection shown in movies or series, which is good as an escape but does not exist in the real world. Even if you get the opportunity of your dreams, you are seldom prepared to handle it.

The unpredictability, or the sheer talent and pursuit of the truth. It may be that we don't get to play Bradley in our everyday lives. Or perhaps some of us aspire to, but can't or hold back.

This character has been written consistently throughout the show. No matter the situation, the dilemma, or the hard decisions that the character needs to make, she stays true to her principles. A rare and respectable trait that is almost impractical but we see role models from time to time that uses their platform.

The artist, Reese Witherspoon has given Bradley so much life, that makes Bradley Jackson extremely lovable, and totally relatable. No matter where we come from, or how we have evolved, there is some part of us that is Bradley. That's the magic of this character.

We consume a lot of media these days, and such characters leave a mark.

#themorningshow #bradleyjackson #reesewitherspoon #jeniferaniston