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I Read the News Today, Oh Boy: Black Mirror

We gave a really heavy-handed hint for last week's headline theme:

As to a hint, we'll just say outright that we tried desperately to find a way to work WKRP in Cincinnati into a headline, as that is far and away the best-known example, but it just wasn't doable. Anyhow, with God as your witness, you'll want to make sure your answer makes sense, given that hint. Again, WKRP in Cincinnati is far and away the best-known example.

On Saturday, we added:

We had quite a few folks guess that the headline theme this week is "TV Shows" or "Sitcoms." That's on the right track, but the key is our note (stated twice) that WKRP in Cincinnati is far and away the best known exemplar of the theme. Even if someone likes WKRP in Cincinnati, few would say it is far and away the best TV show or best sitcom of all time. Anyone who is puzzling over it might also want to take note of what Thursday was.

And now, the solution, courtesy of reader T.K. in Half Moon Bay, St. Kitts:

The headlines all feature TV shows with a memorable and well-known Thanksgiving-themed episode:

And So It Begins, Part I: The West Wing Reality Distortion Field Is Already Operating at Full Strength

And So It Begins, Part II: For Trump (and Friends), the A**holery Is the Point

What I'm Thankful For: (Some) Happy Days Still Lie Ahead

I Read the News Today, Oh Boy: Everybody Loves Raymond Burr

Schadenfreude: Los Angeles Cheers as Soon-Shiong Gets Called Out

Freudenfreude: Senator Helmy Displays Both Will and Grace

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas: Time for Some Holiday Cheers

I'm guessing Cheers is featured twice because it has two well-known Thanksgiving episodes, though it could be argued that The West Wing has at least two. WKRP in Cincinnati, of course, had one of the most famous Thanksgiving episodes ever.

You are correct as to why Cheers appeared twice. We intended to use that repetition as the Saturday clue, but then it was clear we needed something much more direct, so that did not happen.

Here are the first 50 readers to get it right (most of them after the Saturday clue):

K.R. in Austin, TX
J.T. in Philadelphia, PA
T.K. in Half Moon Bay
G.M. in Gaithersburg, MD
T.F. in Craftsbury, VT
H.B. in Toronto, Ontario, Canada
M.M in Dunellen, NJ
G.W. in Avon, CT
M.T. in Wheat Ridge, CO
N.S. in Fayetteville, NY
M.S. in Canton, NY
M.T. and M.L. in Simpsonville, SC
J.E. in San Jose, CA
G.M.K. in Mishawaka, IN
D.D. in Highland Park, IL
D.L. in Uslar, Germany
J.C. in San Diego, CA
D.S. in Layton, UT
E.S. in Providence, RI
J.G.B in Natick, MA
M.Z. in Sharon, MA
R.M. in Gresham, OR
B.U. in St. Louis, MO
W.V. in San Jacinto, CA
V.F. in Bowie, MD

D.M. in Oakland, CA
D.D. in Carversville, PA
R.S. in Milan, OH
D.E. in Lancaster, PA
D.C. in Arlington Heights, IL
L.A.J. in Bourbonnais, IL
B.B. in Avon, CT
L.D. in Bedford, MA
C.J. in Boulder, CO
S.W. in Winter Garden, FL
A.J.C. in Williamsburg, VA
B.R. in Arlington, MA
R.B. in Chaska, MN
B.P. in Ellensburg, WA
M.W. in Altea, Spain
P.J. in Quakertown, PA
P.H. in Fort Lauderdale, FL
M.L. in Lakewood, CO
D.M. in Grand Rapids, MI
C.B. in Fresno, CA
A.P. in Kitchener, ON, Canada
M.T. in Paris, France
J.W. in Hillsboro, OR
N.G. in Clarkston, MI
T.K. in Kirkwood, MO

Oh, the humanity! And note that M.L. in Simpsonville is a 'Nade, while France is basically just Canada East, so most of our American readers got beaten out by three actual toque wearers, plus an honorary one. There's going to be coal in your stockings this year.

As to this week's theme, it's in the Trivial Pursuit category of "Language" (we'd say) and it depends on one word in each headline (although there are two headlines that each have two words that actually work). In terms of a hint, we'll note that the Harry Potter Baking Championship was on TV while we were putting the theme together.

If you have a guess, send it to comments@electoral-vote.com with subject "December 6 Headlines." (Z)

This item appeared on www.electoral-vote.com. Read it Monday through Friday for political and election news, Saturday for answers to reader's questions, and Sunday for letters from readers.

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