Inaugural viewings

As someone who lives inside the Beltway and within 5 miles of the Washington, D.C. mall, I am planning on hunkering down this weekend and riding out the storm of out-of-towners who are descending on my fair city for Obama's inauguration.

I kicked around the idea of going to the swearing-in ceremony several months ago, but as the day came closer and the newspapers and television news began devoting entire segments to the clusterfuck that would become our roads and public system on Tuesday, I put that idea away real fast.

Which means I will be sitting on my couch like most people on Tuesday watching the anointing of our new president on tv. But what to watch?

First of all, the key to watching news coverage of any large political event is simple. Keep the remote handy. If there is one thing I can't stand, it's pundits. And trust me, every channel (be it CNN, MSNBC, or *gulp* FOX news) will find ways to fill time with talking heads who will go on and on and on about something totally lame and nonsensical. So being able to switch channels in a hurry is key.

I plan to move between MSNBC (liberal hippies FTW!) and my local NBC news coverage. And in the morning, I am all about the Today show on NBC. I think Matt Lauer is cute, ok? So sue me.

In any event, the swearing-in ceremony starts at 11:30 a.m. and the inaugural parade is "planned" to begin at 2:30. I suggest you plan your day accordingly! And if you're stuck at work, most of the news websites will be streaming the event live. So you have no excuse to miss it!

Here are some other things to look for:

HBO is airing the Inaugural kick-off concert on Sunday at the Lincoln Memorial at 2:30 p.m. (with a re-airing at 7:00 p.m.). This is free and available for everyone, even non-subscribers, so check it out.

Also, The Daily Show will be airing live at 11:00 p.m. on Tuesday night.

If you are looking for a source beyond the usual news networks, BET will be offering extensive inauguration day coverage.

He's coming to save us!

If you come across any other inaugural programming that looks promising, feel free to share in the comments!