President Josiah "Jed" Bartlet and a willing suspension of disbelief have allowed me to maintain a semblance of hope when I have issues with the current administration—not exactly at the top of the hit parade when it comes to the environment or laws that govern the safety of our food supply.

The West Wing reshaped our understanding of the presidency, according to Trevor and Shawn Parry-Giles, associate professors of communication at the University of Maryland and authors of The Prime-Time Presidency: The West Wing and U.S. Nationalism.

“First aired in the aftermath of the Clinton impeachment, and continuing through the 2000 election debacle, the 9/11 attacks and the war in Iraq, The West Wing provided its viewers with another layer of meaning about the presidency—one that is easily the most complex popular-culture depiction of a president and his administration ever offered,” says Trevor Parry-Giles.

“The series offered a rich and often ambivalent depiction of women, people of color, the military and politics in general,” adds Shawn Parry-Giles, who directs the university’s Center for Political Communication and Civic Leadership.

Has The West Wing made you yearn for Camelot over the last seven years? What would you say to President Bush about your concerns as an organic consumer? And which issues should Congress address as we lurch toward election season (and members fill their campaign coffers with lobbyists’ money)?

Please post your comments: straightforward, controversial, sarcastic, bemused, irritated or pissed off at this post. Make your voice heard.

NBC Photo: David Rose

Dana Reeve

One of the last projects Dana Reeve undertook before she died Monday of lung cancer was to host the PBS special The New Medicine, scheduled to premiere 9 p.m. Wednesday, March 29 (check local listings).

The two-hour documentary will be of special interest to those dedicated to organic living, focusing on a burgeoning movement in U.S. hospitals and clinics to integrate high-tech and holistic medicine. The program suggests medical practice in America may be on the brink of a transformation: As scientific findings reveal the mind plays a critical role in the body’s capacity to heal, the medical community is beginning to embrace a new range of treatment options, including many once considered fringe.

The New Medicine goes inside medical schools, healthcare clinics, research institutions and private practices to show physicians at work on the cutting edge of this new approach. By paying attention to a person’s cultural values, lifestyle, stresses and supports, these doctors acknowledge the important role that patients can—and should—play in their own healing and healthcare. The program introduces viewers to patients who are benefiting from relaxation therapy, visualization tapes and self-hypnosis.