I Guess Paul Westerberg Was Busy

How odd. A new promo I saw running Saturday on CNN features a testimonial from Alejandro Escovedo, of all people: "CNN's approach is presented in a very direct way," he says from what looks like a guitar shop. The spot even features Escovedo's signature on-screen, American Express-style. There are similar endorsements from Todd Usry, director of operations for a microbrewery; Que Gaskins, a marketing executive; Serena Kim, a features editor at Vibe; Tom Dickinson, co-owner of Montgomery Biscuits (!); and Shawn Amos, a folk singer. Seeing as how it's a multicultural group of CNN lovers, with two white men, two black men, and an Asian woman, there are two explanations:

1) Escovedo is the only Latino anyone at CNN could think of aside from Rick Sanchez, or...

2) It's a shameless bid to win favor with Escovedo's Number One Fan.