Bluemonkey - what exactly do you expect from RA? She's a very fine swimmer, and comes across as a very nice young woman, who has then been ripped apart by the popular press (in typical DM sidebar of shame style - the whole, internally inconsistent shit of "yes she's brilliant, but we are now going to dissect her looks, her every word in a TV interview no matter how wrong footed she was by the much older, media-savvy interviewer, and, all in the public interest of course, discuss that all important issue of international politics and world order in the 21st century, whether or not she has cankles"). So she comes across as defensive? Who wouldn't under those circumstances?
She didn't set herself up as the spokeswoman for a generation. She was a superb swimmer, for which she should be celebrated, and comes across as a nice person. But why should we expect her to be "strong" or "full of fire"?
BTW, there is an alternative to PS and EH - it's called the radio. The Today programme on radio 4 if you want to be irritated occasionally but reasonably well informed, radio 3 if you want nice music and carries the world service news every half hour, which, frankly, has as much actual news content in 5 minutes as the TV manages in a whole hour-long broadcast.
Sadly DS prefers milkshake (though I have to admit that is infinitely preferrable to breakfast TV aimed at adults).