I spent 13 years working for two television networks (ABC was one) and for the life of me, I cannot understand why they are bent on cutting their own throats like this. It's not in the nature of corporate television executive thinking to take the risk you outlined; unless they foolishly believe that Republican rule is going to extend well beyond 2008, they are taking an action (in broadcasting this) that ought to have any sane investor dumping the stock like rotten meat.

Has ABC formally and publicly addressed these concerns?

seriously? torture hasn't done it. lying to Congress, squandering young blood and lifetimes of treasure like it's spit, corporate welfare as never before, killing industry, killing the middle class, war profiteerimg which is treason out-and-out, criminality in your face to beat the band, and Bush still only has a 63% disapproval rating...WTF is up with that?

i bet ABC/Disney don't give a fat rat's patootie and i think they are right not to.
besides if the Dems get in, they'll just buy THEM off. and they know they can do it.

excuse me while i leave and toss my dinner.
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If this were 1700, they'd be saying: "Since civilization began, slavery has existed. It's human nature." I would have believed it. If 1800: "Women will never vote. They are not born rational". I would have believed it.
2006: Make war irrelevant

the second half. If they do to the Bushies what they did to the Clintons, it will be about even. They both need a thrashing.

One way to handle all the noise is to watch CNN Pipeline's http://www.cnn.com/pipeline/landing/index.sept11.html free re-broadcast of its 9/11 coverage -- online and in real time. They also have other "pipes" that will carry live events from today's anniversary.

Here's what I've done: wrote to the Disney CEO; wrote to ABC; wrote to my local ABC affiliate; wrote to Steve Jobs. No answer from any of my emails.

What I said in each was that I will not watch ABC network shows any more, not even college football (I really didn't miss the Ohio State-Texas game; I read all about it on Sunday. I will miss Grey's Anatomy and Nightline, but not much. Nightline was becoming a GOP propaganda outlet, anyway.

So -- no more ABC network for me.

I urge the Agonist community to do the same, and to communicate with ABC and Disney that this is what you are doing.

Yes, I'm out to kill ABC, and Disney, for that matter. I'll miss Part 3 of Pirates, as much as I like Johnny Depp's work. But I'll live. So will you.

The movie was shocking, not in the sense that the movie was such propaganda, but that a major entertainment corporation and one of the big three networks would so blatantly expose themselves as shills for the dubster.

Power has certainly corrupted, and those in power, both in the beltway and corporations are dispensing with democracy as the people lose their loyatly to them.

is that the stakes here are so high that if successful libel suits are brought, ABC could wind up standing for "Albright, Berger and Clinton".

Ok add that to the shopping cart.

If this were 1700, they'd be saying: "Since civilization began, slavery has existed. It's human nature." I would have believed it. If 1800: "Women will never vote. They are not born rational". I would have believed it.
2006: Make war irrelevant

(currently front paged on CNN intermingled with their 9/11 coverage - ES)

POSTED: 7:13 p.m. EDT, September 11, 2006

NEW YORK (AP) -- Editing changes made by ABC to the first part of its miniseries "The Path to 9/11" were cosmetic and didn't change the meaning of scenes that had angered several former Clinton administration officials, a spokesman for the former president said Monday.

As for Clinton, he didn't bother watching the movie that angered so many people who once worked for him.

"He made the choice that most Americans made," said Jay Carson, Clinton Foundation spokesman. "Of a fictionalized drama version of September 11 or the Manning brothers playing football against one another, he chose the latter." (Watch how some of the controversial scenes were changed -- 2:43)

The movie was flattened in the ratings by the debut of NBC's Sunday night football, matching Peyton Manning of the Indianapolis Colts against his younger brother Eli of the New York Giants. The football game had an estimated 20.7 million viewers, while "The Path to 9/11" had 13 million, according to Nielsen Media Research.

(...)

link

(give me a "d"! give me an "e"! give me a "b"... ah, screw it - the word is "debacle". 40 million dollars to make, unknown marketing revenues passed up - and it reached what relatively small audience it did with the tag of "falsified" publicly stuck on it (witness this CNN front page article). And now come potential boycotts driven by Atrios and Kos et al - and the potentially staggering legal bill. All in all, a complete and utter disaster - ES)

A life-size replica of a Guantanamo Bay detainee has been placed in Disneyland by "guerrilla artist" Banksy.

The hooded figure was placed inside the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad ride at the California theme park last weekend.

It is understood to have remained in place for 90 minutes before the ride was closed down and the figure removed.

A spokeswoman for Banksy said the stunt was intended to highlight the plight of terror suspects at the controversial detention centre in Cuba.

Banksy is notorious for his secretive and subversive stunts - such as sneaking doctored versions of classic paintings into major art galleries.

In 2005, he embarrassed the British Museum by planting a hoax cave painting of a man pushing a supermarket trolley, which he said went unnoticed for three days.

Last week, he smuggled 500 "alternative" versions of Paris Hilton's album into record shops around the UK.

(...)

BBC link

(Banksy's website is well worth checking out; there's brilliance there, with bite but without malice - ES)