Drudge: It's The Beginning Of A Second Media Century

drudgereport.com ^ | November 4, 2003 | Matt Drudge

[N. Theknow]

Inquiring minds would like to know who might be the Showtime sponsors of such a "political hit job," just so a few letters can be written to companies to express opinions regarding the purchase of products by those that want to sponsor such rubbish.

Showtime would not have sponsors would it? Movie channels most often run entire movies and only plug their own shows instead of products.

Now, if everyone cancelled their Showtime subscriptions or threatened their local cable companies with some sort of retribution for Showtime airing this Streisand-motivated, libelous, insipid hate piece; we might see some action.

OR

If those of us who do not subscribe to Showtime all of a sudden subscribed and then in one fell swoop cancelled our subscriptions, this too would be a wake up call.

OR

If we all cancelled our subscriptions tomorrow, resubscribed, the day after, cancelled the day after that, resubscribed the day after that, etc, etc, etc; we could drive them completely nuts at both the cable companies and Showtime and more importantly Viacom.

[lainie]

CBS: 'REAGAN' FILM WAS BIASED

**Exclusive**

CBS head Les Moonves made the ultimate decision to pull THE REAGANS off the November schedule after concluding the film was "biased" against the former president, top sources tell the DRUDGE REPORT.

"It just doesn't work," Moonves told staffers in a bold move of conscience. "Listen, we are not afraid of controversy, we'd go out there if it came in at 50-50, pro and con, but it simply isn't working. It's biased."

Moonves, a self-described liberal Democrat, on Tuesday took full responsibility for canceling the movie, sources tell DRUDGE. "He made up his own mind after seeing it," a top source said.

Meanwhile, REAGANS producers are feeling great disillusionment with CBS and the entire series of events, it has been learned.

"We got a call from a midlevel flunky at CBS telling us to get it ready for SHOWTIME," reveals a source close to the production team of Craig Zadan and Neil Meron.

Developing...

[lainie]

Patti Davis weighs in

[lainie]

Just poking around the Internet on the names Craig Zadan and Neil Meron.

Craig was executive producer for 2002's "Chicago" and "Martin and Lewis," 1984's "Footloose," and the Judy Garland movie based on Lorna Luft's book in 2001. (Judy Davis played Garland then, and plays Nancy in this current Reagan debacle.) He's done other movies and TV projects. He's been nominated but never won an Emmy.

He's currently producing the Footloose 2004 remake, and Farenheit 451, scheduled for 2005.

On cursory glance, Neil Meron's name doesn't appear anywhere that Zadan's name doesn't.

The two of them are scheduled to receive an award along with Barbra Streisand, on March 6th next year, 2004. The gents will be honored with the org's "corporate award for their work on projects which positively portray gay and lesbian characters." More Craig Zadan News

Cast photo from the "CHARLES STROUSE SONGBOOK" evening at the Cinegrill in Hollywood. From left, Jo Anne Worley, Susan Watson, Robert Mammana, Carol Lawrence, Jason Graae, Lee Lessack (back), Charles Strouse, Bonnie Franklin, Lisa Richard, Patrick Gandy (back), Andrew Meeks, Jeffrey Polk, Scott Orlin, Craig Zadan.

No idea if the above photo is the same Craig Zadan or not.

[SevenofNine]

Lainie I hear rumbling last night on KFI 640am in SO CAL during Afternoon John and Ken show they hearing rumors that going do that

I hear CBS is not amused with Cali residents they are the one that blab about the internet about this thing on Reagan life

WHO Give rat*** we elect Austria bodybuilder they don't like it

And gave start to future Prez of the US

That tick off Libs in NY more

[lainie]

How do they think they're going to quash the netizens?

[BradyLS]

Thanks, lainie!

I'm really proud of Matt. Folks often dismiss him as a lightweight, but he has an uncanny knack for finding those gems that push the buttons of conservatives that galvanize them into action. And it's all to seldom we get to see tangible wins like this one-- even for something as ham-handed as CBS trying to foist a hit-piece about the Reagans on the American public!

Once again, he's at the forefront of covering news that the news tries to bury. I hope Matt is with us for a long time and keeps digging at all those phonies and empty suits in Hollywood and DC.

[SevenofNine]

I really don't think they can crush the internet
They can't Matt the Hat is right

Dawning of new technolgy you are part of history

Rackkkkkk ittt

[potlatch]

ping

[nutmeg]

read later bump

[lainie]

A Sad Day for Artistic Freedom
...Barbra Streisand
Posted on November 4, 2003

I am deeply disappointed that CBS, the network that in 1964 gave me complete artistic control in creating television specials, now caved in to right wing Republican pressure to cancel the network broadcast of the movie The Reagans. (And I say MOVIE - because this is NOT a documentary - it's a television drama.) The movie will now be aired on Showtime, where the difference in viewership is in the millions.

One can only imagine the kind of pressure that would compel CBS to take such an extraordinary action. This was an organized Republican spin machine at work. Remember the Dixie Chicks controversy? It wasn't the larger general public that called in to radio stations and burned CDs, it was a small group of right wing activists. In fact, now the band is more popular than ever, with a sold out summer tour.

I don't believe Democrats often, if ever, try to muscle the First Amendment like this. For example, in 1983, no one stopped NBC from airing Kennedy, a biopic that portrayed President Kennedy and other members of his family and administration as deeply flawed, even though the movie could have potentially been hurtful to Jackie Kennedy, who was still alive to see it, as well as to her children.

This is censorship, pure and simple. Well, maybe not all that pure. Censorship never is. Due to their experience with the restrictive English government, the framers of our constitution specifically included a ban on prior restraint in the First Amendment, which is an attempt to stop information from getting out there before the public has a chance to see it at all - exactly what is going on in this case. Of course, CBS as a company has the legal right to make decisions about what they do and do not air. However, these important decisions should be based on artistic integrity rather than an attempt to appease a small group of vocal dissidents. Indeed, today marks a sad day for artistic freedom - one of the most important elements of an open and democratic society.

http://barbrastreisand.com/statements.html

[lainie]

Barbra Streisand quote, March 24, 2003:

"I have been arguing that point for many years now, that artists have just as much of a right to speak out as every other citizen. In 1995, I gave a speech at Harvard called the artist as citizen. I made the point then and many times since that artists are citizens first and artists second. We have opinions and ideas, just like anybody else. The difference is that we are given more visibility from which to speak - so we have to be informed and we have to be responsible, but it doesn't mean we have to be quiet."

[lainie]

Addind to this thread, blog (heh), here are links to more pummeling that CBS has received lately from the VRWC, this time from homeschoolers:

CBS Evening News did a two-part hit piece:
A Dark Side To Homeschooling, part 1, 10/13/2003
Home Schooling Nightmares, part 2, 10/14/2003

A few of the responses:
CBS warns of homeschooling's 'dark side' Joseph Farah, 10/15/2003
The Dark Side of CBS, Joseph Farah, 10/16/2003
CBS Needs Education on Homeschooling, Marc Morano, 10/16/2003
CBS: Continually Biased Shows, Kyle Williams, 10/18/2003
Sponsor Pulls Ad from CBS News After Homeschoolers' Complaints, Marc Morano, 10/21/2003
A Defense of Home Schooling, Hans Zeiger, 10/21/2003
The Dark Side to CBS, HSLDA, 10/23/2003
Washington Times editorial, 10/24/2003
CONGRESS Sends Letter to CBS, 10/27/2003

And it goes on and on. And that's nothing compared to every homeschooling network/mailing list that I'm on, and that I've heard of. And these people know how to write letters. (and so do their kids)

p.s. homeschool's dark side (parody site)