NOT 'GLEE'-FUL! Fox Show Disinvited From Macy Thanksgiving Parade By NBC (The war on Fox)

Deadline Hollywood ^ | October 12, 2009 | Nikki Finke

[tlb]

Those morons at Jeff Zucker's company have stepped in it yet again. It's bad enough NBC can't get anyone to watch its piss-poor network primetime shows, but now NBC is making sure the American public can't watch other networks' shows as well. (This follows an earlier report that NBC doesn't want the Jay Leno Show to book rival networks' TV stars.)

The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is known for annually including "cultural touchstones of the moment" in its broadcast, from every American Idol winner since the 2nd season (a Fox show) to the stars of High School Musical (a Disney Channel show). Not a peep out of parade broadcaster NBC.

But then, a month ago, the parade producers (who aren't part of NBC) invited this season's hot Fox show Glee castmembers to march and perform during the parade. "They wanted us to have the cast ride a float down the parade route and do a number at the end," a 20th Century TV exec tells me. "Late last week, we confirmed that the Glee cast was able to participate, and we began to talk choreography."

But, on Thurday, the studio received a call from the parade producers disinviting the show. "They called all mortified and apologetic. They said that after conversing with NBC they had to withdraw the invitation because NBC was forcing them to.

According to the NBC people, the parade was not going to promote a Fox show on their air." The parade producers acknowledged to 20th TV that NBC has never vetoed a single act booked in the past. Funny thing is, Glee airs opposite NBC's Law & Order: Special Victims Unit; that's hardly the same demographic. So what the hell is NBC's problem?

[Sunshine Sister]

NBC”s problem is that they still exist. Should have been gone a long time ago!

[PGR88]

I really hope Obama and the nasty Ballerina Emmanuel continue this crusade against FOX.

It is back-firing big time. Reading the blogs at even the liberal NY Times and Washington Post, people are overwhelmingly saying this crusade is ridiculous and smacks of an “enemies list.”

[EDINVA]

This is a pathetic move by NBC. I just hate to see the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade politicized like this. NBC should lose its contract to broadcast the parade. Maybe Fox can outbid them the next time it comes up. That would be a hoot.

If you do the Gadsden Protest, focus on Herald Sq. and 34th Street where they have most cameras set up. Position yourselves near the broadcast booth so it’s totally unavoidable. Might have to check to see if tickets are needed in the prime spots. And if NYPD would prohbit carrying flag poles along the parade route.

My son went a year or so ago and they had to get up at 4a to subway into Manhattan from Brooklyn to even get within sight of the parade uptown where the parade begins.

[TontoKowalski]

Isn't that kind of stuff broadcast for hours every day on every network?

I'm not sure what they call them now, but they used to be called "Soap Operas."

[DGHoodini]

She is very very much the Hollywood Gossip Columnist. But I wouldn’t call her “ancient”. But it surprises me to see her write something that puts the Left in a bad light. She is one of the authors listed on Drudge for their columns. Check a few out and you’ll get where she normally comes from.

[DGHoodini]

Here’s another story of hers, that is of particular interest to me, as it involves what happens to Hulu...

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Comcast May Leave Jeff Zucker Atop NBCU
By Nikki Finke | Category: Big Media, Breaking News, Cable | Saturday October 10, 2009 @ 6:16pm

Zucker-ImmeltFor weeks now I’ve been hearing buzz that GE chairman Jeff Immelt has cut a deal with Jeff Zucker so he’ll stay chief of NBC Universal, where he’s spent his entire career, in the event of a sale. “That this guy keeps failing upward is an extraordinary thing,” one of my sources marveled. Now Bloomberg is quoting “three people with knowledge of the situation” that Comcast’s Brian Robert and Steve Burke are leaning toward keeping the NBC Universal chief and his management team if it gains control of the GE unit. But any sale depends on Vivendi voting at an October 14th board meeting to sell the 20% NBCU stake. Gee, Brian/Steve are supposed to be smart guys. So why do people lose 100 IQ points when they come anywhere near NBCU?

comcast_logoMeanwhile, there’s new insight into why Comcast may want NBCU. A recent report from SNL Kagan projects that cable TV operators like Comcast will lose subscribers to DirecTV and Dish and AT&T and Verizon that offer video along with their phone and online services. Even Comcast admits growth is slowing because of “increased competition.” And online is a rival: Kagan says the number of people getting their TV from the Internet will double by 2019. As BusinessWeek points out, “you can imagine that Comcast wants to get its hands on a major content creator like NBC and its Hulu before that happens.”

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[Theo]

Maybe it’s not because it’s a FOX show.

Maybe it’s because Glee is a trashy show.

If the parade accepts other trashy shows, then FOX is being discriminated against, of course.

[SE Mom]

If this doesn’t beat all...

[dead]

I don't think this is political, it's just some dope at NBC getting all territorial over their programming and not wanting the competition to get any airtime. Just the sort of short-sighted idiocy I'd expect from some network dweeb.

Although their owned by the same company, Fox is not FoxNews.

[Buckeye McFrog]

The American Left has been gunning for Rupert Murdoch since he was back downing a few Fosters in Sydney. Ted Kennedy tried to ram through an amendment to our immigration laws in 1985 that would have prevented him from becoming a US Citizen (and hence, kept him from owning broadcast stations)

[netmilsmom]

That was my thought. Glee is not family entertainment.
When we get the “Nip/Tuck” float, I’ll cry about “Glee”

[calex59]

Are you kidding? Fox has the biggest audience of any of them and this crap will blow over sooner or later. Every time Bozo and the boys(and you know they are behind this)snipe at Fox(or Rush or Beck)the ratings go up. They are making money hand over fist, why would they back off and go left now?

[nufsed]

Just have Beck present a parade of Obama’s czars. Too scary?

[chris_bdba]

Get the kids that love the show “Glee” on this and have them write to NBC about their poor decision. Isn’t the 14yo-25yo group the most sought after audience? Can you imagine 5000 upset teen girls camped outside of 30 Rock?

[Lady Jag]

There are no more mean, stupid, dastardly, pitiful, selfish, spiteful, envious, ungrateful animals than Obama and his cronies.

[JSDude1]

I have heard “Glee” is another degenerate pos from Hollywood.

I watched on episode and found it boring and dry,

however: Who really cares?

[Jim Scott]

I can't get too excited over this petty move by NBC because I suspect it's as much about blocking a competing TV network's show as it is 'politically' motivated. Fox News and Fox entertainment are two entirely different creatures with no real relation to each other.

I'm sure Rupert Murdoch will not be pleased at the slight - but neither will fans of Glee. I think they'll all survive it. I'll save my outrage for bigger issues.

[afraidfortherepublic]

Isn't that kind of stuff broadcast for hours every day on every network? I'm not sure what they call them now, but they used to be called "Soap Operas."

This show is worse than any soap opera that I ever saw. Of course, I probably haven't seen a Soap for 25 years.