I think you're implying that the family would most like to resume taping. That's not at all how I read them. Phil wants to preach, unfettered, and I doubt very much that he has agreed to the limitations you say he has. I don't imagine A&E ever anticipated either that the show would become so widely admired or that Phil's platform would ever become so prominent as a result. And there are several family members that not only wouldn't dream of not supporting their "patriarch" but are nearly as eager as he. None of them needs the money--and their faith is firm enough that money wouldn't be an issue, anyway.
I would be very surprised to see the family ever backing down without A&E apologizing or conceding fully--they may not call it an apology, but it will be. Or else the Robertsons are through with A&E.
Anyway, it's not merely an interesting but also an important saga, for it has brought to a head the conspiracy of enforced silence against the Christian Gospel message that there is a penalty for sin. I'm sure Phil and the family see it just that way, and they are not about to cave in.
That’s the family being dumb. Why would A&E want to “get” the star of the most popular show in the history of the network? What would they gain? You just have to look at how this situation has played out to see why A&E would be stupid to do such a thing. Letting Phil answer questions that should have been on the banned list angered the left and spawned boycotts over there, and then disciplining Phil angered the right spawning boycotts over there. Nobody wants to “get” their stars, that damages the flow of money.
If they’re still under contract at the end of this season they’ll resume taping, or by the time they’re done being sued A&E will own everything they’ve ever done. He HAS to have agreed to the limitations because no network would EVER sign a contract without them, the fact that they’ve suspended him proves those clauses exist. It’s standard boiler plate stuff, nobody starts filming anything without it.
Actually it’s not that interesting or important. In the end it’s just another celebrity “controversy” that will blow over in a week, it’s already mostly blown over. There’s no conspiracy, he said rude hurtful things that insulted people, and that made people mad, and that started a backlash. If they see it as a conspiracy they’re setting themselves up to lose this. It’s just another silly bit of celebrity fluff, a handler failed to do his job, Phil failed to understand he was stepping in it, “controversy” ensued, unless they feed it it’ll all blow over by Christmas, there will be a minor “relapse” with the season premier, but by Valentines Day it’ll be just like nothing happened... unless the family decides to do the dumb thing and not let it die. Then they lose everything.