I don’t think the show ever was intended to laugh at the guys. It’s not the first show the Robertsons have had, they were doing basically the same thing on a much smaller network before. Everybody knew the audience the old show had and what the audience would be on a bigger network.
There was nothing wrong with being interviewed by GQ, the big mistake was the handler not preparing a proper “no” list (topics that shall not be broached, every interview has them). There’s an anonymous guy out there who makes very little money (and probably has been fired) who just plain didn’t do his job.
Hello again--we had an extended civil discussion on a different thread a couple of days ago.
You alluded to this then and have raised it again here, and I'm still curious how exactly this works. Apparently, there is standard contract language giving A&E the right to "censor" Phil in this way in order to protect A&E's investment--is that right? If so, how is it at all enforceable? It's so subjective: these topics are off limits. Are you saying that Phil agreed in advance to such complete censorship?