Denver Post
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Hollywood goes paranoid
TV's closed-mouth conservatism surfaces in firing of 'Hitler' producer
Sunday, May 18, 2003 - This is much more insidious than the Dixie Chicks incident: The executive producer of this week's CBS miniseries, "Hitler: The Rise of Evil," was fired for publicly likening the climate in America in advance of the invasion of Iraq to the climate in pre-war Germany that allowed the rise of the Third Reich.
Ed Gernon lost his job for drawing an analogy.
Imagine being axed for expressing an opinion about a period in history when it was unsafe to express an opinion. If it weren't so nasty, you'd be forgiven for thinking it was all a publicity stunt. The Dixie Chicks have had their CDs destroyed and been banned from playlists; Tim Robbins has had his movies boycotted. But a high-profile firing based on the expression of an opinion marks a serious turn.
And you thought it was just another Nazi miniseries.
Based on numerous recent incidents and in the opinions of several watchdog and academic media observers, a very real paranoia exists in Hollywood circles these days. The mood of the entertainment culture as a whole has become very, very cautious.
Ironically for a community perceived to have progressive or liberal tendencies, the brakes are on.
"Entertainment is conservative, in the sense of preserving the status quo. By definition a mass medium like television or even the movies is always going to be that way," says Robert Thompson, Syracuse University professor of film and television.
TV historically lags behind the culture. It doesn't steer the culture into shocking new ideas. It has always been more follower than leader.
Television only got around to doing its groundbreaking commentary on race relations, "All in Family," in 1971, long after 1954's Brown vs. Board of Education and 1964's Civil Rights Act, Thompson notes. Similarly, the first entertainment shows about Vietnam, "Tour of Duty" and "China Beach," came more than 10 years after the war.
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Just ask Ed Gernon. In the story in TV Guide that got him in trouble, Gernon explained the modern parallels he saw in the culture that allowed a Hitler to rise to power. Viewers will draw the analogies themselves.
"Hitler" dramatizes the suspension of civil liberties in 1930s Germany in the name of national security, the rise of a new government agency given special powers to protect the homeland, and the intimidation of critics into silence.
"It basically boils down to an entire nation gripped by fear, who ultimately chose to give up their civil rights and plunged the whole nation into war. I can't think of a better time to examine this history than now," Gernon told TV Guide. He said a climate of fear nourished Germany's endorsement of Hitler's extremism, and added, "When an entire country becomes afraid for their sovereignty, for their safety, they will embrace ideas and strategies and positions that they might not embrace otherwise."
If enough people watch it, the "Hitler" film could end up underscoring Gernon's concerns. The movie is a better-than-average drama about the culture that produced the Nazi leader; Robert Carlyle gives a riveting performance as Hitler.
Gernon didn't mention secret tribunals, racial profiling and elimination of lawyer-client privilege, realities of present-day America. He didn't have to.
Gernon was sacked by the production company, Alliance Atlantis, presumably under pressure from CBS. The network issued a statement noting that Gernon's "personal opinions are not shared by CBS and misrepresent the network's motivation for broadcasting this film."
The network's motivation, obviously, has little to do with urging viewers to think and everything to do with the May sweeps.
By presenting a film with serious themes, then backing away from serious discussion of those themes, the network hopes to have it both ways.
As usual, Hollywood is reluctant to be seen as radical. No wonder Michael Moore's anti-Bush outburst at the Oscars resulted in plenty of boos from the entertainment elite. The last thing Hollywood wants is to be perceived as out of step with the majority.
Raising the stakes
Now, during a time of national skittishness, with the "Hitler" producer's firing, the ante has been upped.
"In an industry that essentially has got to be careful and always walk on tiptoes anyway," Syracuse's Thompson said, "here we've got such paranoia now, whatever happens is going to be the next Dixie Chicks incident."
Paranoia is a strong word. But the network and studio decision-makers are at least prone to playing it safe. In financial terms, playing it safe means sticking with sequels that will do predictable business at the box-office and relying on imitative series and reality shows that have proven ratings success. In terms of content, imitation remains the sincerest form of television. Survival means respecting the mainstream, going with the commercial flow.
This sense of caution in entertainment programming is matched on the news side.
"As Fox News Channel plays David to the Goliath of the 'media elite,' it is amazing people don't realize they are the elite," Thompson said. "Fox News is now the mainstream."
Similarly, Thompson cites the "incredible sleight-of-hand" that allows right-wing radio talkers like Rush Limbaugh to carry on as they did when the Republican Party was out of power.
Matthew Felling of the Center for Media and Public Affairs, a Washington, D.C., think tank, said, "People fail to grasp the dichotomy that has occurred - the big difference between explaining and endorsing, for instance, why the Middle East hates America. In the current timid media environment, there is little acknowledgment of that distinction."
Opposing the party line can be hazardous. The Dixie Chicks suffered a nearly 30 percent drop in airplay of their songs on country music stations after Natalie Maines told a London audience they were embarrassed to be from the same state as the president. Organized efforts to boycott the group and prevent airplay were successful, although their subsequent ticket and record sales have been robust.
Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon were disinvited from an appearance at Cooperstown, N.Y., on the 15th anniversary of the film "Bull Durham." The president of the Baseball Hall of Fame said, "We believe your very public criticism of President Bush at this important - and sensitive - time in our nation's history helps undermine the U.S. position, which ultimately could put our troops in even more danger."
In a speech to the National Press Club, Robbins responded that, "In the 19 months since 9/11, we have seen our democracy compromised by fear and hatred. Basic inalienable rights, due process, the sanctity of the home have been quickly compromised in a climate of fear. A unified American public has grown bitterly divided, and a world population that had profound sympathy and support for us has grown contemptuous and distrustful, viewing us as we once viewed the Soviet Union, as a rogue state." He'd be hard-pressed to get a platform for those views on commercial television.
Sarandon (Robbins' partner) was dropped as a speaker at a Florida branch of the United Way. Janeane Garofalo's outspokenness on Iraq reportedly made her the target of a negative e-mail and telephone campaign. Martin Sheen was slated to star in a credit card commercial until his anti-war activism reportedly resulted in the scrapping of the planned spot.
Eager MSNBC reporter Ashleigh Banfield was disciplined for criticizing TV war coverage. NBC News president Neal Shapiro took Banfield "to the woodshed" for the speech in which she criticized the networks for portraying the Iraqi war as "glorious and wonderful," according to the Hollywood Reporter. The network issued a surprisingly obsequious statement saying, "She and we both agreed that she didn't intend to demean the work of her colleagues, and she will choose her words more carefully in the future."
At the same time, the ratings are down for NBC's Sheen-starring "The West Wing," arguably the one pro-Democratic series on television. And writer Aaron Sorkin is gone. The trade paper Variety reported that NBC had wanted Sorkin to share the responsibility for script development, and that the network was pushing for a more character-driven, less starkly political show. After this week's finale, we can expect less political science, more melodrama and bed-hopping.
Us vs. them
These days, it's all about choosing words carefully.
"President Bush on Sept. 12 (2001) created a very black-and-white world," said Felling. "The message was, 'You are either with us or you are with the enemy."' Entertainers have found out the hard way that there is little leeway if they are not on board with administration policy.
"It's an us-versus-them environment," Felling said. "We're all supposed to be pulling for the homeland."
The political right continues to blast away at the fiction of "liberal Hollywood," hoping to intimidate those who speak out, and appealing to a public that buys the illusion that Hollywood is packed with anti-establishment leftists.
"Even people who know otherwise have to behave as if it is true," Syracuse's Thompson said, "because they know that's what's going to happen in the realm of public opinion."
In Washington, Felling notes it is "ironic that the first American patriots held nothing sacred," in fact, they were rebels and made sure the right to rebel was in the country's Constitution.
"In an era of terror in America, when we've been shaken to our foundations, we are unclear what our foundations are. What's we're seeing today is not quite McCarthyism," he said. "But there is some sense that we're edging closer. Dissent is being stifled in profound ways."
If interest groups discourage consumers from buying Dixie Chicks CD, that's one thing. But when the punishment starts affecting jobs, it's just a short step to blacklisting.
The Screen Actors Guild made that connection, likening the current atmosphere to the witch-hunts of the 1950s. SAG posted on its website a statement saying that no one should be denied work on the basis of political beliefs: "The Screen Actors Guild Board of Directors, appreciating the value of full and open debate and devoted to the belief that the free flow of information, opinions and ideas contributes to the health of our nation, supports the right of all citizens, celebrated and unknown, to speak their minds freely, on any side of any issue, as is their Constitutional right. In the same vein - and with a painfully clear appreciation of history - we deplore the idea that those in the public eye should suffer professionally for having the courage to give voice to their views. Even a hint of the blacklist must never again be tolerated in this nation."
Suddenly, "just another Nazi miniseries" has new relevance.
