CBS affiliates will not rebroadcast 9/11 docu. - to avoid FCC fines
-
Sonic Youth
- Tenured Laureate
- Posts: 8005
- Joined: Wed Jan 01, 2003 8:35 pm
- Location: USA
I'm glad CBS showed this last night, unedited. They even had shot some new material for last night's broadcast, showing what had happened to the men in the firehouse since 9/11. (That firehouse didn't lose any firemen on 9/11, even though it was very close to Ground Zero, and some of their men were among the first firemen on the scene.) Some retired, some are still there, some moved on to different firehouses or to different jobs within the fire department.
It's still as powerful today as it was when I first watched it four years ago.
It's still as powerful today as it was when I first watched it four years ago.
-
Sonic Youth
- Tenured Laureate
- Posts: 8005
- Joined: Wed Jan 01, 2003 8:35 pm
- Location: USA
American Family Association Vows to Protest 9/11 Documentary
Sep 3, 10:40 PM (ET)
By LARRY NEUMEISTER
NEW YORK (AP) - Broadcasters say the hesitancy of some CBS affiliates to air a powerful Sept. 11 documentary next week proves there's been a chilling effect on the First Amendment since federal regulators boosted penalties for television obscenities after Janet Jackson's breast was exposed at a Super Bowl halftime show.
"This is example No. 1," said Martin Franks, executive vice president of CBS Corp. (CBS), of the decision by two dozen CBS affiliates to replace or delay "9/11" - which has already aired twice without controversy - over concerns about some of the language used by the firefighters in it.
"We don't think it's appropriate to sanitize the reality of the hell of Sept. 11th," Franks said. "It shows the incredible stress that these heroes were under. To sanitize it in some way robs it of the horror they faced."
Actor Robert De Niro hosts the award-winning documentary, which began as a quest to follow a rookie firefighter on an ordinary day but resulted in the only known video of the first plane striking the World Trade Center and horrific and inspiring scenes of rescue, escape and death. CBS will show it on Sept. 10 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. EDT, profanity intact.
Carter G. Phillips, a lawyer for Fox Television Stations Inc., cited the decision by several CBS affiliates to replace the documentary or show it after 10 p.m., the time at which the Federal Communications Commission loosens restrictions, when he spoke last week to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan.
Phillips addressed the court as part of a hearing on whether the FCC rushed to judgment in concluding that "NYPD Blue" and three other programs violated decency rules.
Saying the FCC was chilling free speech rights, Phillips mentioned the documentary to show the court how timid broadcast companies had become since the FCC toughened its position toward profanities after the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show on CBS, in which Jackson's breast was briefly bared.
Congress recently boosted the maximum fines the FCC can impose for indecency from $32,500 to $325,000.
So far, about a dozen CBS affiliates have indicated they won't show the documentary, another dozen say they will delay it until later at night and two dozen others are considering what to do.
On Friday, Sinclair Broadcasting became the latest company to say it was delaying the broadcast until after 10 p.m. on its stations in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Portland, Maine, saying it was concerned it could face fines.
The announcement came as the Tupelo, Miss.-based American Family Association readied its 3 million members to flood the FCC and CBS with complaints after the documentary airs.
"This isn't an issue of censorship. It's an issue of responsibility to the public," said Randy Sharp, director of special projects for the group, which describes itself as a 29-year-old organization that promotes the biblical ethic of decency.
The documentary first aired on the six-month and one-year anniversaries of the Sept. 11 attacks on the trade center and the Pentagon. This latest showing, on the eve of the five-year anniversary, includes new interviews with many of the firefighters featured in the original, describing how their lives have changed.
Franks said it was an easy decision not to edit the language in the documentary, especially since it has won a George Foster Peabody Award, among others. "It was a much more difficult decision five years ago when the emotions were much more raw and fresh," he said.
Franks said it seemed "dishonest somehow" for the network to cover up the real language five years later because of the current regulatory environment.
However, he said he understood the difficulties of small stations that fear the huge FCC fines. "We're not twisting arms," he said.
FCC spokeswoman Tamara Lipper said the commission routinely takes context into account in any decency analysis.
"We don't police the airwaves. We respond to viewer complaints," Lipper said. "We haven't seen the broadcast in question. It's up to individual stations to decide what they should air or not air."
She noted that "the historical context of 9/11 is important to the context of the broadcast" but said she could not predict how the commission might view the show if it receives complaints.
Sharp promised on Friday that his organization would flood the FCC with complaints, saying nearly 198,000 people already had told the FCC they want the agency to "enforce the law should CBS decide to break it."
CBS is feeling the heat. "Even if all 206 stations decide between now and the 10th to air the program live, what we have gone through for the past two or three weeks is overwhelming evidence of the chill facing broadcasters," Franks said.
Sep 3, 10:40 PM (ET)
By LARRY NEUMEISTER
NEW YORK (AP) - Broadcasters say the hesitancy of some CBS affiliates to air a powerful Sept. 11 documentary next week proves there's been a chilling effect on the First Amendment since federal regulators boosted penalties for television obscenities after Janet Jackson's breast was exposed at a Super Bowl halftime show.
"This is example No. 1," said Martin Franks, executive vice president of CBS Corp. (CBS), of the decision by two dozen CBS affiliates to replace or delay "9/11" - which has already aired twice without controversy - over concerns about some of the language used by the firefighters in it.
"We don't think it's appropriate to sanitize the reality of the hell of Sept. 11th," Franks said. "It shows the incredible stress that these heroes were under. To sanitize it in some way robs it of the horror they faced."
Actor Robert De Niro hosts the award-winning documentary, which began as a quest to follow a rookie firefighter on an ordinary day but resulted in the only known video of the first plane striking the World Trade Center and horrific and inspiring scenes of rescue, escape and death. CBS will show it on Sept. 10 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. EDT, profanity intact.
Carter G. Phillips, a lawyer for Fox Television Stations Inc., cited the decision by several CBS affiliates to replace the documentary or show it after 10 p.m., the time at which the Federal Communications Commission loosens restrictions, when he spoke last week to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan.
Phillips addressed the court as part of a hearing on whether the FCC rushed to judgment in concluding that "NYPD Blue" and three other programs violated decency rules.
Saying the FCC was chilling free speech rights, Phillips mentioned the documentary to show the court how timid broadcast companies had become since the FCC toughened its position toward profanities after the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show on CBS, in which Jackson's breast was briefly bared.
Congress recently boosted the maximum fines the FCC can impose for indecency from $32,500 to $325,000.
So far, about a dozen CBS affiliates have indicated they won't show the documentary, another dozen say they will delay it until later at night and two dozen others are considering what to do.
On Friday, Sinclair Broadcasting became the latest company to say it was delaying the broadcast until after 10 p.m. on its stations in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Portland, Maine, saying it was concerned it could face fines.
The announcement came as the Tupelo, Miss.-based American Family Association readied its 3 million members to flood the FCC and CBS with complaints after the documentary airs.
"This isn't an issue of censorship. It's an issue of responsibility to the public," said Randy Sharp, director of special projects for the group, which describes itself as a 29-year-old organization that promotes the biblical ethic of decency.
The documentary first aired on the six-month and one-year anniversaries of the Sept. 11 attacks on the trade center and the Pentagon. This latest showing, on the eve of the five-year anniversary, includes new interviews with many of the firefighters featured in the original, describing how their lives have changed.
Franks said it was an easy decision not to edit the language in the documentary, especially since it has won a George Foster Peabody Award, among others. "It was a much more difficult decision five years ago when the emotions were much more raw and fresh," he said.
Franks said it seemed "dishonest somehow" for the network to cover up the real language five years later because of the current regulatory environment.
However, he said he understood the difficulties of small stations that fear the huge FCC fines. "We're not twisting arms," he said.
FCC spokeswoman Tamara Lipper said the commission routinely takes context into account in any decency analysis.
"We don't police the airwaves. We respond to viewer complaints," Lipper said. "We haven't seen the broadcast in question. It's up to individual stations to decide what they should air or not air."
She noted that "the historical context of 9/11 is important to the context of the broadcast" but said she could not predict how the commission might view the show if it receives complaints.
Sharp promised on Friday that his organization would flood the FCC with complaints, saying nearly 198,000 people already had told the FCC they want the agency to "enforce the law should CBS decide to break it."
CBS is feeling the heat. "Even if all 206 stations decide between now and the 10th to air the program live, what we have gone through for the past two or three weeks is overwhelming evidence of the chill facing broadcasters," Franks said.
"What the hell?"
Win Butler
Win Butler
-
Sonic Youth
- Tenured Laureate
- Posts: 8005
- Joined: Wed Jan 01, 2003 8:35 pm
- Location: USA
Jittery CBS affiliates balk at "9/11" documentary
By Steve Gorman
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Dozens of CBS television affiliates are balking at network plans to rebroadcast the acclaimed documentary "9/11" for fear that coarse language by firefighters in the film may incur stiff new fines for indecency.
About 12 CBS affiliates have opted to skip the documentary altogether and run other programming in its place, while a dozen others plan to air the film later at night when fewer children are watching and more mature content is generally allowed, network sources said on Friday.
They said two dozen additional affiliate stations were still undecided about whether to preempt or delay the documentary, set to air on the eve of the fifth anniversary of the September 11 attacks on America by suicide hijackers.
The two-hour film, produced by French filmmakers Gedeon and Jules Naudet and retired firefighter James Hanlon, was aired twice before by CBS in 2002 without regulatory consequences.
But broadcasters have become extra cautious about running afoul of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission amid an ongoing crackdown on profanity and other content the agency deems to be in violation of its decency standards.
Potential fines for indecent broadcasts were recently increased tenfold, from $32,500 to $325,000 per violation for each station carrying the material.
Regulators do not give advance guidance to stations before a specific broadcast is aired. But CBS spokeswoman Shannon Jacobs said network executives were satisfied "9/11" would pass FCC muster again after discussing the issue internally.
Jacobs said all 21 of CBS's network-owned stations, including outlets in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, will carry the uncut documentary as scheduled.
CONTEXT COUNTS
The FCC ruled last year that ABC's Veterans Day 2004 broadcast of the acclaimed World War Two drama "Saving Private Ryan" did not breach decency rules despite complaints about profanity and graphic violence in the movie.
"One could expect the historical context of '9/11' to similarly be considered," FCC spokeswoman Tamara Lipper told Reuters. "But the commission only responds to viewer complaints. We haven't seen the broadcast in question, and it is always the decision of individual stations what to air."
Jacobs said CBS was sympathetic to affiliate jitters.
"Given the current regulatory atmosphere, the decision by some stations to delay or preempt '9/11,' even though it aired twice in 2002 and will include appropriate audience warnings, is regrettable yet understandable," she said.
The film, narrated by actor Robert De Niro, was compiled by footage shot inside the north tower of the World Trade Center in Manhattan after it was stricken by the first of two hijacked airliners. No actual carnage is shown.
But the horror and bewilderment of the moment is captured on the faces of seasoned firefighters as they react to the devastation unfolding around them, including the off-screen sound of victims who had jumped from the towers slamming into the pavement outside the lobby.
In light of those circumstances, the network felt it was on safe ground leaving uncut the numerous expletives uttered by the firefighters in the Emmy- and Peabody Award-winning film.
"It's hardly titillating or exploitative," one CBS executive said. "One of the considerations in the indecency standards is supposed to be context. And I think the fact that these guys are at the gates of hell, it gives them some latitude."
By Steve Gorman
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Dozens of CBS television affiliates are balking at network plans to rebroadcast the acclaimed documentary "9/11" for fear that coarse language by firefighters in the film may incur stiff new fines for indecency.
About 12 CBS affiliates have opted to skip the documentary altogether and run other programming in its place, while a dozen others plan to air the film later at night when fewer children are watching and more mature content is generally allowed, network sources said on Friday.
They said two dozen additional affiliate stations were still undecided about whether to preempt or delay the documentary, set to air on the eve of the fifth anniversary of the September 11 attacks on America by suicide hijackers.
The two-hour film, produced by French filmmakers Gedeon and Jules Naudet and retired firefighter James Hanlon, was aired twice before by CBS in 2002 without regulatory consequences.
But broadcasters have become extra cautious about running afoul of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission amid an ongoing crackdown on profanity and other content the agency deems to be in violation of its decency standards.
Potential fines for indecent broadcasts were recently increased tenfold, from $32,500 to $325,000 per violation for each station carrying the material.
Regulators do not give advance guidance to stations before a specific broadcast is aired. But CBS spokeswoman Shannon Jacobs said network executives were satisfied "9/11" would pass FCC muster again after discussing the issue internally.
Jacobs said all 21 of CBS's network-owned stations, including outlets in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, will carry the uncut documentary as scheduled.
CONTEXT COUNTS
The FCC ruled last year that ABC's Veterans Day 2004 broadcast of the acclaimed World War Two drama "Saving Private Ryan" did not breach decency rules despite complaints about profanity and graphic violence in the movie.
"One could expect the historical context of '9/11' to similarly be considered," FCC spokeswoman Tamara Lipper told Reuters. "But the commission only responds to viewer complaints. We haven't seen the broadcast in question, and it is always the decision of individual stations what to air."
Jacobs said CBS was sympathetic to affiliate jitters.
"Given the current regulatory atmosphere, the decision by some stations to delay or preempt '9/11,' even though it aired twice in 2002 and will include appropriate audience warnings, is regrettable yet understandable," she said.
The film, narrated by actor Robert De Niro, was compiled by footage shot inside the north tower of the World Trade Center in Manhattan after it was stricken by the first of two hijacked airliners. No actual carnage is shown.
But the horror and bewilderment of the moment is captured on the faces of seasoned firefighters as they react to the devastation unfolding around them, including the off-screen sound of victims who had jumped from the towers slamming into the pavement outside the lobby.
In light of those circumstances, the network felt it was on safe ground leaving uncut the numerous expletives uttered by the firefighters in the Emmy- and Peabody Award-winning film.
"It's hardly titillating or exploitative," one CBS executive said. "One of the considerations in the indecency standards is supposed to be context. And I think the fact that these guys are at the gates of hell, it gives them some latitude."
"What the hell?"
Win Butler
Win Butler