10.17.2004
Michael Moore Calls Sinclair's Bluff
Jay Leno, noted Republican lackey and Bush suck-up, for some reason had Michael Moore as a guest on his show Friday night. Moore followed up on the news that his Pay-Per-View special has been cancelled and had a few other notes to throw out:
Earlier this week, trade publications said Moore was close to a deal with iN DEMAND for The Michael Moore Pre-Election Special, which also would include interviews with politically active celebrities and admonitions to vote. The Nov. 1 special was to be available for $9.95.
Moore said Friday he signed a contract with the company in early September and is considering legal action. He said he believes iN DEMAND decided not to air the film because of pressure from "top Republican people."
"Apparently people have put pressure on them and they've broken a contract," Moore told The Associated Press.
"We've informed them of their legal responsibility and we all informed them that every corporate executive that has attempted to prohibit Americans from seeing this film has failed," Moore said. "There's been one struggle or another over this, but we've always come out on top because you can't tell Americans they can't watch this."
...Also Friday, Moore offered to let Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. air the movie for free. Such a deal would likely get a chilly reception at Sinclair, a broadcaster with a reputation for conservative politics that plans to air a critical documentary about John Kerry's anti-Vietnam War activities on dozens of TV stations two weeks before the election.
As WickedTribe put it, it should be interesting to see how Sinclair responds, though I'm sure we'll hear nothing until Monday at the earliest. What blows my mind in all this is that Moore's Pay-Per-View is totally legal here, while the Sinclair event is not. No rules restrict what can be viewed on Pay-Per-View. The airwaves there are not offered freely and aren't required to be for the public good. I hope he gets it out there, somehow, before the election.
Earlier this week, trade publications said Moore was close to a deal with iN DEMAND for The Michael Moore Pre-Election Special, which also would include interviews with politically active celebrities and admonitions to vote. The Nov. 1 special was to be available for $9.95.
Moore said Friday he signed a contract with the company in early September and is considering legal action. He said he believes iN DEMAND decided not to air the film because of pressure from "top Republican people."
"Apparently people have put pressure on them and they've broken a contract," Moore told The Associated Press.
"We've informed them of their legal responsibility and we all informed them that every corporate executive that has attempted to prohibit Americans from seeing this film has failed," Moore said. "There's been one struggle or another over this, but we've always come out on top because you can't tell Americans they can't watch this."
...Also Friday, Moore offered to let Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. air the movie for free. Such a deal would likely get a chilly reception at Sinclair, a broadcaster with a reputation for conservative politics that plans to air a critical documentary about John Kerry's anti-Vietnam War activities on dozens of TV stations two weeks before the election.
As WickedTribe put it, it should be interesting to see how Sinclair responds, though I'm sure we'll hear nothing until Monday at the earliest. What blows my mind in all this is that Moore's Pay-Per-View is totally legal here, while the Sinclair event is not. No rules restrict what can be viewed on Pay-Per-View. The airwaves there are not offered freely and aren't required to be for the public good. I hope he gets it out there, somehow, before the election.
