From the Washington Post:
Washington Post
I actually did laugh out loud when I read this. The same networks who have been more than happy to use President Obama for ratings when it suits THEIR needs, now whine about lost ad revenue when the President actually wants to use THEM for his own purposes.
Nevermind the fact that Presidents have consistently used the network airwaves to deliver information to the voting public, and never made a fuss when W wanted to co-opt them to go on about his latest message of doom, it's now just outrageous that Obama wants to talk about, you know, issues and stuff instead of letting them go about the business of making as much money as they possibly can.
Broadcasters are bracing themselves for the likelihood of three prime-time interruptions in three weeks, totaling at least three hours of prime time -- and ad breaks -- yanked.
"His economic stimulus package apparently does not extend to the TV networks," one network exec noted.
Look, I watch Chuck and still haven't given up on Heroes (though I want to), but somehow I'm able to recognize that it's a little more important that we understand exactly what's going on with the economy that's falling apart around us and actually hearing what the leader that we elected is trying to do about it.
Notice they're not going on Friday or Saturday," one network exec complained. "They're . . . preempting our better shows. You're not happy to lose a 'House' if you are Fox, or two of the better comedies at CBS, or 'The Bachelor' at ABC -- we're all going to take a bath."
Wow, the President is choosing a night when a lot of people will be watching to do exactly what the so-called news outlets have been saying he hasn't done, which is break down how and where money will go. I'm amused that NBC wasn't mentioned in this paragraph -- I suspect that this speech will get them better ratings than they're getting from most of their other programs.
Edit: From commenter blueocean:
* [new] Poor children. (0+ / 0-)
They need a new war to cover non-stop. Why didn't they ever complain about covering war?
Exactly. Air it or don't air it, but we certainly never heard any public whining like this during the Bush era--ever.