wmartin@ALMSA-1.ARPA (08/21/86)
Reference Poli-Sci V6 #46, the item from Nuclear Times on the upcoming
ABC-TV "Amerika" program.
Just out of curiosity, why is it so "pernicious" that this particular
series is written with a biased viewpoint from the "conservative
fringe" point of view? Sure, people who disagree with that view will
dislike it, but so what? Why not have TV programs (entertainment, not
just news, public affairs, or "opinion" shows) espousing all sorts of
viewpoints? After all, have we not seen a lot of TV programs written
from the standpoint of and supporting views normally characterized as
"liberal"?
(For example, have there not been many more "entertainment" programs,
such as episodes of drama series or made-for-TV movies, that could be
interpreted as being supportive of gun control than there have been
similar programs supporting the opposite viewpoint? I can think of
quite a few of the former, just off the top of my head, but few, if
any, of the latter.)
But if it is "pernicious" to write and produce an entertainment-type
show from a right-wing position, would it not be just as "pernicious"
to do the same from the left-wing? All of Norman Lear's sitcoms ("All
In The Family", "Maude", etc.), M*A*S*H, and many other series and TV
movies could be so characterized. This doesn't mean that they cannot
be entertaining, or should be censored. Yet I read that evaluation of
"Amerika" as calling for the censorship of that program -- that it was
in some way sneakily spreading an evil ideology. Are not the
"liberals" sure enough of the rightness of their position that they
cannot tolerate even the expression of a different view? That sure
sounds like a fundamental insecurity, not much courage of
conviction....
The "liberalness" of TV has always been a strange beast. Everybody
sees TV as being in the enemy camp. The leftists view it as the
mouthpiece of the evil capitalist imperialists, helping enforce the
status quo and keeping the poor and oppressed downtrodden and "in
their place". The conservatives see it as the voice of red revolution,
dedicated to destroying all they hold dear and sacred, defaming the
nation's leaders and spreading the cancer of hedonism. Both sides
complain that they cannot buy time to espouse their views, or that the
other side's views get more time than theirs.
Guess what? I cannot give you the answer. I don't know it. But I
suspect that there is less here than meets the eye...
Regards,
Will Martin
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