>> [Other stuff snipped.] >> If one of those series needs to create buzz at the risk of offending a >> segment of the potential audience, then yes. Of course, if it happened >> on The Office, it would be another example of NBC's ineptitude.
> I just want to clarify what JW has pasted above, which is a conflation > of excerpts from posts from two different authors (Kevin and myself). My apologies; they were two separate responses that probably belonged in their own posts. > The passage lifted my post did not suggest that abortions should be > shown on television purely for shock value - I was simply suggesting > another topic that is widely regarded as shocking - so shocking that > most entertainment programs avoid it. Whether they should or not is > another matter. But I think it is still interesting that, while 40 > years ago it might have been shocking for a young, respectable, > likable female star of a sitcom to get pregnant before she got married > (as Pam has done, with little or now public shock) today the idea of > the same character getting an abortion is almost unthinkable, or, as > JW puts it, evidence of the programmers ineptitude. Ellen Morgan coming out is what comes to mind. "Ellen" was, IIRC, not a ratings juggernaut, so the hype they were able to create served ABC's purposes while the producers were able to make the statement they wanted to. The Office, being the rare NBC success, doesn't need to engender controversy. Your point about Pam's unmarried pregnancy no longer being controversial is well-taken. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ TV or Not TV .... The Smartest (TV) People! You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
