TV-Movies Continue Their Incredible Disappearing Act

Pasadena, CA -- If you watch a lot of broadcast television and can't remember the last time you saw an actual, full-length, original made-for-TV movie, it isn't because you're having a senior moment or a weed-induced spaceout or anything like that. It's because almost none are being produced anymore. All have migrated to cable, and even those are dwindling annually.

Remember the 1980s? It seemed that ABC, NBC and CBS had 3 or 4 telepics on in primetime every week, documenting every disease, every spousal abuse scenario, every imaginable criminal act (both fictionalized and fact-inspired). Well, get this: It appears as if ABC is going to roll through an entire fall-to-spring TV season without airing a single TV-movie. Yep, not even one. This was more or less confirmed by ABC Entertainment president Stephen McPherson during his session with TV crritics at the Ritz-Carlton Huntington Hotel here.

The original strategy had been to air one: a remake of the classic "A Raisin in the Sun." But that is now being earmarked for next season. Circumstances are conspiring to keep the season free of TV-movies entirely at ABC for perhaps the first time in more than 35 years, going back to the early 1970s. But McPherson insists the deep-sixing of the genre isn't by design and that it remains a good and viable programming element as a big-event player during sweeps.

"I (still) think there are select opportunities that you'll look at -- whether it's a mini or it's a movie -- that can help your schedule, and I think it also rounds out your overall creative," McPherson said.

The closest thing that ABC has had to an in-season telepic this year was the controversial two-nighter "The Path to 9/11" that drew fire from the left for its perceived right-wing political agenda -- a charge I happened to have agreed with. It aired last September just prior to the start of the official 2006-2007 campaign and found ABC forced to make numerous last-minute trims to mollify those calling for the film to be pulled before air (which I would not have endorsed, free speech zealot that I am).

For his part, McPherson said the network "loved" the film and stands by it. He also denies that it was irresponsibly fictionalized or at all driven by any campaign to distort the facts.

"Everything in that movie is backed up tenfold," he insists. "We think it was a really important thing to air.  And you know, it's unfortunate that, for other agendas, people tried to squash it." When it was pointed out that ABC tried to backpedal with its last-minute alterations on 'Path to 9/11,' McPherson shot back, "We didn't backpedal. We aired the movie. We didn't change anything for those guys. We aired it as planned on the dates that were planned.

"I mean, it's a little odd to have (former National Security Advisor for the Clinton Administration) Sandy Berger telling you about what's truthful or not when he was indicted for stuffing documents into his pants on this very subject."

Comments

[TSM]

What is also odd is having ABC Entertainment president Stephen McPherson trying to convince everyone that nothing was changed, when ABC Entertainment admitted they changed sections of the made-for-tv propaganda movie after the complaints were lodged.

http://tinyurl.com/zjq6m

[jon]

i did not watch the movie....but weren't there disclaimers repeated throughout the showing of the movie? How is that being backed up ten-fold. This sounds pretty bizzare to me.

[TSM]

Some of that "backed up ten-fold":

1. Disney/ABC blame American Airlines, falsely - this was kept in the film.
http://tinyurl.com/jncs9

2. A scene where former National Security advisor Sandy Berger pulls the plug on a clear chance to take out Osama Bin Laden. According to the 9/11 Commission report, this never happened.

3. A scene where Madeleine Albright overrules military commanders and insists on informing the Pakistanis about a missile strike on a suspected Bin Laden hideout. According to the 9/11 Commission Report, this never happened.

4. A scene indicating Bush demanded aggressive action after receiving the August 6 Presidential Daily Brief entitled "Bin Laden Determined to Strike in US". According to Condoleezza Rice's testimony before the 9/11 commission, this never happened.