This is probably old news, but my local ABC station

Is not showing "Saving Private Ryan", and why the hell not? Dammit, I'm going to find out, or could a MO KS poster tell me?

My 15 Y.O. son was going to record it. I have seen it, I have mixed feelings, but my child is old enough and smart enough to do some filtering, with his parents' guidance.

This is just crap. Maybe people don't want others to see just what nasty damaging things war does.

Do ya think?

There's been a big hubbub about it this week, all the Sinclair-owned ABC stations pulled Private Ryan. They claimed it was because they were afraid of running afoul of FCC violence rules, but I think in retrospect we all know why a Sinclair station would pull a violent movie that doesn't really glorify war, don't we?

They were the ones who refused to show the tribute to the fallen soldiers on Nightline a few months back. In GOP circles, that's called 'supporting the troops'. In my circle, I call it a cover-up.

I have always been against this war, and that opposition is what initially brought me to DU. I respect and admire the soldiers for doing a shit job were admiration from others is mere pom-poms and lip service. They're doing a job that very few others are willing to do, including our President and Vice President, not to mention a bunch of keyboard commandos that post on RW boards and blogs that would piss their pants if they set foot in Iraq. And they call us 'traitors'. I call them assholes.

Sinclair thinks dead brown people are okay, but forget about the sheer, gruseome number of them ... let alone tell people the truth about Americans who are dead, either in the current invasion or past ones.

I feel like many of them got 'back door drafted' for this one -- lots of tech people whose jobs went to Jakarta, already had a wife and kids to feed -- and they have my sympathies. My first hubby served under Reagan under the same circumstances -- couldn't get a job, couldn't afford college without a job, the U.S. was in a recession, unemployment was up, at that point it was decent-paying industrial jobs that were leaking to China and Taiwan. He got lucky and didn't have to go fight some rich man's war, but he'd have had to if something had come up.

Many of the people who call us traitors for saying Iraq was unnecessary and illegal never served, themselves. I didn't, either, but I know plenty of people who have, and I did consider it back then. I can't bring myself to hammer the guys who are over there now -- many of them didn't ask for this, and some of them are only there because they had families to care for and their jobs disappeared. Even the ones who aren't might not have chosen to go. I can't see the military as a formless mob -- I know every one of them is in the service and/or in Iraq for a different reason. I think people like us probably see them more as humans than those who call us traitors, too.

A lot of stations cancelled it fearing they would have to pay hefty fines from the FCC because it contains harsh language and violence.

Nice we still live in a free country isn't it? Soon all that will be on is Little House on the Prarie or the Waltons, twenty four hours a day.

Lots of ABC affiliates are passing on the uncut SPR.

If your station is owned by Scripps, Hearst, Sinclair or Cox, they're not showing it. The Hearst station in my market is showing "Far and Away" instead.

I think this indecency thing is going a bit far.

in Orlando. I just called them and gave them hell. The message box is filled as well, so others must have also. The woman who answered the phone said that they were one of the 30 affiliates who decided not to show the film. If you don't want your children to watch it, don't let them. I did not mean you, Put Out. I mean all the rw whackos who are now deciding what I can watch. shit, shit, shit

It is my decision what my child sees. I was trepiditous about seeing such a violent event on film with my boy, especially because it was said to be very accurate about the events at the actual time.

My affiliate was happy to show "Far and Away".

I am not happy about their decision. I will let them know about this RIGHT NOW.

Cowards.

Thanks right-wingers!

We got Broadcast News. The local ABC affiliate doesn't even have a website so I can't email them an angry letter.

Because there's swearing in it, the stations don't want to open themselves up to sanctions from the FCC. Powell would not grant them an exception, so they're not risking it. Spielberg won't let them edit or bleep the swears, either.

I don't think there would be any FCC objection to horrific violence... typical.

One way of looking at it is that these stations are showing that censorship often limits choices of worthwhile material and even an "all-American" movie like SPR will suffer.

You also know that the network affiliates won't be allowed to show Shindler's List uncut either, because of all those lascivious nekkid Jews in the shower (well, and the sex scenes)

It shows how the RW are too dumb to work a remote or the V chip.

the offer came too late for many of the more cowardly affiliates to decide to show the film, or if there might be some fear of the religious right as well as the FCC.

Interesting choice... pretty strong anti-war movie for Veteran's Day.

...surrounding the FCC and what it will do. The movie is not cut and they apparently were worried about the graphic violence and language. God forbid anyone get a realistic look (though staged) of war. Might hurt their enlistment pool!

is showing -- get this -- Lethal Weapon III instead. It made the front page of the local paper.

clspector

GREAT documentary film of WWII.

Not that there's much left on that channel that I care to watch.

here in South Texas. Can't let the 71% Republican base actually see how ugly war can get. (Yeah, that's right: we couldn't even scrape up 30% for Kerry in this hellhole.)

BTW, what tripe are they showing in its place?

Just checked. Both ABC affiliates here are showing it.

with this messed up married couple where the husband can't decide between his wife and pregnant lover. It started as soon as Father of the Bride went off.

I'm in Charlottesville, and so I receive both the Cville ABC affiliate (which showed Private Ryan) and the Richmond ABC affiliate (which showed Home Alone and Phenomenon). I don't think the Richmond station's owned by Sinclair, so they're just your run-of-the-mill idiots.

And the woman had a grin on her voice. She told me I had not at all been the first to complain. I was ranting, she was chuckling in a good way. She still had a grin on her voice when she told me that the network had concerns because of Janet Jackson and her problem with the lingerie stuff, and that she would certainly pass my concerns on to Colin Powell's little boy. ABC, it turns out, is very fearful of drawing a fine for, what was it, now?

Oh, yes, bad language. Or was it bare breasts?

Words cannot express my disappointment at your decision not to air "Saving Private Ryan" tonight. On Veteran's Day, you have dealt a disrespectful slap in the face to ALL veterans and their families, in a community that has so many.

My grandfather landed with the 58th Armored Field Artillery Battalion at Omaha Beach on D-Day, the very battle depicted in the opening minutes of this film. This tremendous movie has had a special place in my heart because of this. It is an honest portrayal
of that battle and, I feel, the most honest fictional portrayal of the sobering realities and horrors of war ever filmed. More than any other movie, "Saving Private Ryan" depicts the enormity of the sacrifice that our soldiers have always faced and still face today.

And that leads me to what disappoints me the most about your decision: that it has the noisome stench of politics about it. It is impossible to believe the disingenuous excuses that this movie may be "too offensive" and risk FCC fines; this film was shown in its entirety on ABC for two years without complaint. No, it is quite clear that this decision was made because this movie does not present a bloodless, it's-okay-as-long-as-it's-happening-somewhere-else presentation of war. It's real, it's ugly, and it's killing more American soldiers and Iraqi civilians every day.

For bowing down to political pressure (And why couldn't you have chosen to show another movie honoring veterans, in lieu of the Kidman-Cruise oater "Far and Away"?) the staff at your station should hang their heads in shame. I used to turn to Channel 7 first for my news, and I visited your web site often. No more. I feel I can best get my news and entertainment from other stations that serve the public interest better.

although they aired the same movie twice in the past, the FCC has changed the rules since the Janet Jackson incident. They were afraid of loosing their license. They contacted the FCC and were told the FCC doesn't play reviewer. They only review complaints when they are made and judge accordingly.

It seems they are running scared because of the tulings on Jackson and Bonner?? (Whoever the guy was that used some foul word when accepting his award.) They said they will play things very catious until they get some difinitive answers from the FCC.