From 'ER' to Pro Bowl, halftime fallout continues
It's true; the squeaky wheel really DOES get the grease....
The fallout from Sunday's Super Bowl half-time took unexpected turns Wednesday.
NBC executives decided late in the day not to air a brief scene on tonight's episode of ER showing an elderly woman's bare breast....
NBC executives decided to cut the ER scene after objections by a number of affiliate stations. Although NBC spokeswoman Rebecca Marks said the scene showing the bare-breasted woman is brief and shot from a distance, it was cut anyway, over the objections of ER executive producer John Wells.
"In consultation with our affiliate board we have asked ER to remove a shot of an exposed breast of an 80-year-old woman receiving emergency care," NBC said in a statement. "Though we continue to believe the shot is appropriate and in context, and would have aired after 10:30 p.m. (Eastern and Pacific time), we have unfortunately concluded that the atmosphere created by this week's events has made it too difficult for many of our affiliates to air this shot."
Wells weighed in as well.
"While the unexpected exposure of Ms. Jackson's breast during the Super Bowl half-time show was inappropriate and deplorable on a broadcast intended for viewers of all ages, ER's incidental exposure of an elderly woman's breast in the context of a medical trauma is not comparable," he said. "Adult viewing audiences at 10:00 p.m. (9 p.m. Central time) who have been warned appropriately of a show's adult content are more than capable of making the distinction."
Last week, a repeat episode of ER also contained a momentary scene of a bare-breasted woman. That apparently did not appall station chiefs or the network.
Bare-breasted women?? Oh, Heavens to Betsy; WHAT about the children?? How will they EVER recover from the shock and trauma??
And how is this week's "ER" different from last week's? The short answer, of course, is that it isn't, but now that the hypocrites are out in full force, EVERYTHING is different. "ER" is not a show that uses gratuitous displays of nudity in order to attract viewers. Nonetheless, NBC is caving in, because, OHMIGOD, what if they lose advertisers over this???
Wouldn't it be something to see this kind of outrage running rampant when it comes to violence on television? Why is it so objectionable to see a woman's naked breast, and yet so acceptable to see that same woman blown away by a handgun? Oh, the hypocrisy and misplaced righteous indignation....
