Ezra Levant shows Muhammad cartoons (SunTV programming discussion)

[hugh]

The purpose of this thread is to discuss the programming on SunTV. Please note its not to discuss the CRTC or where the station is located on the dial etc. That can be discussed here


It's clear from the first day that the programming will be extremely sensationalist hence the Ezra Levant brings back Muhammad cartoons during Sun TV launch.

[Dioneo]

They definitely need to make a big splash.

After all the crap Levant went through with the Alberta Human Rights Commission, I don't blame him for wanting to bait the bull again. At least he has Quebecor's coffers to draw from this time.

[stampeder]

Is it safe to critique Ezra Levant's performance on SunTV News? I don't want to get sued by him.

[Dioneo]

I hadn't read his kooky history. I agreed with his stance on having the freedom to publish those cartoons. It doesn't look like there are many other opinions of his I would find myself agreeing with.

[hugh]

I was going to tune into Sun News but after reading this, I am unlikely to. This kind of stunt reminds of the little Church in the south that burned the Koran and the result was ten people dead at U.N. headquarters in Afghanistan.

While I agree in Free Speech, I don't believe tv stations should gratuitously inflame sensitivities to boost ratings. The old you can't yell fire in a crowded theatre argument.

I want a news network reporting the news, not making it.

[Neild]

Originally Posted by hugh

I was going to tune into Sun News but after reading this, I am unlikely to. This kind of stunt reminds of the little Church in the south that burned the Koran and the result was ten people dead at U.N. headquarters in Afghanistan.

While I agree in Free Speech, I don't believe tv stations should gratuitously inflame sensitivities to boost ratings. The old you can't yell fire in a crowded theatre argument.

I want a news network reporting the news, not making it.

Not totally disagreeing with your rationale for boycotting the show.

But I would encourage you to think about the implications.

Should media be intimidated from reporting things because some thug, criminal or terrorist threatens to harm innocent people if they do?

What's next, a mobster saying "Don't talk about me or I'll start killing innocent people." And the media is supposed to say "OK, you're the boss! What would you like us to print then?"

The southern preacher was ignorant and wreckless to damage the holy book, but ultimately it was other terrorists who committed those murders.

You say you want the news reporting the news, but your actions will just support filtered, frightened, compliant news sources.

[trckr]

Originally Posted by Neild

Should media be intimidated from reporting things because some thug, criminal or terrorist threatens to harm innocent people if they do?

They should not be intimidated from reporting news. They should however, be held accountable when they attempt to create news by sensationalizing a non news story in order to get ratings. In effect creating news in order to manipulate viewers (political, religious, ect) opinions on a bigger picture.

At the end of the day, some kook decided he would use freedom of speech as tool in order to incite a negative reaction. It is sicking that any media outlet would jump all over this and give this nut his 15 mins.

We have the freedom to publish Muhammad cartoons if we so wish, but knowing that it may offend a group of people, and having absolutely no possible reason to publish said cartoons other then to offend said group, Why would we?

[Mole]

Don't like Levant but the fact the Hugh as a publisher is now cowed by fear of extremist reaction to satire is truly frightening to me.

[hugh]

Don't like Levant but the fact the Hugh as a publisher is now cowed by fear of extremist reaction to satire is truly frightening to me.

What the hell are you talking about?

[hugh]

You say you want the news reporting the news, but your actions will just support filtered, frightened, compliant news sources

Please! You're comparing responsible investigative news organizations with purveyors of infotainment.

60 Minutes is an institution that has been reporting news in a tough manner for 50 or 60 years but (for the most part) does so responsibly and equitably.

[grog]

Originally Posted by Neild

You say you want the news reporting the news, but your actions will just support filtered, frightened, compliant news sources.

But what "news" is being reported here? This is a 5-year-old story yet Levant did this in their first hour on the air. It was nothing more than a blatant ratings stunt, pure and simple.

And how exactly do the "terrorists win" if Hugh and others decide that they don't want to support a sensationalist organization by choosing not to tune in? Isn't the most typical (and appropriate) rebuttal to censorship to simply say if you don't like it, don't watch it/listen to it/read it? Hugh never said he thought Levant should be taken off the air or that he didn't have a right to do what he did. Sure, Levant has the right to be a jackass, just as we have the right to decide whether or not to listen to said jackass.

[nfitz]

I've only seen a couple minutes here and there. In one segment they were ruthlessly attacking Harper government spending and waste. And in one I saw of Levant he seemed to making quite reasonable and intelligent comments about over-regulation.

Are those critiquing the channel and Ezra being balanced? Or just highlighting some parts (not sure I really want to watch it long enough to find out!).

[Dioneo]

A different discussion topic regarding Sun TV. The "dress code" for female anchors seems to be a lot more casual than the male anchors. Certainly borrowed from Fox News' winning formula (not meant to be sarcastic - it works for Fox News):

http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/...he-wrong-ways/

For its women presenters, there seems to be a ban on sleeves. Not a jacket in sight. Only cocktail dresses, as clingy and low-cut as possible. With one exception: the first day, anchor Krista Erickson posed as a Sunshine girl in a variety of sports jerseys, ripped tshirts, and leggings. The second day featured Ms. Erickson and the other “Sunshine girls”, as she called them, doing five minutes of yoga in, well, clingy low-cut yoga clothes. This was allegedly a news segment, though yoga is about as “new” as the discovery of fire. Needless to say, Ezra and Charles Adler were nowhere to be found on the yoga mat.

...

After 5 pm, the women go home, and the men come out. All wearing suits, needless to say. And interviewing overwhelmingly…. other men in suits. The first night, in three hours of television, I counted all of three women guests, one of whom was Samantha Ardente, the school-secretary-turned-porn-star from Quebec. The second night did feature a female Sun correspondent with covered arms – sporting a very tight sweater. Hmm.

[hugh]

More infotainment than news.