W.H. Puts the Squeeze On Network Execs Over Pressers
By Don | August 3, 2009
White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has got the networks just where he wants them when it comes to carrying the president's press conferences in prime time.
From the Washington Post
In the days before President Obama's last news conference, as the networks weighed whether to give up a chunk of their precious prime time, Rahm Emanuel went straight to the top.
Rather than calling ABC, the White House chief of staff phoned Bob Iger, chief executive of parent company Disney. Instead of contacting NBC, Emanuel went to Jeffrey Immelt, the chief executive of General Electric. He also spoke with Les Moonves, the chief executive of CBS, the company spun off from Viacom.
Whether this amounted to undue pressure or plain old Chicago arm-twisting, Emanuel got results: the fourth hour of lucrative network time for his boss in six months. But network executives have been privately complaining to White House officials that they cannot afford to keep airing these sessions in the current economic downturn.
The networks "absolutely" feel pressured, says Paul Friedman, CBS's senior vice president: "It's an enormous financial cost when the president replaces one of those prime-time hours. The news divisions also have mixed feelings about whether they are being used."
The insatiiable desire by the networks to curry favor with the Obama White House and to have access to the president has colored their judgment as to whether the press conferences or newsworthy enought to sacrifice precious ad revenue at a time when they are all under severe economic stress.
Post #2229
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Were in the midst of the “Great Recession” - a period of economic failure which is the worst since the Great Depression - and if a president can reach the masses on a regular basis in an attempt to boost awareness, spirits, morale and national unity - more power to him or her - and the traditional and cable-TV networks ought to damned-well provide the necessary time in primtetime - or whenever else requested.
Any effective leader needs to have access to the masses.
TK, if an effective leader needs to have to access to the masses whenever he needs it, let him pay for it. TV networks are in business to make a profit. If the networks find that airing the president is less profitable than some new show, then the White House should foot the bill for an hour of programming.
Re: Post 3;
The original concept was that “the public owns the airwaves” and that radio and, later, TV, stations had to apply for, be approved for and pay for a license to use those airwaves (on which the stations were being licensed to “make profits”) - and, from time-to-time, the licensing also required the stations to make those airwaves freely available for timely, appropriate and important purposes “in the public service”.
I still believe in the oroginal concept - and I believe any president wanting to use those airwaves to communicate to the American people is a proper and important use of the public airwaves “in the public service”.
So why not show them on PBS? Perfect venue, they both are constantly asking for more money from us. And public airwaves if there ever were any. And on cable, we have this thing called CSPAN… more than one actually.
Face it. People propped Obama up as a messiah-celebrity before the election, and now he believes it himself.
TK, post 4: . . . “in the public service”.
The only service Mr. Obama is performing is his snake-oil, drink the Kool-Aid, do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do schtick.
Blah, blah, blah ~ in all my years I’ve never heard a president talk so much and say so little. If his lips are moving, he’s lying.
Re: Post 5;
Hey, I’d go along with that - but PBS is a “non-commercial”, “not-for-profit” venue - and the government WOULD likely have to compensate PBS since it exists solely on donations. (C-SPAN is another alternative.)
The other side of the coin: There are undoubtedly plenty of people who don’t have a clue what “PBS” or “C-SPAN” are and couldn’t figure it all out on a bet. And the largest audience is obviously available on the four major TV networks.
Re: Post 6;
The “public service” concept of the Federal Communications Commission and the laws governing the broadcast media refers to the “public service” being performed by the commercial radio and TV stations when THEY carry public service announcements, e.g., amber alerts, dangerous weather announcements, etc.
Such a “public service” would naturally include carrying a presidential address or press conference for the benefit of the general public.
August 3 at 1:53 pm | #1 | Link
Strong-armed Chicago-style thuggery. Is any one surprised? Get used to it.
The swooning and swaying over Obama is despicable and is just the beginning of government take-over of the MSM.