# CBS..NBC..Church of Christ commercial **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 1, 2004, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432 "2004-12-01T02:09:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/1 "2004-12-01T02:09:55Z")
CBS and NBC are refusing to carry a commercial from the Church of Christ because they invite all peoples. Any gender, sex or sexual orientation. It’s to “contriversial.” What the hell are we coming to?? > [@](#): > > CLEVELAND – The CBS and NBC television networks are refusing to run a > 30-second television ad from the United Church of Christ because its > all-inclusive welcome has been deemed “too controversial.” > > The ad, part of the denomination’s new, broad identity campaign set to > begin airing nationwide on Dec. 1, states that – like Jesus – the United > Church of Christ (UCC) seeks to welcome all people, regardless of ability, > age, race, economic circumstance or sexual orientation. > > According to a written explanation from CBS, the United Church of Christ is > being denied network access because its ad implies acceptance of gay and > lesbian couples – among other minority constituencies – and is, > therefore, too “controversial.” [http://www.wfn.org/2004/11/msg00231.html](http://www.wfn.org/2004/11/msg00231.html) I give up. Our country, our freedoms have been hijacked. Words fail me. ---
**Author:** ![Oat1957](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Oat1957](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oat1957)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/2 "2004-12-01T02:15:32Z")
Doesn’t NBC air Will and Grace? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![villa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc79bd/32.png) [@villa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/villa)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/3 "2004-12-01T02:18:40Z")
But that’s about funny homosexuals in New York. Not real life disturbing ones that can threaten Middle America. ---
**Author:** ![Joe\_Random](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Joe\_Random](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joe_Random)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/4 "2004-12-01T02:19:31Z")
> [@Reeder](#): > > I give up. Our country, our freedoms have been hijacked. While I **certainly** don’t agree with CBS and NBC on their decision, I fail to see how this can be cited as an example of our freedoms being “hijacked”. ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/5 "2004-12-01T02:21:19Z")
> [@Joe Random](#): > > While I **certainly** don’t agree with CBS and NBC on their decision, I fail to see how this can be cited as an example of our freedoms being “hijacked”. I take it you are not gay. Right? ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/6 "2004-12-01T02:21:36Z")
I’d replace hijacked with eroded. ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/7 "2004-12-01T02:24:04Z")
> [@World Eater](#): > > I’d replace hijacked with eroded. Better word. Were I half as erudite as you. ---
**Author:** ![Joe\_Random](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Joe\_Random](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joe_Random)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/8 "2004-12-01T02:34:03Z")
> [@Reeder](#): > > I take it you are not gay. Very true. I am not gay. I don’t see how that has any bearing in this particular instance, though. The networks are business, and have a right to refuse to air anything that they (don’t) want. The right to free speech (which is the ‘freedom’ it appeared to me that you were referring to [correct me if I’m mistaken]) is not the right to an audience. Do I agree with the networks’ decisions? Not at all. I am constantly appalled at how society treats gays. I, for one, voted _against_ a ban on gay marriages in my state (a whole lot of good it did me :mad: ), and I honestly can’t understand how anyone could see a homosexual relationship as being any less legitimate than a heterosexual one. However, whether or not to air a particular ad is **their** decision to make, not mine. So, as morally outraged as it makes me to see the networks doing this, I still have to conclude that no one’s freedoms have been hijacked. ---
**Author:** ![villa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc79bd/32.png) [@villa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/villa)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/9 "2004-12-01T02:39:39Z")
> [@Joe Random](#): > > The networks are business, and have a right to refuse to air anything that they (don’t) want. I’m not sure that is strictly true, nor IMHO should it be. The networks are allowed to use a limited public resource and so are subject to public regulation in a different way to cable channels. It’s the basis of _Red Lion_ which permits control over what can be shown on broadcast TV. If it can prevent something being shown, the same logic would allow it to require something to be shown, like a certain amount of public interest or educational programming. ---
**Author:** ![Joe\_Random](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Joe\_Random](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joe_Random)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/10 "2004-12-01T02:54:50Z")
> [@villa](#): > > The networks are allowed to use a limited public resource and so are subject to public regulation in a different way to cable channels. It’s the basis of _Red Lion_ which permits control over what can be shown on broadcast TV. If it can prevent something being shown, the same logic would allow it to require something to be shown, like a certain amount of public interest or educational programming. Hmmm, you have a point. In that case, I think the proper reaction would be for the government to cut funding from networks that are discriminatory in how they decide which ads to show. ---
**Author:** ![villa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc79bd/32.png) [@villa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/villa)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/11 "2004-12-01T03:01:07Z")
The government does not fund the networks, except to grant them access to the public resource of broadcast wavelengths. I am not sure what can be done here. I don’t feel that government control over broadcasters is a particularly positive route to go down. I was just pointing out there is the ability to so do. Maybe a better method would be to mobilize liberal consumer spending power. It worked with South Africa (at least to an extent). It’s a shame those who care can’t effectively show companies that discriminate against homosexuals that it is most definitely not in their financial interest to carry on doing so. ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/12 "2004-12-01T03:01:52Z")
Let me see… Ask a government that is biased against gays to come down on a network that won’t show a pro gay commercial. Yep. That’ll work. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Xan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/ac8455/32.png) [@Xan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xan)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/13 "2004-12-01T03:05:47Z")
CBS and NBC don’t have to air anything they don’t want to. Let me just say that I do find it disturbing that a church saying it will accept all people is considered to be “controversial.” I thought part of Jesus’s message was for everyone to love one another? ---
**Author:** ![villa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc79bd/32.png) [@villa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/villa)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/14 "2004-12-01T03:06:03Z")
**Reeder** Do you **really** want the government ‘coming down’ against networks who present the wrong message? Because to be honest, I have my doubts that it would be my causes of which they would come down in favor. Censorship is a wonderful thing when one is the censor. It is just pretty sucky when it is someone else with the finger on the bleeper. ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/15 "2004-12-01T03:10:28Z")
> [@villa](#): > > **Reeder** > > Do you **really** want the government ‘coming down’ against networks who present the wrong message? Because to be honest, I have my doubts that it would be my causes of which they would come down in favor. Censorship is a wonderful thing when one is the censor. It is just pretty sucky when it is someone else with the finger on the bleeper. I don’t want them coming down at all. It’s not their place. ---
**Author:** ![villa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc79bd/32.png) [@villa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/villa)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/16 "2004-12-01T03:12:08Z")
My bad - I misunderstood what you wrote. I thought you were calling for the censorship, then saying it was unlikely with this government. I see that you were instead just saying it would be unlikely with this government. Which I agree with. ---
**Author:** ![Reeder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/17 "2004-12-01T03:14:37Z")
I was responding to **joe random** ’s post. #10 ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/18 "2004-12-01T03:18:00Z")
> [@Reeder](#): > > I take it you are not gay. > > Right? I am, and I agree with **Joe**. CBS and NBC are free to air whatever they want on the networks they own and operate. And I’m free not to watch them. Which I don’t, because network TV is pure shit. See? Freedom for everybody. However, I will add, on a personal note, fuck those fucking fuckers. Fuck them right in the ass with a big black dildo. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/19 "2004-12-01T03:22:52Z")
The legal question isn’t really the point. Just because it’s legal doesn’t mean it’s not a dick move or that they’re not fucking asshole cowards running scared of pissing off bigots and sponsors. Who gives a shit if they have the legal right? What’s that got to do with anything. Can nothing legal be pitted? ---
**Author:** ![treis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@treis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/treis)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432/20 "2004-12-01T03:25:29Z")
Don’t blame the networks for this after all their sole purpose is to make a profit. Blame the bigotted public that would boycott and protest the networks. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cbs-nbc-church-of-christ-commercial/277432.md?page=2)