# OJ's book, TV show cancelled **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 20, 2006, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213 "2006-11-20T22:49:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2006, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/1 "2006-11-20T22:49:32Z")
From [CNN](http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/TV/11/20/oj.cancel.ap/index.html) > [@](#): > > After a firestorm of criticism, News. Corp. said Monday that it has canceled the O.J. Simpson book and television special “If I Did It.” > > “I and senior management agree with the American public that this was an ill-considered project,” said Rupert Murdoch, News Corp. chairman. “We are sorry for any pain that his has caused the families of Ron Goldman and Nicole Brown Simpson.” It’s good to know that someone in the media has a little bit of common sense, even if it’s shown belatedly. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2006, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/2 "2006-11-20T23:02:03Z")
Good to hear. Although I would say ‘Ill-considered project’ is right up there in contention for understatement of the year. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2006, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/3 "2006-11-20T23:26:43Z")
Yeah, but a couple of years from now Fox will be running a special on “_If_ we had run that special, here’s how we would have done it”. ---
**Author:** ![Scuba\_Ben](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Scuba\_Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scuba_Ben)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/4 "2006-11-21T01:59:30Z")
[Nelson] HA-ha! [/Nelson] ---
**Author:** ![Rysdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7cd45c/32.png) [@Rysdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysdad)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/5 "2006-11-21T01:59:38Z")
Didn’t he already get paid for it? ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/6 "2006-11-21T03:13:01Z")
[QUOTE=FatBaldGuy] From [CNN](http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/TV/11/20/oj.cancel.ap/index.html) It’s good to know that someone in the media has a little bit of common sense, even if it’s shown belatedly. [/QUOTE] Please. It’s pure economics. Murdoch saw the public furor and was receiving hate mail from both the right and the left and saw his profits taking a big hit, so pulled the plug. Believe me, conscience had absolutely nothing to do with it. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/7 "2006-11-21T04:30:18Z")
[QUOTE=Chefguy] Please. It’s pure economics. Murdoch saw the public furor and was receiving hate mail from both the right and the left and saw his profits taking a big hit, so pulled the plug. Believe me, conscience had absolutely nothing to do with it. [/QUOTE] Huh? I know “conscience” sounds a bit like “common sense” if you have a mouth full of marbles, but… ---
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/8 "2006-11-21T04:47:30Z")
[QUOTE=Rysdad] Didn’t he already get paid for it? [/QUOTE] According to Fox’s Greta Van Susteren tonight, OJ got an advance of maybe $1.5 million, which Fox (or whoever) paid the money directly to an account for his kids. It never went to OJ. This was a move to prevent the Goldman family from getting their hands on it. Also on this same program, one of OJ’s criminal defense lawyers objected to this matter of stopping the book, as a violation of free speech. Now. I probably hate OJ as much as any of you, but I think that lawyer’s right. The story might be revolting as hell, but it’s OJ’s constitutional right to publish it. Murdoch canceled the TV interviews probably for a number of reasons, one of which might have been the outrage of the network’s viewers, to say nothing of the sponsors’ fears of boycotts by these same people. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/9 "2006-11-21T06:04:40Z")
OJ’s right of free speech doesn’t compell anyone else to publish his book, nor to interview him. Television companies and book publishers have free speech rights as well, and they can say “pass”. That’s not an infringement on OJ’s rights of free speech, just the television and book industries exercising their rights. ---
**Author:** ![Ruby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Ruby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/10 "2006-11-21T06:07:49Z")
He has the right to publish anything he wants…he can either pay for it himself like many authors do, or find a publishing company to do it for him. It’s likely that the latter will be damned hard to find (thankfully). His right to free speech has not been violated, but the network has exercised their right to not publish his ramblings either in person or in written form. Good on them. ---
**Author:** ![Ruby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Ruby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/11 "2006-11-21T06:08:54Z")
3 minutes late. Must. learn. to. type. faster. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/12 "2006-11-21T06:36:33Z")
It’s all in the wrists. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/13 "2006-11-21T06:43:37Z")
His children are both adults now. I would love to know what they think of their father and this blood money from the murder of their mother. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/14 "2006-11-21T06:57:34Z")
[QUOTE=Northern Piper] OJ’s right of free speech doesn’t compell anyone else to publish his book, nor to interview him. [/QUOTE] I talked to a lawyer last week who said almost the same thing (about a story I was writing, not about OJ). It took all my willpower not to bust out laughing. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/15 "2006-11-21T06:58:42Z")
Oh, I forgot the second part of my post: I’m hoping this is the first part of a new Fox special series. They could call it “When Bad Things Happen to Bad People.” ---
**Author:** ![danceswithcats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9e8a1a/32.png) [@danceswithcats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/danceswithcats)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/16 "2006-11-21T08:37:37Z")
The only thing better than this would be to see his lying ass in jail, awaiting lethal injection. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/17 "2006-11-21T13:41:11Z")
It’s nice to know that at least one person at FOX is walking around without their head stuck up their ass. If OJ thought he could curry public favor by doing this, well, talk about heads up asses. I hope Nicole’s children make sure he doesn’t see a dime of the money. They should keep it all. ---
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/18 "2006-11-21T13:43:25Z")
[QUOTE=Northern Piper] OJ’s right of free speech doesn’t compell anyone else to publish his book, nor to interview him. Television companies and book publishers have free speech rights as well, and they can say “pass”. That’s not an infringement on OJ’s rights of free speech, just the television and book industries exercising their rights. [/QUOTE] Good. Thank you for the lesson. On CNN a commentator was aghast at the thought of all this. She said something like how it was beyond her that OJ could possibly speculate on how he’d have killed the mother of his children. And by the way, if you care to check out transcripts of Simpson’s civil trial - which he lost - you can find some here: > **[CA v. OJ Simpson (1995) - Court TV](http://www.courttv.com/trial-archives/ca-v-simpson-1995/)** > > Your chance to relive or discover why California v. Orenthal James Simpson is the one case that captured America's attention more than any other. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/19 "2006-11-21T14:29:24Z")
Wait a sec. . . I’m confused. I thought the book had already been released. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2006, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213/20 "2006-11-21T14:41:42Z")
I cannot believe that any lawyer would say OJ’s rights have been violated. Labor laws state there is no way you can make anyone do anything, even with a contract. OJ could sue for breech of contract, but only if there was no clause stating that the company could cancel the publication. The same thing happened to Baby M’s surrogate mother Mary Beth Whitehead. She had a publishing company ready to print her book about how she was a moral, upright woman who had been harshly treated by everyone in the case, and then it was learned she was pregnant by her adultuous relationship. The publishing company cancelled the contract. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ojs-book-tv-show-cancelled/381213.md?page=2)