They’re playing it again tonight in … 4 hours and 45 minutes so you can see the sponsers again.
I used to think this. Then I saw the movie. Much funnier than the series.
I seemed to recall there being alot fewer commercials than normal, maybe it was just my imagination.
They seemed to play the commercials every half-hour (versus 10 or 15 minutes intervals of a regular broadcast), and there seemed to be about double the “normal” amount of commercials during a break. I also recall a lot of commercials for Comedy Central itself, which leads me to believe that they couldn’t find too many sponsors to get involved. One sponsor I do recall, however, is X-box.
I can go back and look. I had TiVo record it.
This is the first time I’ve seen the movie, and frankly, I fail to see why the US would be pissed off at all the Baldwins being killed?
Let me explain “safe harbor” to everyone. From 10 pm to 6 am, broadcasters are completely exempt from the FCC rules against broadcasting indecency. Comedy Central faced absolutely no risk from the FCC by showing this movie uncensored late at night. The only risk was that advertisers might pull their dollars or people would stop watching Comedy Central.
They even could have put it on at 8, and it would not have to be censored, because the FCC is passive, not active; they do not prior-restrain any broadcasters. But if they did put it on at 8 and a lot of people complained, then they’d get hit with a pretty big fine. The radio station playing George Carlin’s routine didn’t get in trouble until a father and son heard the program and filed a complaint.
Same deal with NYPD Blue. After 10 pm, it’s not the FCC that ABC fears, it’s advertisers and audiences. They very well could make NYPD Blue into the Sopranos, but if advertisers got cold feet and backed out (or if they got flooded with letters from angry people), I don’t think they’d be too keen to air the show for free.
the FCC doesn’t control cable tv, though, so it doesn’t matter. (Unless I’m mistaken.)
Never meant to imply that the FCC his imposed strict guidelines concerning speech, that gets into to morass of “community standards” and other vagueries. Standards and Practices at ABC are the people to whom NYPD Blue creators must answer.
My point was that the FCC has specific jurisdiction over the broadcast stations as they are part of the “public airways.” By controlling licenses and acquisitions, they can effectively screw a company without ever facing them in court. Cable channels don’t face the same danger.
My OP was merely admiration for Comedy Central. That they felt okay about airing a movie (three nights in a row) like “South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut.” Said film having been “R” rated by the MPAA for being just so darn offensive to them, you know?
As Palikia once said, after viewing it in a theatre, “That’s the dirtiest movie I’ve ever seen.”
I believe the fact that the TV rating system is now fairly established in the US has a lot to do with it’s being okay to broadcast that flick…
…and it’s just so much fun to see L’il Saddam waving dongs at Satan on basic cable. 