Fox News Threatened to Sue The Simpsons

[xultar]

http://www.indybay.org/news/2003/10/1655473.php
Over a Parody Segment

During an interview broadcast today on NPR's Fresh Air, Simpsons creator Matt Groening revealed that the Fox News Network had threatened to sue The Simpsons over a parody of the right-leaning news channel. The highly sensitive news organization, which is headed by Roger Ailes, made headlines this summer with an ill-starred lawsuit against humorist Al Franken's book, Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them. The Fox suit was thrown out in court and only succeeded in making Franken's book a bestseller. According to Groening, the Simpsons team refused to cut out the segment, which Groening told Fresh Air he "really liked," figuring that Rupert Murdoch wouldn't allow the Fox News cable network to sue the Fox Broadcast Network, which carries The Simpsons. The Fox News Network did back down on its threat, although it has told The Simpsons creators that in the future, cartoon series will not be allowed to include a "news crawl" along the bottom of the screen, which might "confuse the viewers."


Nuf Said

[Room101]

1. I saw this posted a couple days ago.

Here is the link to the interview. I'm speechless about this.
http://freshair.npr.org/day_fa.jhtml?display=day&todayDate=10/23/2003

[SideshowScott]

2. What bugs me about it is.....

That FOX MAY have issued a no parody of Fox news on the Simpsons..I thought the Simpsons was the only fox show that does not have to do what the suits say..Just like ANY Republican Fox news is just another bully thats so thin skinned you can see its shallow bones..I Hope Goring shows whos RELLY boss and makes fun of Fox news in every ep.

[proud patriot]

3. "the highly sensitive news organization"

ROFLMAO ....hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
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[stanwyck]

4. OK. the only people apt to get "confused"

by a news crawl on a CARTOON show are Fox News viewers. Nobody else could be that stupid.

[peekaloo]

7. lol.......admitting their "News" network is cartoonish!

Looking forward to the new season!

[Don_G]

5. Faux VS Faux?

I love it!!!!

[BlackVelvetElvis]

6. They've poked fun at Fox before

and I loved it.
This should only give the writers ammunition.

[CO Liberal]

8. List of Things That Confuse the Average Faux News Viewer

Zip-lock bags
Child-proof caps
Toilet seats
Speed limit signs
Reality
The truth
Facts
Etc, etc, etc.......