Category: Media Watch

For a lot of folks, the appropriate reaction to the off-again, on-again release of “The Interview” was unadulterated outrage.

How dare anybody tell us–through Sony Pictures or any other conduit–what movies we can or cannot release and view? Don’t like it? Don’t watch it. How dare cyber hackers and terrorists threaten and extort America?

Other folks, including the president of the United States, also wondered how Sony could initially cave? We don’t play anybody’s intimidation game.

And then there are those who say that even parody–whether it is a silly send-up or an offensive affront–should have at least minimal guidelines. Perhaps stopping short of the assassination of a living leader, however off-the-charts weird, would be one.

Still others said if North Korea didn’t like Sony’s quirky depiction of the assassination of “Supreme Leader” Kim Jong-un, then maybe it should take a good, hard introspective look at what was so inviting to parody meisters. Could it be its Dennis Rodman-befriending, fat-kid-with-the-bowl-haircut leader who executed his own uncle? Could it be a country that prioritizes nukes over victuals?

Hell, poor-taste parody is getting off easy when you are the world’s pre-eminent odd-ball outlier and sovereign existential threat.

Then there are those, possibly conspiracy theorists, who said that North Korea was not only behind the threats but was using “The Interview” as a distraction to keep the United Nations from its efforts to refer the “Hermit Kingdom’s” leadership to the International Criminal Court.

And overlapping all categories are those who fundamentally see this as a classic First Amendment/censorship issue. Pyongyang politics notwithstanding, this is still a bottom-line, freedom-of-speech issue–whether we are talking Seth Rogen’s “The Interview” or Charlie Chaplin’s “The Great Dictator.” The bad haircut or the bad mustache. Lots of material.

A few even thought Sony had morphed into a marketing savant. Another Seth Rogenian piece of cultural flotsam? Well, give it some extortion/First Amendment mystique. Stand up for America and reimburse Sony. Reportedly, “The Interview” made $15 million online–where many think the future of the film industry ultimately lies–and a more modest $3 million in independent theaters the first four days available.

But then there’s the more prosaic take of those who are actually opening their movie house doors to show “The Interview.” It’s not exactly business as usual, but it’s business. One such venue is historic Tampa Theatre, which showed it four times over the holidays–all at 10:45 p.m., an atypical, but not unprecedented, time slot (think: “Jaws” last spring).

The first two showings totaled about 700 patrons, according to Tampa Theatre’s Director of Marketing and Community Relations Jill Witecki. That’s a lot better than average. Plus the concession sales, a critical variable at Tampa Theatre, got a welcome boost.

“Our new popcorn machine got a good workout,” said Witecki.

“We don’t usually get big, wide releases,” she noted. “We got a rare opportunity to screen one and we knew it was one our fans wanted to see.”

As soon as Sony had pulled distribution of “The Interview,” Tampa Theatre started getting requests from patrons and social media followers inquiring if there were any way it could show it, explained Witecki. When Sony made it clear that it was going to make the movie available to independent theaters, Tampa Theatre requested four (late) screenings. It certainly wasn’t about to reallocate time slots reserved for Oscar-contending “The Imitation Game.”

“We didn’t cancel anything; we added late screenings; and there was additional revenue that–as a non-profit organization–we were more than happy to take,” underscored Witecki. “Although this isn’t typically the type of movie made available to smaller cinemas like Tampa Theatre, we knew it was something our patrons wanted to see, and wanted to see here. That was our primary motivation, although we certainly realized that it would also be a great little Christmas bump in ticket sales and concessions.”

Plus, half the audience the first night, when Witecki introduced “The Interview,” had not been in Tampa Theatre before. It was a bit of a marketing coup,” she pointed out. “This is a place you don’t come to just once.”

She said the response to the showings has been “overwhelmingly positive” with lots of “pats on the back from our regulars.”

And did Tampa Theatre perceive “The Interview” as a First Amendment-rallying, patriotic calling?

“We really don’t judge,” stressed Witecki. “We show a lot of controversial films. It’s really not ours to say what’s good or bad or right or wrong. We are the frame.

“But I can tell you this: Nothing compares to this. All the controversy and social media amplifies everything. Imagine Charlie Chaplin with social media!”

But did she, well, like it?

“I thought it was funny,” she said. “I enjoyed it. But Oscar material–probably not.”     

In a recent New Yorker piece, Maria Konnikova pondered the art and expedience ofheadline writing. In short, there’s psychology and journalistic agenda at play. Getting the reader’s attention is foremost, of course. And first impressions always matter.

But there’s also something more subtle at play, points out Konnikova: “The headline frames the rest of the experience.” It “changes the way people read an article and they remember it.” Indeed.

Which brings me to a recent prominent headline in the Tampa Bay Times: “Penalty Phase Of Obamacare Looms.” It was a New York Times service piece to which client papers affix their own headlines.

Interestingly enough, the NYT piece never mentioned “Obamacare,” per se.  It referred to the “Obama Administration’s Affordable Care Act” and its penalty provision that will take effect for the first time this year.

It’s an example of careless journalism in the name of layout expedience.

In general, the media has taken what, as we well know, started out as a partisan Republican pejorative about health care reform and mainstreamed it–along with its anti-Obama connotations. That’s just lazy journalism. Arguably, it impacts the way a lot of people would–as noted earlier–read and remember an item.

But now, alas, we’re used to those ubiquitous “Obamacare” references. The media has had its way–as have polarizing “Obamacare” adversaries.

* “Truly, there are so many tears this Christmas.”–Pope Francis.

* “The best thing for everybody is to let the most efficient produce.”–Saudi Arabian Petroleum Minister  Ali Naimi.

* “It’s only a small simplification to say that Russia doesn’t so much have an economy as it has an oil-exporting business that subsidizes everything else. That’s why the combination of more supply from the United States and less demand from Europe, China and Japan has hit Russia particularly hard.”–Matt O’Brien, Washington Post.

* “Let us not mince words: Vladimir Putin is a delusional thug.”–Thomas L. Friedman, New York Times.

* “North Korea suffered a severe Internet outage (last) Monday. The only question is, how could anyone tell?”–Political humor blogger Jim Barach.

* “The general state of relations between North Korea and China is hard. If China presses D.P.R.K (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) too hard it could collapse. But if it doesn’t press hard enough it will become uncontrolled and do more things like nuclear tests.”–Zheng Jiyong, director of the Center for Korean Studies at China’s Fudan University.

* “A lot of what (Cuba’s) survival depends on is Venezuelan oil money, which is drying up.”–Ana Navarro, CNN contributor and Republican strategist.

* “Cuba’s regime, although totalitarian, no longer matters in international politics.”–George Will, Washington Post.

* “The magnitude of the gasoline price drop is profound. It is a significant boost to the spending power of most Americans. And the data shows that when Americans get this spending power, they go out and spend it.”–James D. Hamilton, professor of economics at the University of California, San Diego.

* “Four strikes against him–Common Core, immigration, his name and the big sign on his back that says establishment choice.”–George Will, in his assessment of Jeb Bush’s presidential chances.

* “She wants to ensure that the Democratic nominee makes the plight of the middle class and lack of economic mobility today a fundamental motivating plank of their candidacy.”–Former Obama strategist David Alexrod, on Elizabeth Warren’s presidential agenda.

* “Hip-hop is old enough now to have entered the realm of credible nostalgia.”–Tom Silverman, founder of the hip-hop label Tommy Boy Records.

* “This is one of the most important public health nutrition policies ever to be passed nationally.”–Margo Wootan, director of nutrition policy at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, on the Food and Drug Administration’s new rules that will require chain restaurants, movie theaters and pizza parlors to post calorie counts on their menus.

* “All of these protests that are blocking traffic, it’s pulling police officers out of the neighborhoods that need the police the most. … So how do I prevent homicides and shootings and violent crimes and robberies and burglaries right before the holidays if all my cops are directing traffic around 30 guys that want to be out there at 11 o’clock at night laying in the middle of Chinatown?”–D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier.

* “After four years of rocky recovery, the U.S. economy is now hitting its stride with a notable acceleration in growth. Growth should remain good next year, with lower gasoline prices a big plus for consumers.”–PNC Financial Services Group senior economist Gus Faucher, on the U.S. economy’s 5 percent growth in the third quarter.

* “Housing markets have improved enough around the country that people feel confident they can sell their homes and move on down to Florida.”–Wells Fargo economist Mark Vitner on Florida overtaking New York as the third most populous (19.9 million) state in the nation.

* “The bay area is a wonderful place to live and people are realizing that.”–Thomas O’Bryant, CEO of the Greater Tampa Association of Realtors, on the 18.4 percent year-over-year jump in November Tampa Bay home sales.

* “He’s an incredible assimilator of information. He reads. He retains. He listens.”–Tampa Bay Lightning CEO Tod Leiweke, on team owner Jeff Vinik.

* “We have enough problems with the way it is now. We need to have everybody as consolidated as possible.”–Clerk of the Circuit Court Pat Frank, on her preference that a new county courthouse not be located on Falkenburg Road, 10 mile east of downtown Tampa.

* “I would put it anywhere from 3 to 5 percent lower.”–Scott Paine, University of Tampa government professor, on the turnout difference it would make in March’s municipal elections if  (an unopposed) Mayor Bob Buckhorn’s name is not on the ballot.

* Wouldn’t it be societallyappropriate if we were now to see mass signage that said: “Cops’ Lives Matter.”

The Eric Garner case remains a flagrant disgrace, but “No Justice, No Peace” extortion signs, disingenuous “Black Lives Matter” placards and a media drum beat haven’t helped.

* Too badthis is what it took for Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. to consider pulling a cheesy, sophomoric piece of Seth Rogenian, cultural flotsam.

* So Vickie Gunvalson of “Real Housewives of Orange County” is the latest celebrity to accidentally post a nude photo. It comes, presumably, after accidentally posing for one.

* Dinesh D’Souza: Imagine America without him.

* We now know who will comprise the next class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. On April 18, it will induct: Green Day, Lou Reed, Bill Withers, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, Ringo Star, Paul Butterfield and Stevie Ray Vaughan at Cleveland’s Public Hall. And for the 30th time, Chubby Checker will not be among the inductees. Yo.

* By all accounts, last week’s Usher performance at the Amalie Arena was a resounding success. One reason: the tour finale included numerous classics from his 20-year career. Twenty years! Could it be? Seems like yesterday that he was the up-and-coming Custodian.

* “My presidency is entering the fourth quarter. Interesting stuff happens in the fourth quarter.”–President Barack Obama.

* “Isolation has not worked. It’s time for a new approach.”–President Barack Obama, in announcing that the U.S. and Cuba would re-establish diplomatic relations.

* “In the end, I think opening up Cuba is probably a good idea.”–Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky.

* “This should have been done years ago.”–Former Mayor Dick Greco.

* “It’s a recognition after 50 years that the policy wasn’t working. We all have our feelings about Castro. We all have our feelings about what a corrupt government he runs. But the reality is it just hasn’t worked.”–Mayor Bob Buckhorn.

* “Disgraceful and outrageous.”–Sen. Marco Rubio’s reaction to the president’s announcement of the change in Cuban-American relations.

* “The Obama Administration’s actions of appeasement to dictators diminish the United States’ role of being a beacon for democracy.”–Gov. Rick Scott’s reaction to the Cuba announcement.

* “President Obama announced that he’s going to reopen diplomatic relations with Cuba. He wants to act before Seth Rogen makes a movie about Castro.”–Conan O’Brien.

* “We are seeing an economic crisis. We are seeing a sharp devaluation of the ruble at a time when the central bank doesn’t have the reserves to influence the market, as it did in the past crises.”–Natalia Akindinova, professor at Moscow’s Higher School of Economics.

* “Even for those of us who disagree with (Democratic Sen. Elizabeth) Warren fundamentally, it seems clear that she does have a significant and growing chance of being nominated (for president).”–David Brooks, New York Times.

* “I have decided to actively explore the possibility of running for president of the United States.”–Jeb Bush.

* “Early on, does Rubio kick the tires and see if Jeb hangs around? I think that’s possible. But if Jeb runs, there’s no place for two of them. It’s awkward.”–Florida Republican lobbyist and fundraiser Brian Ballard.

* “We have a blank canvas to develop an entire district to help revitalize downtown and change this area for generations to come.”–Jeff Vinik.

* “Our number one goal–our full-court press–is to get a corporate headquarters.”–Jeff Vinik.

* “It has created a buzz and unparalleled level of excitement in downtown …”–Christine Burdick, president of the Downtown Tampa Partnership,

* “HART is excited to be an active partner in the revitalization in the Channelside district, and it gives me great pride that the TECO (Line) Streetcar System is part of Mr. Vinik’s vision plan for bringing improved transportation services to the community, along with improved access to jobs and economic investment in this corridor.”–Mike Suarez, Tampa City Council member and HART board chairman.

* “I think back to when I first came here. We (Toronto Maple Leafs) played at the Fairgrounds. We stayed downtown and there wasn’t much there. Now look at what we have and where this franchise and this city are going.”–Dave Andreychuk, former Tampa Bay Lightning captain and current vice president of corporate and community affairs.  

* “You’ve got eight council members who have to make a decision as to whether they want to lead or lead by workshop. And unfortunately, the majority chose to lead by workshop.”–St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman, after St. Pete City Council rejected an agreement negotiated by Kriseman and the Tampa Bay Rays.

* “We need to cool off but maybe take another run at it. It’s not in the city’s interest to stay in neutral.”–St. Petersburg City Councilman Karl Nurse.

* “I am humbled and really appreciative. I wasn’t expecting this, so thank you very much.”–Hillsborough County Administrator Mike Merrill, on learning that commissioners had approved a nearly 20 percent pay raise for him.

* “If you lived in Green Bay this time of year, you would love coming down to Tampa. We realize that.”–Tampa Bay Bucs coach Lovie Smith, on the large, loud contingent of Packer fans that were part of Sunday’s sold-out crowd at Raymond James Stadium.

Congratulations, Lynn Marvin Dingfelder, the producer/writer of last year’s well-received documentary “JFK in Tampa: The 50th Anniversary.” Her labor-of-love effort resulted in an Emmy Award presented by the Suncoast Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in the Historic Documentary category.

The movie, which debuted at Tampa Theatre, is a paean to President John F. Kennedy in the form of local recollection and reflection on JFK’s visit to Tampa just days before Dallas. We are reminded that good, indeed, preceded evil.

* Interesting announcement, to be sure, by Duke Energy–given all those customer-gouging PR hits it’s been taking.

But, no, it wasn’t announcing that it was refunding those billions it had collected for failed nuclear projects or that it was rethinking its position on renewable energy or apologizing for self-serving billing cycles. Nor was the investor-owned utility denouncing its corporate culture of ratepayer arrogance.

No, Duke Energy was addressing a need even more pressing than doing the right thing by those 1.7 million customers it collected money from without delivering any electricity. Duke Energy was announcing that it was bringing in a former General Motors exec to head its communications operation.

Stop holding the presses.

Duke could see that the public, the media and even some legislators were on to them. The last PSC decision only went their way by a 3-2 vote. So, it was time for Duke to candidly underscore a critically important priority: better spin.

* Bob Dylan has announced an official release date for “Shadows in the Night,” his LP of songs made favorite by Frank Sinatra. Say what? Indeed, early February for Dylan Does Sinatra.

What’s next? “Pat Boone Does James Brown”?  “Michael Buble Does Slim Whitman?” “Jerry Lee Lewis Does Liberace”?

* Sony Pictures may have accomplished the seemingly impossible: The movie studio has actually humanized North Korea and its farcically frightful leader, the perversely paranoid Kim Jong Un. That’s what happens when you make a (comedic) movie–“The Interview”–about the assassination of a real person–Kim. No, not even the nuclear-missiled, Hermit Kingdom and the miscast, Dennis Rodman-befriended, fat kid with the bad haircut who had his uncle executed, deserve this kind of poor-taste, Hollywood send-up with Seth Rogen and the usual suspects.

And while Sony may actually deserve the cyberattacks on its computer systems by hacking that suspiciously seems like North Korean payback, there’s untold, unfair collateral damage still accruing.

The Kim Jong Un regime is an inexplicable, unpredictable menace. Sony just made it worse.

* Could it be that the disturbing incidents in Ferguson, Staten Island and Cleveland are less about raw racism than they are about pure  police incompetence? Granted, “Better-Trained Cops” signs wouldn’t make effective rallying-cry material–but would be more helpful to society than “No Justice, No Peace” placards.

* “Never in history have we had such modern weapons as we are getting as a result of this deal.”–Polish Defense Minister Tomasz Siemoniak, on the recent purchase of long-range missiles from the U.S.

* “(The militants) are developing an unsustainable economy. … ISIL cannot float government bonds like nations can. They can collect taxes, extort money and so forth. But that will likely not be enough in the long run to keep such an unbalanced economic system going.”–Paul Sullivan, Middle East economies’ expert at the National Defense University in Washington.

* “The gringos say they want to sanction Venezuela. No one can sanction Venezuela, because our people decided to be free and will be free, regardless of what happens, with sanctions or without them.”–Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

* “Just like they (U.S. officials) have their lists, we can make our own lists in Latin America of those who shouldn’t enter our country.”–Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, in announcing that he was banning U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen from traveling there because of their roles in passing Venezuelan sanctions.

* “If we don’t lead, future generations will not forgive us. They will want to know how we together could possibly have been so blind, so ideological, so dysfunctional and, frankly, so stubborn.”–Secretary of State John Kerry, on the need to fight climate change.

* “I don’t know what article of the Constitution that (torture) would contravene.”–Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.

* “Human rights treaties are promises that the United States will not violate human rights. At a minimum, we must acknowledge that our nation has violated the terms of the U.N. Convention Against Torture.”–Talbot “Sandy” D’Alemberte, past president of the American Bar Association and former president of FSU.

* “Enormously disappointed.”–House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s reaction after President Barack Obama and Republicans joined forces to override Democratic complaints about a $1.1-trillion, House spending bill.

* “Lock up the center and let them fight it out on the right.”–Sen. John McCain’s 2016 presidential advice to Jeb Bush.

* “I think states are starting to go that route, because they’re trying to reach consumers where they are and where they spend time, and everyone spends time on their phone.”–Kara Macek, spokeswoman for the Governors Highway Safety Association, on use of the new federally funded cellphone app (“ENDUI”) that helps tackle drunken driving.

* “The role we play is in deciding whether or not we should go into war, but our role is not to decide how to go to war.”–Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla.

* “Burger King’s inversion adds up to a ‘whopper’ of a tax dodge.”–Americans for Tax Fairness study on the bottom-line impact of Burger King moving its headquarters from Miami to Canada.

* “As Americans increasingly move to communities of like-minded individuals, the political segregation of the population only reinforces the polarization. … Never having your own political views challenged is a profound loss for all Americans.”–Darryl Paulson, professor emeritus of government at USF St. Petersburg.

* “It’s not on the Seminole Tribe’s radar.”–Seminole Tribe spokesman Gary Bitner, on the implications of a U.S. Justice Department memo directing federal prosecutors nationwide to allow tribes to cultivate and grow marijuana on their sovereign lands.

* “As big as our state is, we’ll be influential regardless of the timing. … We want to make sure we have all our delegates.”–Florida Republican Party chairwoman Leslie Dougher, on the likelihood that Florida will not flout the 2016 presidential primary schedule set forth by the Republican National Committee.

* “Democrats have to have a (gubernatorial) candidate that can compete in areas other than the traditional Democratic areas. If you cannot compete, and if you don’t have a compelling message, and if you aren’t looked upon as someone who is pro-business, who is centrist, who is all about getting things done, north of Orlando you don’t stand a chance.”–Mayor Bob Buckhorn.

* “That’s going to be big, and that’s probably going to be the issue that unites us.”–State Rep. Dana Young, R-Tampa, on Hillsborough County’s top priority–the relocation of USF’s College of Medicine to downtown Tampa–going into this spring’s legislative session.

* “Hospitals can provide end-of-life care, but it’s not necessarily the best or the most cost-effective environment. By moving into hospice care, we can provide a new model.”–Tampa General Hospital spokesman John Dunn.

* “My father knew how to bring all races together. We should all want to be like him.”–Andre White, on his late father Moses White, who was among those honored with a Riverwalk bust.

* “Given the economic obsolescence of the Trop and the alternative futures for the land in St. Pete, the deal cut between Stu Sternberg and Rick Kriseman through 2027 is fair and reasonable.”–Vanderbilt University sports economist John Vrooman.

* “That’s the one message I wanted to get out to the shelters and people connected with this. This is not going away.”–Former Rays manager Joe Maddon, on his commitment to his annual ‘Thanksmas’ fundraising dinner that benefits area homeless food programs.

* “It’s still pretty surreal. I’m just really, really honored.”–WFLA-Ch 8’s Jennifer Lee, on replacing Gail Sierens on the 11 p.m. broadcast.

* Interesting announcement, to be sure, by Duke Energy–given all those customer-gouging PR hits it’s been taking.

But, no, it wasn’t announcing that it was refunding those billions it had collected for failed nuclear projects or that it was rethinking its position on renewable energy or apologizing for self-serving billing cycles. Nor was the investor-owned utility denouncing its corporate culture of ratepayer arrogance. And, no, Duke Energy was addressing a need even more pressing than doing the right thing by those 1.7 million customers it collected money from without delivering any electricity.

Duke Energy announced that it was bringing in a former General Motors exec to head its communications operation.

Duke could see that the public, the media and even some legislators were on to them. The last PSC decision only went their way by a 3-2 vote. Duke was candidly acknowledging what it sorely needed: better spin.

* Bob Dylan has announced an official release date for “Shadows in the Night,” his LB of songs made favorite by Frank Sinatra. Say what? Indeed, early February for Dylan Does Sinatra.

What’s next? “Pat Boone Does James Brown”?  “Michael Buble Does Slim Whitman?” “Jerry Lee Lewis Does Liberace”?

* Sony Pictures may have accomplished the seemingly impossible: The movie studio has actually humanized North Korea and its leader, the perversely paranoid Kim Jong Un. That’s what happens when you make a (comedic) movie–“The Interview”–about the assassination of a real person–Kim. No, not even the nuclear-missiled, Hermit Kingdom and the miscast, Dennis Rodman-befriended, fat kid with the bad haircut who had his uncle executed, deserve this kind of poor taste, Hollywood send-up with Seth Rogen and the usual suspects.

And while Sony may actually deserve the cyberattacks on its computer systems by hacking that suspiciously seems like North Korean payback, there’s untold collateral damage still accruing.

The Kim Jon Un regime is an inexplicable, unpredictable menace. Sony just made it worse.

* Could it be that the disturbing incidents in Ferguson, Staten Island and Cleveland are less about racism than they are about police incompetence? Grated, “Better-Trained Cops” signs wouldn’t make effective rallying-cry material–but would be more helpful to society than “No Justice, No Peace.”