“That’s the real message of PIPA and SOPA. [Legacy media companies have] called and they want us all back on the couch, just consuming. Not producing, not sharing. And we should say no.”
- Clay Shirky
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If the National Geographic Channel hasn’t yet quenched your thirst for Hitler programs with…
Hitler and the Occult
Hitler’s Hidden Holocaust
Hitler’s Stealth Fighter
Hitler’s Hidden City
Hitler’s Lost Battleship
Making History: Hitler’s Death
Hitler: Rise and Fall
42 Ways to Kill Hitler
Apocalypse Hitler
… and many more …
… don’t worry: Six more Hitler shows are on their way.
Did Adolf Hitler die? Or did he just go into syndication?
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≡ photo of Adolf Hitler via HolocaustResearchProject.org
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Howard Owens, the new President of the National Geographic Channel, recently greenlit a TV movie based on the book Killing Lincoln, by Bill O’Reilly of Fox News. According to The Hollywood Reporter:
Howard Owens
… As it happens, Owens walked in the door at Nat Geo with the project, which one of his former William Morris colleagues not only had had the rights to but also the interest of producers Tony and Ridley Scott. That the network and the project’s author share a corporate boss in News Corp is “totally fortuitous,” Owens told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview, adding that there will be fact checkers on this as there are on every project at the network.
Other genres Owens is eager to explore include politics. The desire is fitting not only because Nat Geo is based in Washington, DC, but also because Owens is the son of a former Senator. What such a push will entail he isn’t yet sure; though he insists the channel has no plans to take sides politically. “All I know,” he added, “is that we’re sitting in the middle of DC and it’s an election year and we’re not going to deny that.”
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The fundamental flaw in National Geographic’s “partnership” with Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp is rapidly becoming too big to ignore. Specifically: Our Society seems to have no control over what News Corp produces using National Geographic’s (once) good name.
Perhaps the most alarming red flag is the testimony of people who have long admired the Society, but who now are telling the world that they feel “betrayed, heartbroken, and sick” by what this “partnership” is producing.
For example, here’s National Geographic News — which, as of this writing, is still controlled by our Society — sounding the alarm about the endangered bluefin tuna:
But here’s the National Geographic Channel — which is majority owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp — announcing a new reality series called Wicked Tuna, which transforms the killing of the endangered bluefin tuna into “intense and compelling” adventure television:
Save the bluefin! … Kill the bluefin!
How can the National Geographic Society maintain any semblance of credibility while playing this game?
More to the point: How soon before lots of people begin connecting the dots the way Virginia Willis just did? A chef, cookbook author, and a longtime fan of National Geographic, Ms. Willis just posted Wicked Tuna: A Deal With the Devil. An excerpt:
“… To this day, I don’t read National Geographic magazines – I relish them. Each issue is a journey and exploration into a whole new world. National Geographic fulfilled its mission with me; it inspired me to care about the planet.
Virginia Willis
Yet, today I feel betrayed, heartbroken, and sick. The National Geographic Channel will debut a show this spring called “Wicked Tuna”, a reality series that follows the lives of tuna fisherman in Gloucester, Massachusetts….
It’s an absolute disgrace. It’s wicked in the true sense of the word, evil and morally wrong….
National Geographic is capitalizing on and exploiting the very species they have declared to be on the verge of extinction….
As a chef and food writer, I care about the food I prepare, the food I eat. I work to educate my students and readers about responsible and sustainable food. As the National Geographic Society mission states, I work to inspire people to care about the planet.
John Fahey, Chairman & CEO of the National Geographic Society should hang his head in shame. At minimum, he and the National Geographic channel have some serious explaining to do. If you’d like to let the National Geographic Society know what you think of Wicked Tuna, please shoot them a note to comments@natgeochannel.com
Sincerely,
Virginia Willis
Chef and cookbook authorCC:
Editor, the Washington Post
Editor, the New York Times
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Dear John:
Any thoughts for Ms. Willis?
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Fox News & the National Geographic Channel
are both owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp.
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“The moral of Kodak’s fate is that technology trends are often clearly visible, but changing a successful company is exceedingly hard. NCR was not able to adapt to the world of personal computers. Xerox could not find the right formula to compete in a world with many rivals. AT&T failed to adjust to the Internet (and was acquired by one of its smaller “baby bell” local phone companies, that later took its former parent’s grand name).
Kodak fared the worst since the shift to digital photography was so massive and sudden. … No firm, however strong, can count on continued success: market dominance is only a snapshot in time.”
- from “Gone in a flash: Kodak files for bankruptcy protection,” in The Economist
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Dear John,
We know the challenges you face are enormous. We know that finding a new business model for National Geographic is not an easy job.
But please consider the possibility that we’re really not in the picture business. At least, we can’t be today. Great photography is everywhere, and most of it is free. But we could still be a Society, with all that might entail.
You once told us that “no one wants to belong to anything.” But we think people do. They just need someone at National Geographic to give them a compelling reason to join.
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Today, Kodak declared bankruptcy.
This video was commissioned by Kodak
and shown at the All Things Digital Conference in California in 2006:
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≡ via PetaPixel
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Mr. Murdoch is a big SOPA supporter.
His company — News Corp — is the majority owner
of the National Geographic Channel.
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Dear John,
Where does our Society stand on SOPA?
We’re a major media company.
Seems like we should have an opinion on this.
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January 12, 2012
Fox News (where Bill O’Reilly works)
& the National Geographic Channel
are both owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp.
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November 13, 2011
Rupert Murdoch
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By Carl Safina
Posted: January 15, 2012 7:42pmWell, people, what an incredibly long drop it’s been since the electrifying National Geographic TV specials of my youth, whose mere opening theme notes would raise the hair on my neck.
It seems almost like the scenario of a post-apocalyptic surrealist satire, unimaginable just a few years back: National Geographic Channel has been bought out by Fox, is “joint-venturing” with the disgraceful and disgraced Rupert Murdoch, and creating programming to push Bill O’Reilly’s books. And, well — National Geographic Channel will be killing endangered species for entertainment.
"Wicked Tuna" follows the lives of commercial tuna fishermen. (photo via the National Geographic Channel)
They’ve just announced the new unscripted show: Wicked Tuna.
Awesome, eh? Already, we have: a smiling face and a dead, rather small, bluefin tuna.
Here, in 2012, I find the premise revolting. Despicable.
And therefore, it’s bound to be a crowd pleaser as National Geographic Channel aims to lead in Cable’s race to the bottom….
Please read the whole thing here.
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Rupert Murdoch, whose News Corp is the majority owner of the National Geographic Channel, is wreaking havoc with our Society's good name.
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