Fox dumps Simpson specials, book
11/20/06 03:32 PM
By ED BARK
Facing a firestorm of criticism and the prospect of no advertisers, Fox announced Monday it is dropping all ties to O.J. Simpson.
That includes two announced prime-time specials tied to his book If I Did It, which Fox now says it won't publish. News Corporation chairman Rupert Murdoch, who presides over the Fox communications empire, took the unusual step of issuing a personal statement.
"I and senior management agree with the American public that this was an ill-considered project," he said. "We are sorry for any pain this has caused the families of Ron Goldman and Nicole Brown-Simpson.
Fox had planned to televise the Simpson specials on Monday and Wednesday of next week, with his book's publisher Judith Regan, doing the Q & A. Fox vice president of alternative programming Mike Darnell billed it as "an interview that no one thought would ever happen. It's the definitive last chapter in the Trial of the Century."
Simpson, in the words of a Fox press release, would be telling for the first time "how he would have committed the murders if he were the one responsible for the crimes."
Virtually no one thought this was a good idea, including prominent Fox personalities Bill O'Reilly and Geraldo Rivera, who denounced Simpson and Fox's partnership with him on their shows. Earlier Monday, before the announcement, unclebarky.com detailed why the specials likely wouldn't air -- and why they shouldn't. You can read that commentary next on this page.
Facing a firestorm of criticism and the prospect of no advertisers, Fox announced Monday it is dropping all ties to O.J. Simpson.
That includes two announced prime-time specials tied to his book If I Did It, which Fox now says it won't publish. News Corporation chairman Rupert Murdoch, who presides over the Fox communications empire, took the unusual step of issuing a personal statement.
"I and senior management agree with the American public that this was an ill-considered project," he said. "We are sorry for any pain this has caused the families of Ron Goldman and Nicole Brown-Simpson.
Fox had planned to televise the Simpson specials on Monday and Wednesday of next week, with his book's publisher Judith Regan, doing the Q & A. Fox vice president of alternative programming Mike Darnell billed it as "an interview that no one thought would ever happen. It's the definitive last chapter in the Trial of the Century."
Simpson, in the words of a Fox press release, would be telling for the first time "how he would have committed the murders if he were the one responsible for the crimes."
Virtually no one thought this was a good idea, including prominent Fox personalities Bill O'Reilly and Geraldo Rivera, who denounced Simpson and Fox's partnership with him on their shows. Earlier Monday, before the announcement, unclebarky.com detailed why the specials likely wouldn't air -- and why they shouldn't. You can read that commentary next on this page.