Chris Nashawaty already made it clear that he won’t be watching the Osbourne family’s new variety show, Osbournes: Reloaded, when it premieres tonight. Fair enough, dude. But if Chris lived in Panama City, Fla., he wouldn’t be able to watch it even if he wanted to: The local Fox affiliate there won’t be airing Osbournes: Reloaded at all, on the grounds that it’s "unsuitable and contrary to the public interest." Viewers who tune in tonight will see a Simpsons rerun instead.
Now, I first learned of this little controversy from a Rolling Stone writeup that misleadingly called it a "First Amendment Battle." It is most certainly nothing of the kind. The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution forbids the government, and only the government, from censoring citizens’ speech; it does not require privately owned TV stations like Panama City’s WPGX to broadcast crappy shows against their will. So WPGX is well within its constitutional rights if it chooses not to show the Osbournes’ new series.
But does that mean they’re making the right call? Personally, I have full faith that Chris is right and Osbournes: Reloaded will be irredeemably awful. But I’m glad I’ll have the chance to find out for myself tonight — even if I might choose not to use that chance. How about you? Would you care if your local Fox affiliate refused to broadcast Osbournes: Reloaded? Would you even notice it was missing?
More on the Osbournes:
Osbournes: Reloaded premieres tonight…and I’ll be watching Real Housewives
The Osbournes was one of EW’s New TV Classics
Season Two of The Osbournes got an A review
Remember when Ozzy bit a live bat?
Comments (1-15) of 34 Add your comment
If a show isn’t aired but no one was watching anyway… does anyone really care?
Wait wait wait wait…
wait…
wait.
The Osbournes have a new show?
I’m glad this is the first time im hearing of it.
I wonder how much money the Osbornes paid the FLA affilate to pull the show at an attmept to generate some publicty.
C’mon. On Family Guy in *one* eppy: Stewie possibly eats horse sperm, Peter gets rimmed by a horse, Peter has group gay sex (off-camera).
For once, I wonder if this is kind of a reversal, and they’re using the content as an excuse to show something that will get better ratings.
Amazing! If the public find it acceptable to be told what is and what is not in their best interest to watch instead of exercising their free will to switch station, then I think this “freedom” we like to talk about is vastly overrated. I wonder what the consensus would be if that same person proclaimed Benny Hinn to be against public interest for example. Bible thumping moralists have the most skeletons in their closets as FBI crime indexes show. It’s all that inbreeding it seems.
Florida has worse problems than the Osbournes. Why don’t they do something productive with their time there, like help people fine jobs.
Who the **** cares about ****in’ Ozzy ****in’ Osbourne anyway, and his ****brained wife and ****in’ idiot children? I’d ****in’ rather be listening to some ****in’ old Black ****in’ Sabbath records than tuning into this ****in’ bloody awful ****in’ ****.
I think this “freedom” we like to talk about is vastly overrated.
Dude, it’s a private station, and they are free to air anything they want. See, that’s freedom, unlike having government “tell” them what to air, like Iran or some other totalitarian state. If you think what we have here is “overrated” try living somewhere else. You’ll be back, extolling the greatness of our “freedom” in no time flat.
Bible thumping moralists have the most skeletons in their closets as FBI crime indexes show
Really? I thought it was this democratic congress and all the new tax dodging appointees!
SO IS THAT THE ONLY CHANNEL YOU HAVE, DON’T F-ING WATCH IT!!! I LOVE THE OSBOURNES, THEY HAVE MADE ALOT OF MONEY BY FOOLS LIKE YOU, PROBABLY BIBLE THUMPERS ANYWAY, WHO CAN’T BELIEVE THEIR EYES.
“Bible thumping moralists have the most skeletons in their closets as FBI crime indexes show.”
What!?
Don’t be afraid of people who actually have standards and ethics as well as live up to them.
You more than likely fear your lack of class or the fact that stupid toilet humor actually makes you giggle uncontrollably.
Stop being so darn selfish… America has freedoms, and wise up — they go both ways. I have the right to not have garbage broadcast into my home, just like this station has the right to not broadcast it.
Just because you disagree with the choice they made with their right, doesn’t mean they are wrong. It means you are a whiner.
WHINE WHINE WHINE, JUST WATCH YA’LLS AMERICAN IDOL OR READ THE BIBLE, CUZ FREAKIN OZZY’S ON TV, SEE YA!!!!!!
I live in Augusta, GA and the fox affiliate here also decided not to show the Osbournes because it does not meet “our community standards”. I don’t remember asking a television station to decide what the standards of my community are.
I think they are violating my right of freedom to watch what I want to. If I want to watch some stupid show and lower my IQ,then by all means let me kill my own brain cells, I don’t need someone telling me what I can or can’t watch…I’m ordered around too much at work and now even in my own home, pathetic!
Their 15 minutes is up…nobody cares!