Debbie Schlussel: Schlussel TV Guide: Rupert Murdoch, Saudi Prince AlWaleed Won't "Stand Up to Cancer"
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Tonight at 8:00 p.m. Eastern, ABC, CBS, NBC, and several cable networks will air "Stand Up to Cancer," a one hour special to raise cancer awareness and money for cancer research.
But one network is missing: FOX, the network owned by NewsCorp, which is owned by Rupert Murdoch, and--by at least 5.46% (and reportedly much more) Saudi billionaire and jihadist Prince Al-Waleed Bin Talal.
Instead, FOX is airing two hours of "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?" And none of the FOX-owned cable networks are broadcasting, "Stand Up to Cancer" either. By making this programming choice, Murdoch and Prince AlWaleed are showing us they are neither smarter than a 5th-grader, nor display even 5th-grader levels of empathy and compassion.
I am not a cancer activist. But it is a disease that spans all strata of American life and, actually, all human life--rich and poor, young and old, most ethnic groups. Few Americans alive don't know at least one person afflicted by or touched in some way by cancer. And we don't have a cure for most cancers.
As readers know, last year, I lost my beloved father to pancreatic cancer. Very little is known about the disease and there are no symptoms. For most people, when it is discovered, it is a death knell with usually imminent death within six months. Wouldn't it be great if we could make some advances in discovering the causes of this disease and a way to detect this cancer?
Well, had FOX gone along, even more money and awareness would be raised tonight. Instead, the greedy billionaires Murdoch and Prince Al-Waleed Bin Talal will probably get better ratings than usual for the banal hit show pitting stupid adults against smart-aleck kids. The great population of tv-watching American ignoramuses who don't want to face the threat of cancer, learn more, and possibly help out, will all flock to watch this dumb show hosted by Jeff Foxworthy.
No-one has asked Murdoch or the Prince why they can't lend just one hour on their network to help the cause of treating and solving the cancer epidemic.
But I'm asking: Why is their greed so great? Why is their drive to do an hour of community service in America so small? I guess they don't want to "Stand Up to Cancer," until they--G-d forbid, in Murdoch's case--get cancer. (Alwaleed, on the other hand, is himself a cancer.)
Yet again we see FOX and FOX News a/k/a PAWNN (the Prince Al-Waleed Networks) in action. They ignore, I report, you decide.
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Read more about "Stand Up to Cancer", how to donate, and where the money goes. I'm impressed by the organization's "dream teams," which are like Manhattan Projects to find cures for various cancers.
Read more about pancreatic cancer.
**** UPDATE: Reader TJ is spot on:
This is at its core. Fox insults its perceived "blue collar" base by running, well, "base" programming like "Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?" and denigrating imagery of women (a la O'Reilly) when they could be featuring "Stand Up to Cancer." Plus, studies have repeatedly proven that conservatives give more to charity than liberals. FOX had its big chance, but blew it.
Exactly.
Posted by Debbie on September 5, 2008 11:27 AM to Debbie Schlussel