Moral Crusaders Go After Talk TV Bennett And Lieberman To Pressure Producers, Sponsors And Viewers To Clean Up Daytime Television
The same people who took on “gangsta rap” music have lined up a new target: TV talk shows with trashy topics such as “Women Who Marry Their Rapist” and “My Daughter Is Living as a Boy.”
Denouncing daytime talk shows as “a case study of cultural rot,” former U.S. Education Secretary William Bennett announced a campaign Thursday to pressure the shows’ producers, sponsors and viewers to clean up their acts.
“What is happening today is the pollution of the human environment,” Bennett, a Republican, said after screening snippets of the offending shows at a joint news conference with Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn.
The talkmeisters were quick to talk back.
“It’s a real elitist view for a guy like this to stand up and say, ‘I don’t think 4.5 million people should watch this,”’ said Sally Jessy Raphael, citing her own show’s viewership. “These people have as much right to watch their show as he has to watch ‘Nightline.”’
Lieberman and Bennett claimed a partial victory last month when entertainment giant Time Warner agreed to sell its stake in Interscope Records, a leading label for gangsta rap. Bennett said they would use similar tactics against the corporations that produce daytime talk shows, including Time Warner, Paramount, Fox and CBS.
xxxx Talking dirty A sample of next week’s talk TV lineups: Monday Jerry Springer: pursuing a career as an escort. Tuesday Geraldo: being attracted to men with bad reputations. Wednesday Gordon Elliot: fulfilling a fantasy kiss. Thursday Montel Williams: dating virgins because of one’s fear of contracting AIDS. Friday Jenny Jones: discovering that a former lover has become an adult entertainer.