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May 24, 2013

distraction

Six Game Shows that Used Actual Torture

by Danny Gallagher, posted Apr 8th 2010 4:00PM

An act of torture during the InquisitionIf you were shocked to hear about ABC's 'Downfall,' a game show that drops people off of buildings for our amusement, you clearly don't watch enough TV and lead a rich, fulfilling life.

Television's long and storied history is filled with game and competition shows that pit their contestants in a physical, psychological and gastrointestinal showdown, most of which were lost to the ravages of obscurity. Well, it's "filled" if you only look at the last few years or so when the economy tanked and people turned to humiliating themselves in the national media to keep from having to hunt small rodents for sustenance. That's how 'The View' got started.

These are the shows that not only tortured contestants, but also their viewing audience unless Dick Cheney happened to be watching any of them.

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9/11 movie airs with some edits

by Joel Keller, posted Sep 11th 2006 11:31AM

Harvey Keitel in The Path to 9/11Well, at least ABC didn't chicken out and pull The Path to 9/11, despite calls from supporters of former President Clinton to pull the show. However, the movie, which aired part one last night, did not escape unscathed.

This AP article compares the version of the movie that was sent out to critics and the version that aired last night. Interestingly, the edits were in the exact places that got the Clinton supporters hot under the collar. In the aired version of the movie, the connections between the Lewinsky scandal and Clinton's inaction towards Osama bin Laden were de-emphasized, and the blame for not attacking OBL when we had the chance were shared amongst the administration and the intelligence community. Whether you believe or support any of these versions of the movies, it's interesting that ABC made the cuts it made while still defending the movie because it was a docudrama and not a documentary. I think that's what is called "Talking out both sides of your mouth."

Part two airs tonight, interrupted by President Bush's address to the nation.

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Cartoons mean less pain, says study

by Adam Finley, posted Aug 18th 2006 2:59PM

crying babyA British study of 69 children ages 7 to 12 found that the kids, when having blood samples drawn, experienced less pain if they were watching cartoons than when their own mothers tried to soothe them. My first inclination, which was also echoed by Dr. Brenda McClain of Yale University, is that when a parent is obviously trying to console a child, the child becomes more anxious because they believe something must really be wrong. Kids tend to be smarter than people give them credit for, and they pick up on things like that. Nevertheless, other researchers insist that this means television is having more of an impact on kids than their own parents. I don't see it as anything so dramatic, but what do you guys, especially those of you with kids, think? I just wonder when the kids get to have their revenge and jab the researchers with sharp objects. It seems only fair.

[via Lost Remote]

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What's on tonight: new Idol, Boston Legal, X-Play, The Shield

by Bob Sassone, posted Feb 21st 2006 3:00PM

  • Tom SelleckPBS has new episodes of both Nova and Frontline. Check local listings.
  • The 12 female finalists sing for the judges on a two hour American Idol, on FOX at 8pm.
  • ABC has a repeat According To Jim, a new Rodney, a new According To Jim, a repeat George Lopez, then a new Boston Legal (with Tom Selleck).
  • CBS has two repeat eps of NCIS, then a repeat CSI.
  • NBC has The Olympics all night.
  • Lots of movies lately on UPN and the WB. Tonight, UPN has Black Night, while the WB has Final Destination 2.
  • ABC Family has Lindsay Lohan in the remake of The Parent Trap.
  • Also at 8: HGTV has a new Designed To Sell, followed by a repeat Design Remix, a new Decorating Cents, and then a new Mission: Organization.
  • Toon Disney has a new Power Rangers Mystic Force. It's on at 8 too. 
  • At 9, USA has Rowan Atkinson and John Malkovich in Johnny English, while Lifetime has Michael Douglas and Kirk Douglas in It Runs In The Family. 
  • At 10, FX has a new ep of The Shield. 
  • AMC has Al Pacino in Insomnia, also at 10.
  • Also at 10: The History Channel has a new Modern Marvels.
  • At 11, G4 has a new ep of X-Play.
  • At midnight, Comedy Central has a new Distraction.

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