Obama vs. Murdoch, and 6 Other Stories You'll Be Talking About Today

obama_broadsheet_225.jpgAlso in today's edition of The Broadsheet: Paul Haggis contemplates Russell Crowe's Equalizer... Brett Ratner goes Communist... Sharktopus is a semi-hit... and more...

· President Barack Obama has reportedly taken a very public swing at Rupert Murdoch and Fox News, telling Rolling Stone in an interview, "I think Fox is part of that [press] tradition -- it is part of the tradition that has a very clear, undeniable point of view. It's a point of view that I disagree with. It's a point of view that I think is ultimately destructive for the long-term growth of a country that has a vibrant middle class and is competitive in the world." But it's not all about politics! "I suspect that if you ask Mr. Murdoch what his No. 1 concern is," the president continued, "it's that Fox is very successful." At least he has a No. 1 concern. [NYT]

· Related: Glenn Beck gets the NYT Magazine treatment. [NYT Magazine]

· Paul Haggis in considering reuniting with his Next Three Days star Russell Crowe in that previously reported screen adaptation of the CBS series The Equalizer. [THR]

· Brett Ratner has another project in line to direct and/or produce, this time picking up the rights to the memoir The Reluctant Communist, about a U.S. deserter's bizarre, propaganda-filled 40-year imprisonment in North Korea. [Variety]

· The D-movie Sharktopus pulled in 2.5 million viewers during its premiere Saturday night -- not a bad number for SyFy, especially for a movie about a... sharktopus. [Live Feed]

· Steve Carell's Carousel Films has acquired feature remake rights to Of All The Things, a 2008 documentary about former songwriter/producer Dennis Lambert, who discovers on a tour of the Philippines that his solo album from decades earlier is a hit. Carell is likely to star if/when the project is developed. [Variety]

· As suggested by that insane breach-of-contract lawsuit of theirs, the Hillstrand brothers are dunzo with Deadliest Catch. Exiting with them is Capt. Sig Hansen. "We have been through a lot over the past year and unfortunately given the current situation with Discovery we are unable to continue participating in Deadliest Catch," they said in a joint statement. Womp womp. [THR, Esq.]



Comments

  • jmbssr2 says:

    What about the first amendment P Bo?

  • Amber Godina says:

    wow, even if we dont agree on what fox has to say, it seems a bit strange for a president to be SO adamantly againt a news channel...that just like any other, should have the right to speak. What does he not want us to hear? I think I shall go and watch FOX, and find out.

  • Bo says:

    If you think Fox is a news channel, you have been brainwashed.
    http://crazypitch.com/911
    Try the truth.

  • Chcuk Wall says:

    And if you think NBC, CBS, ABC, MSNBC, CNN or the NY Times have much truth in them, you are bat spit nuts. What does this President fear? How have so many former Obama voters been fooled into no longer believing him? I think i will go watch FOX, too, to see what the buzz is about. It is shameful for a sitting President to make such comments. But then this is a shameful President.

  • Greg Thomas says:

    SorryAmber & Chcuk,
    Your argument doesn't hold water. First, Presidents have always spoken out about media issues they don't like. They just don't take questions from those that anger them. And how can you defend the free speech rights of FOX and then claim it is shameful when the President exercises his rights?
    For clarity, I am not in favor of democrats or their policies, but I also have my own mind and don't buy the FOX 'fair-and-balanced" claim for a second. I do think that media has descended to shock reporting and marvel at the people who can't make their own minds and parrot everything Bill O'Reilly and Glenn Beck say as if it is fact.
    Sean Hannity has repeatedly said that he is out to get the president removed from office. Is this even remotely appropriate for a journalist? I don't think so. You can't be objective if you use your platform for your own purposes.
    Walter Cronkite would be appalled at these "journalists" whose goal is to create opinion rather than report the facts and let people think for themselves.

  • David says:

    The First amendment I agree with...It is the lies that Fox TV is about that I don't.

  • Nick says:

    What I want to know is, why does Rupert Murdoch think he can buy the next election?
    The guy does not even pay income taxes in the US, he hides all his money on off-shore, tax havens.

  • What I dont understand is how you're not even much more well-liked than you're now. Youre just so smart. You know so much about this matter, made me think about it from so many different angles. Its like people arent interested unless it has something to do with Madonna! Your stuff is great. Keep writing!