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When did a person's death become a television event?

T

tothedj

We are into another television "sweeps" month, even though the writer's
strike may be winding down, but once again the networks try to pull out
stunts that will draw a audience.
As for one, ABC, they are devoting 90 minutes of prime time to a person's
death, and one that many have by asking questions about since it occured
in the summer of 2005.
But don't you think this is going too far?, I know people want to know the
true facts, but a segment on "20/20" or "World News Tonight" would have
been enough, not half of network "prime time".
When will the news divisions ever learn?
 
There's nothing for them to learn. If the shows like tonight's 20/20 draw viewers, they'll do the shows (and let's face it, replacing Notes from the Underbelly with anything is a public service on ABC's part). If the public interest dries up, the shows go away. Simple math.
 
When the person in question is a young, pretty, blonde female, it's a no-brainer.
 
Tonight, the MY Network had a deal on Anna Nicole Smith, one year after her death.

Yeah, it gets tiredsome when someone like Anna Nicole Smith, Heath Ledger, among others, dies and then all of the networks run it into the ground.
 
I've been following this story on ABCNews.com for about a week now. Oddly enough, I completely forgot it was on. But, this was supposed to be the US release of a Dutch reporter's program that aired on Sunday. He allegedly went undercover and did his own personal investigation into the disappearance. So, as much hype that this case has turned up, I can see how this could be turned into a special. Plus, you know they've probably been running stories during GMA and WNT up to this.

It's like Dateline on NBC. A few weeks back, they did a story about an American living in South America that was accused of killing his girlfriend. They start out the story with him looking guilty and such, then three-forths into the show, they prove his innocence, and spend the last quarter talking about the political red tape, the victim's family's reaction, etc etc.
 
WMC2006 said:
When the person in question is a young, pretty, blonde female, it's a no-brainer.
Click to expand...

The late Princess Diana had a few years on her, though...
 
WMC2006 said:
Diana was only 38 when she died. But she was an international figure.
Click to expand...

Yes, she was an international figure and well-liked. Diana became a popular figure when she met Prince Charles and it went on from there. From their 1981 wedding, to the births of Prince William and Harry, to the nasty divorce, and the constant rumors (which ultimately came true) about Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles to Diana's many boyfriends and the last boyfriend Dodi Al Fayed she had (hope I have this right, I just woke up) which ended with the fatal car crash. The press was everywhere with all of this and more. Even before Charles met Diana, Charles also had the press beating down his door as he was involved with Camilla even before he met Diana.
 
...to specifically address the subject line question, divorced from the context of the 20/20 program, I'd guess it would have been the death of King George VI of the United Kingdom. I believe this was the first time NBC and CBS used same-day kinescopes of the BBC's coverage of the funeral, flown from London to New York...
 
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