By the way I am sure that many of you donated money to help Defenders of Wildlife purchase these ads, but if want to do more you can still help make a difference by clicking here to send an e-mail or do the following:
Please call (240) 662-2000 today between the hours of 8:30 AM and 6:00 PM Eastern. To ensure your voice is heard, press 0 immediately to be transferred to an operator and deliver this important message in your own words:
“My name is Elizabeth and I’m calling from Denison, TX. As someone who cares about wildlife, the environment and responsible TV programming, I am extremely disappointed in Discovery Communications' decision to broadcast Sarah Palin's Alaska .
[Please indicate which Discovery TV stations you watch, if any--e.g., TLC, Animal Planet, the Discovery Channel, the Science Channel or the Military Channel.]
Providing this platform for Palin will either feature her extreme anti-wildlife and anti-conservation views or greenwash her reputation. This undermines Discovery's credibility and flies in the face of the reputation for quality wildlife programming that you've worked so hard to build. Please pull the plug on Sarah Palin's Alaska immediately. Thank you for your time."
I signed the petition. I also called the station and left a message over a month ago when this first came out-not an easy thing to do since the phone numbers did not appear on the station's website. They at least had the decency to call me back to say they heard my concerns.
ReplyDeleteI love the 'Animal Planet' channel and watch it most every day - get up early just to watch 'Escape to Chimp Eden' because chimps are our closest relatives and Eugene Cussons is doing such great work at his sanctuary for apes. It will break my heart if I can't watch Animal Planet, but I will stop completely if Discovery goes ahead with 'Palin's Alaska' because I KNOW she cares nothing for her state nor for the animals and environment of her state much less the remainder of our country. I also enjoy the TLC channel, but will also fore-go the programs there just to make my point. Palin does not belong on The Learning Channel because she is not only IGNORANT about any subject, but also because she REFUSES TO LEARN anything about any subject.
ReplyDeleteShe is supposed to have a college education, but listening to her 'word salad' and her put-on accent, I know I am smarter than she by far although I did not finish college. She doesn't have the knowledge of a 5th grader and I would love to see her up against a 5th grader with any subjects asked [but she would not be allowed to obtain the questions beforehand] and I know who would come out the winner in that question and answer session.
Discovery will lose many of its viewers if they continue down this road to nowhere with her. Shame on them for even considering this action.
Two thumbs way up!
ReplyDeleteCarrie
The parent organization, Discovery, may be dedicated to nature. Some of their stations feature good nature programs, and their stores sell all kinds of nature-loving material. They certainly deserve the graphic advertisements.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, Sarah's program is scheduled for The Learning Channel, TLC, which is one of a number of channels operated by Discovery. In an article in New York Magazine, TLC's audience was described as down-market (middle of the country, low information, older viewers). It doesn't have a market on either coast.
Other programs listed on TLC's website are anything but Learning programs, for a Learning Channel. They follow the lives of a family with 19 children (and counting), little people (midgets), policewomen, Toddlers and Tiaras (doesn't anyone remember what happend to Jon Benet Ramsay?). There are shows about a tattoo parlor, hoarders who are buried alive in their own junk, or we can take an inside look into the lives of people who are battling addiction. Oh, and I left the greatest publicity machine that TLC has, Kate, formerly of Jon & Kate, who has to make a spectacle of her life to support her large family. Sarah is in elite company.
I have listed just some of TLC's programs. For a more complete list: http://tlc.discovery.com/tv/tv-shows.html Other programs of note include making custom cars, motorcycles, cakes, chocolates, house make-overs, heli-loggers (the most dangerous job on earth, considering that they are flying around in the air), and my personal favorite: I didn't know I was pregnant (now, who does that sound like???). TLC also sponsors the Miss American Contest, so I see another possibility for Sarah!
I do not disagree with the graphic pictures showing Sarah's brutal, nasty Alaska, but given the above selection of freak shows, I think that dead wolves fit right into the Learning Channels lack of taste.
I think that in addition, any sponsors on TLC should be receiving mail, email, fax or any other form of communication that state that their products and/or services will be boycotted if they sponsor a program that pretends to cast Sarah Palin as a champion of Alaskan nature. The idea of boycotting sponsors worked with Glenn Beck; he has lost a good number of advertisers and his ratings are dropping. Yes, appeal to nature lovers, but we should also make an economic impact by refusing to buy anything associated with a Sarah Palin TV show.
Sarah is just where she belongs, on a network that specializes in freak shows. We are going to have to do without those sharp knives, very absorbent cloth, and some kind of vegetable chopper if we are going to make a statement.
I don't know how many times i have signed those petitions and made calls.
ReplyDeleteJust hope it will show results eventually.
These ads are pretty potent. Let's hope they work.
ReplyDeleteIf Sarah could legally sell her kids on the Home Shopping Network she would.
ReplyDeleteI WILL boycott any sponsor who advertises during Palin's show. She has openly advocated violence against political opponents, is a failed former governor who had ethics complaints at the rate of about one every three weeks, she is an enemy of the environment, she is an ignorant fool, and she is pathologically incapable of telling the truth on any subject.
ReplyDeleteWhy would Discovery hire such a divisive clown?
There should be a cost to hiring such a narcissistic grifter as a face of the network.
Found a post on another site comparing $carah hosting an enviromental program to Jeffrey Dahmer hosting a cooking show. I'm just outraged that anyone would disparage Jeffrey Dahmer that way. Shocked, I tell you
ReplyDeletePHOENIX -- Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin will soon be returning to the Valley, this time as the keynote speaker for the Arizona Sportsmen for Wildlife Conservations Second Annual Heritage Banquet.
ReplyDeleteGovernor Palin, who is also an avid hunter and angler, will share her views on wildlife conservation and the importance of protecting Arizona’s hunting and fishing heritage for future generations of sportsmen.
Pete Cimellaro, the Heritage Banquet Chairman, said that there is perhaps no one better than Palin to speak about their organization’s goals and to serve as a role model for women and families to participate in the state’s wildlife conservation efforts.
http://www.abc15.com/content/entertainment/localevents/story/Sarah-Palin-returns-to-the-Valley-for-Phoenix/FvfNNpbMHk-MaRJK0s5IKg.cspx
We have all seen Sarah's hectic post-governor schedule. Please point out the dates when Sarah actually went hunting or fishing. (That photo op right after she quit doesn't count as fishing. She was posing for TV cameras and doing interviews. Sarah has been reelin' in the bucks, shootin'out nasty comments and killin' the English language.
ReplyDeleteMaybe one of the avid sportsmen will hand Sarah a rifle and she can do her Annie Oakley routine and hit a bull's eye across the room. Don't forget to duck, boys.
Anonymous @5:42 PM
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about TLC programing, i hardly watch it . My problem with it is that none of the other contributors on TLC(to my knowledge)actively encourage drilling in nature reserves or taking animals of endangered lists or saying that wildlife is best served next to the mashed potatoes or that climate change is snake oil science etc.
In my book she is what is wrong with this world and it's destruction (drill baby drill) and i will not watch it . If they did a documentary on her life i wouldn't care either but the fact that they are trying to sell it as a nature show bugs me. However i will not boycott other programs because in my book the programs that do good work or have a good message shouldn't suffer ratings because of her, i just want her show to bomb if it ends up being aired.
I think the most important thing is to contact the advertisers on either the Learning Channel, the Discovery Channel, Animal Planet or any of Discovery’s channels. While the Palin’s show is on the Learning Channel, the advertisers trying to reach the viewers of programs on that channel may not be much interested in the environment. I think advertisers on some of the other channels, particularly Discovery Channel and Animal Planet may care more about this issue. So are some folks willing to watch these channels and provided a list of advertisers for particular shows. It would also be helpful if someone would do a contact list for those advertisers, particularly an email contact.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who grew up in a "Sierra Club Family" I have always been extremely concerned about environmental and wildlife conservation. I made the call and left my message. I hope they get enough feedback from people like us to change their minds. Anon @5:35 has a good point, we need to contact the advertisers.
ReplyDelete