Axing Private Lynch

In a move surely unrelated to “fatigue, stress, mechanical malfunctions and a disastrous series of errors” being much less exciting than an ambush, attack, and heroic soldier defending herself with every bullet in her revolver, CBS is cancelling its Private Lynch movie. CBS Chairman Leslie Moonves also admits that the apparent quid pro quo of offering a movie of the week in exchange for an interview may have been “over the line”:

“As these companies [CBS News and CBS Entertainment] become more and more vertically integrated, you know, sometimes you do go over the line.”

If Mr. Moonves had reached that conclusion a bit earlier he might have saved Viacom $1.7 million in 2002 campaign contributions and lobbying expenditures leading into the FCC’s media ownership rules changes vote this year.

AB