NBC Cancels "Book of Daniel"


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"The Book of Daniel," an NBC drama series about an Episcopal priest who has a potentially alcoholic wife and an adult gay son in his troubled family, was canceled by the network on Tuesday, just three weeks after it debuted.

NBC said it dropped the show because of low ratings.

Before the first episode aired, the series stirred outcry from a coalition of religious conservative groups led by the American Family Association. The groups accused the show of portraying Christians in an unflattering way, as the main character -- a priest named Daniel Webster -- struggles with an addiction to prescription pain pills and receives private visits with a bearded, laid-back Jesus Christ.

"I think it's a travesty that small-minded special-interest groups were able to convince people that tolerance, love, growth and acceptance are not Christian values," said Jack Kenny, the show's openly gay creator.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/po/20060125/co_po/...gonbookofdaniel

It's amazing how a small group of people, the AFA in this case, can kill a TV series. I am always surprised the PTC (Parents Television Council) has not yet been able to have professional wrestling removed from TV, their leader has been fighting against wrestling for years. There has to be a reason people feel the need to keep shows off the air, there has to be a reason they think that veiwers are not able to seperate TV show from reality and not able to change the channel or turn the TV off. The way television and radio are censored is wrong in my opinion. If a show has words in it I don't want my kids to hear, I can change the channel. If a show is too violent or too dirty, I can change the channel. I can even set my cable box to not allow the kids to access those channels without my passcode, so the argument that they'd watch "bad things" when I was not around is moot at best. Whyt do the most sensitive people get to make all the rules for those of us with a thick skin, or those of us who just have any skin at all? Some of the rules are waaay out there! I have heard the names of body parts bleeped out, the proper names for body parts! Why? Why, why why?

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I am always surprised the PTC (Parents Television Council) has not yet been able to have professional wrestling removed from TV, their leader has been fighting against wrestling for years.

Well, that is because Vince McMahon is the son of Satan, and his daddy watches his back. :fear::lol:

Wrestling is on cable, not network, TV. And the typical wrestling fan doesn't really care about the PTC, anyway.

But it seems the show was cancelled due to rating, not any pressure from the PTC. Odd, since normally such protests have the opposite effect...people want to watch to see what all the fuss is about. Don't give the PTC too much credit.

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The PTC didn't have anything to do with Book of David. The PTC is on a mission to cancel wrestling, nothing else, at least, nothing else I know of. It was the AFA (American Family Assoc.) who was against Book of David, and I bleieve they had a hand in its demise. At least three NBC affiliates pulled the show before it even aired, I don't think that was a problem with ratings.

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Of course it was not a small group of people that caused the show to go off the air, it was first it never got a good audience that continued to watch it, The advertisers did not see the show as a good investment.

The fact is that the majority of people just did not want to or did not care to watch it. Look at shows like Howard Stern, and others who for years had advertisers and backing.

The show was basicly not "dirty" enough for the one side to care to watch and not family enough for regular people to care to watch it.

Keeping a show on TV is all about numbers how many are going to watch it, when a show does not have the numbers, advertisers will not back it. and add to that the fact that a large number ( not small number) of christians were going after the advertisers and it is merley numbers.

And honestly can you really say that it was a good plot or even good acting. Honestly now.

I never bocotted it myself, never wrote a letter on it, It should have been fairly obvoius from watching the second ( first show is always the best on bad shows) that it was doomed all by itself

Also a better title could have helped, may have stopped some of the critics and may have brought more draw from the non religious areas

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Actually, I saw every show and thought it was great! It was fresh and funny, yet still had a wonderful message about family, and honesty.

Sure it may have seemed off that this priest talks to an imaginary Jesus, but Jesus offered him comfort and advice. The last show, one of the kids got into some trouble and made bad choices..... the reaction of the dad and how it was handles was superb!! The elder father having to deal with his wife's Alzheimer’s was also poignant.

Focus on the family protested hard to get people to not watch... which is a shame because the message was incredibly family oriented.

I find it amazing that they protest this show but let things like the Office on the air.. go figure.

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I am sorry if my comments and opinons hurt anyones feelings. I do not and did not intend it to be focused at any one person or individual group. I have as do many specific feelings and we feel offended also at many public displays of certain behavior.

Most that know me, of course I am sorta loud mouth and always say what is on my mind but don't most of us.

It is truely merely add money that caused the show to be cancelled, not the content ( expect for perhaps really poor acting) come on guys you that watched it,

The other isse was the name, I think it really hurt the show. Alot of people who may have watched it for the show it was, did not because the name gave a appearance of a religious show. The name then also ofended the religios because of the naming.

Combine that with poor PR at the start of the series. Did anyone see it really advertised that much.

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I personally took no offense.. Just also stating my opinion.

Of course Ad money determines whether a show stays of goes.. and when you have someone as big as Focus on the Family protesting a show, few companies have the guts to throw money at a show that might get them boycotted by the entire evangelical community.

What I find sad is they protested it without even seeing it. Personally I think it promoted many of the things they "claim" to promote. I think their reaction was in large part, knee jerk.

I sure don't like having the evangelical community making decisions for me and I think if this show was given half a chance it would have made it.

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