Tim Robbins Decries Media 'Abyss' in NAB Keynote

Actor Tim Robbins pre-empted a planned dialogue on new media at the National Association of Broadcasters' annual show and launched a humorous, profanity-laced attack on both the state of the country and the consolidation of viewpoints being carried by national media. “We are at an abyss as an industry and as a country,” Robbins said. He said the radio industry had been on the way to creating a single “national playlist” before XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio came along, and he criticized other national media for not relentlessly pursuing what he carefully but clearly implied were lies of the current president, George W. Bush, in the relentless fashion they went after his predecessor, Bill Clinton, for his sexual dalliance with an intern. He also called on the industry to turn back from a kind of reporting that reduces the variety of voices being delivered on any given issue and distracts the public with excessive reporting about starlets stepping out of cars with no panties on. Such news takes “no energy" and requires little thought, he said. “Shouldn't broadcasters see themselves as part of a larger picture, isn't there an obligation to honestly report on what’s going on, to pursue stories past their headlines," Robbins said. “Haven't criminal acts occurred in government? Shouldn't there be accountability for inept policy decisions? Shouldn't someone be fired? And you know something? I didn't hear any of that, because I am still thinking about that starlet getting out of the car without the panties." Robbins told broadcasters they can either use their power to "lift us up" into a "more enlightened age" or they can "hide behind that old adage: I'm just a businessman. I provide what the audience wants." He said the "pornographic obsession with celebrity culture," and divisive coverage of racial and social issues should be left behind, as should focus groups and fears about job security "Enough is enough," he said. "Now is the time to move away from our lesser selves. Now is the time to stop making money on the misfortunes of others and the prurient and salacious desires" of the public.
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Listen to the speech
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Tim Robbins Blasts TV Broadcasters at NAB Show (video)
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