The Smothers Brothers’ losing battle is chronicled in the new book Dangerously Funnyby David Bianculli, a meticulously researched account of how ideological divisions and skirmishes over creative control led to the show’s demise. Bianculli’s implicit argument is that CBS’s censorship limited the show’s potential. You could argue that’s the opposite of what happened. Americans are conditioned to value free speech, and when we see things such as a media blackout in Iran, we’re reminded how good we have it. But censorship is more of a creative asset to television than it is a curse. The complete freedom to create and distribute that is possible in music, film, and the visual arts doesn’t exist in television, which is why hipsters go crazy for the latest indie band or indie movie, but no one ever talks about the hot indie TV show—because there’s no such thing.
Alston, on the upside of censorship.
I love the Smother’s Brothers. This also makes a good point that you can find independent film and music artists, but there are no “indie” TV programs. I’d like to see PBS try to air independently produced shows or miniseries. I don’t even know what is out there, if anything at all.
