NP? profits roll in from the War That Never Ends

[Doug Millison]

"[...] HBO, Showtime, and FX have all announced plans to produce TV movies
about the events, but on March 10th, CBS took the lead with a
commercial-free special, 9/11. An important documentary to some and
exploitative reality programming to others, the nearly uninterrupted
two-hour broadcast of footage shot inside the World Trade Center provided
an insider's view of the results of the terrorist attacks. Gaining an
estimated third of the American viewing population, 9/11 was profitable,
but at the expense of many of the victims' families who felt the timing was
inappropriate. Although they publicly voiced their concern, it did not
change the network's decision to air the program.  [...] There were no
commercials during news coverage on 9-11, so why did CBS' 9/11 need
Nextel's sponsorship? The reality is that just as 9-11 has been turned into
a pretext for the US government to do whatever it wants, it has been turned
into a product by networks to gain huge money. It is naïve to think the
expressed wishes of those whose lives were most affected by the events
would matter in the face of a massive, ratings-generating media spectacle.
Perhaps to refute such an argument, 9/11 was immediately followed by a CBS
newscast that reiterated just how "respectful" the show was to the victims
at this sensitive first anniversary. As far as a remembrance, the two
silent beams of light in New York City were far more tasteful than the
shocking and disturbing footage and sounds of 9/11. [...] Politicians and
journalists have repeatedly stated that the attacks on 9-11 were "the worst
acts of terrorism ever committed on U.S. soil." While that claim seems to
overlook Slavery and the genocide of Native Americans, the attacks were
certainly the worst ever televised on U.S. soil.[...]"

http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=12675