Each year, Christmastime is moving farther away from a celebration of peace, joy and love toward media-promoted consumerism, violence and debauchery. From movies, to music to television, many of the messages this year were far from heartwarming.
Variety
By Tim Graham | November 2, 2015 | 10:33 AM EST
Peter Debruge, the “international film critic” at Variety, proclaimed himself mostly bored by The Peanuts Movie, but that didn’t mean he didn’t want to micromanage the classic cartoon into being more “progressive” about introducing a greater “diversity” into the classic cartoon.
Charlie Brown should go black? "While Franklin remains Charlie Brown’s only brown friend, a non-white love interest would have been as progressive as Schulz’s tomboyish depiction of Peppermint Patty was back in the day."
By Kyle Drennen | June 17, 2015 | 2:58 PM EDT
In a Tuesday article, Variety’s co-editor-in-chief Andrew Wallenstein slammed NBC for its series of exclusive interviews with ex-NAACP leader Rachel Dolezal: “...the most absurd aspect of NBC News’ Dolezal Day was how straight-faced its interviewers sat as their subject grew loonier the more she spoke.”
By Tim Graham | April 15, 2015 | 2:02 PM EDT
Bill Maher granted an interview with the Hollywood trade paper Variety, which mostly discussed his aversion to taping his HBO show Real Time instead of doing the show live – perhaps because that decision would mock the show’s title. But the jaw-dropping part came late in the article. Maher suggested the networks are “committing journalistic treason,” and Variety’s Brian Steinberg apparently failed to follow up.
NYT's Parker-Pope Posts on 'False Memories' in Williams' Defense — Four Days After NBC Pressure Was Known
By Tom Blumer | February 11, 2015 | 1:49 PM EST Tara Parker-Pope attempted a defense of disgraced NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams in an item ("Was Brian Williams a Victim of False Memory?") posted at the New York Times "Well" blog — late Monday afternoon. It even made Tuesday's New York version of the Old Gray Lady's print edition.
Parker-Pope's premise, similar to that used by Marison Bello at USA Today three days earlier — even using the same "expert" as a source — is that the Williams saga "offers a compelling case study in how memories can change and shift dramatically over time." Parker-Pope's post is particularly pathetic because it appeared online a full four days after Variety reported that Williams "had been counseled in the past by senior NBC News executives to stop telling the story in public." Over the next several days, other media outlets corroborated and built upon what Variety reported. In other words, even if one buys into the memory-shift idea, it can't possibly apply in the Williams case. Excerpts follow the jump (bolds are mine):
Wagon-Circling USAT Reporters Defend Brian Williams For 'False Memories' and Against 'Seething Reactions'
By Tom Blumer | February 7, 2015 | 10:48 AM EST At USA Today Friday afternoon, two of its reporters came down on the side of Brian Williams in the controversy over what even the often media-enabling Associated Press has called his "fake Iraq story."
Roger Yu tried to portray Williams as a victim of a "synergistic stretch" who is now having to defend himself against the "firestorm on the Internet and social media," while Marisol Bello, who covers "breaking news, poverty and urban affairs," wrote that "there are reasons that it's plausible" that "Williams would remember riding in a helicopter that was shot down if he was nowhere near it."
By Kyle Drennen | January 13, 2015 | 12:18 PM EST
On Monday's Today, while discussing celebrities at Sunday's Golden Globes expressing solidarity with the French following a series of terrorist attacks, Variety magazine senior editor Ramin Setoodeh made an odd assertion: "It was a very political night and Hollywood usually likes to avoid politics, but last night they went all in and they were very political."
By P.J. Gladnick | November 7, 2014 | 12:57 PM EST
Clay Aiken lost in a landslide in his campaign for a congressional seat from North Carolina yet he is overjoyed. Why? Because it is now apparent that winning was besides the point for Aiken. His real goal now appears to be a TV reality show as announced in Poltico. Unfortunately for reality show wannabee Clay his celebrity donors in Los Angeles feel as if they have been duped by the former "American Idol" contestant and are demanding that footage of their September 30 fundraiser not be used in the reality show.
By P.J. Gladnick | August 10, 2013 | 7:55 PM EDT
Matt Damon, the star of the movie "Elysium" and its director, Neill Blomkamp, have both vociferously denied that their film is political. Well, perhaps they might want to consult with Jodie Foster who also stars in this movie to get their stories in proper alignment because she expressed a very different opinion.
First let us read the not very convincing denial by Blomkamp of any political motivation as reported by Fox News:
By Kyle Drennen | September 26, 2011 | 12:33 PM EDT
Variety magazine just released its 2011 "Women's Impact Report" – examining the influence of women in media – which included NBC "Today" co-host Ann Curry, who was described as "'Today's' voice of intelligence, compassion."
This is the same Ann Curry that could not find Illinois on a map. The same Ann Curry that wished all weapons could be inflatable toys. The same Ann Curry that proclaimed that a blender powered by a bicycle could actually "save the environment!"
Read the Media Research Center's full Profile in Bias of Curry.
By Lachlan Markay | August 10, 2010 | 11:39 AM EDT 
Variety Magazine TV critic Brian Lowry - formerly a reporter for NPR and the Los Angeles Times - surely was not a member of JournoList. But he sure writes like he was. Lowry took a page directly out of the Spencer Ackerman Guide to Dubious Racism Accusations in his most recent column, claiming the Fox News Channel caters to racial fear and resentment to sell its brand.
Variety Magazine TV critic Brian Lowry - formerly a reporter for NPR and the Los Angeles Times - surely was not a member of JournoList. But he sure writes like he was. Lowry took a page directly out of the Spencer Ackerman Guide to Dubious Racism Accusations in his most recent column, claiming the Fox News Channel caters to racial fear and resentment to sell its brand.Lowry provided no examples to back up his claims. He did not give voice to any opposing views. The only evidence he offered to back up his accusations were quotes from "thoughtful conservative" (read: not-so-conservative conservative) David Frum and liberal Washington Post blogger Greg Sargent.
In true JournoLista fashion, Lowry cited Fox's coverage of the New Black Panther scandal at the Justice Department as evidence of the channel's attempts to "delegitimize Obama" by stoking racial fears. Just as Ackerman advocated with the Jeremiah Wright scandal, Lowry cried racism in order to avoid any actual discussion of this administration's strange affinity for racialist radicals - or any of Fox's actual coverage of the scandal.
By P.J. Gladnick | June 20, 2010 | 1:12 PM EDT
The Venezuelan people are forced to suffer through a marathon of Hugo Chavez appearances on their own television sets. Anything less than total adoration of the weekly host of "Aló Presidente" is severely punished. So with all this unwanted overexposure to the overbearing El Jefe, is it any wonder that Venezuelans are somewhat less than enthusiastic about shelling out their money to watch yet more homage paid to Chavez by filmmaker Oliver Stone in the form of his documentary, South of the Border? As Variety reports, the latest Stone film has turned into a complete bomb in Chavez's own economically troubled country:
Despite a PR and marketing blitz that had Oliver Stone on a whirlwind tour of Latin America, his latest documentary "South of the Border" has sunk like a rock at the Venezuelan box office.
Local observers in Venezuela have reported empty cinemas, indicating a stunning indifference to Stone's pic, a documentary about South American leaders that devotes a hefty amount of screen time to the country's President Hugo Chavez. In the 12 days after its June 4 debut, it grossed only $18,601 on 20 screens, according to Global Rentrak. Showings on mobile screens in rural areas (where Chavez has more popular support) have attracted crowds, but these screenings are free.