There’s the real irony: While this rally seeks to make fun of Tea Party activists who advocate for freedom, Comedy Central is looking to tightly control the event as much as possible. Lame.
Irony reaches new heights as Comedy Central is going to “strictly prohibit filming” of the Rally to Restore Sanity/March to Keep Fear Alive. PJTV’s Washington Bureau chief Richard Pollock inquired with the Comedy Central’s senior vice president of corporate communications Steve Albani about receiving credentials. Albani claimed that Pollock would not be given credentials because of limited supply, and as such there would be no room on the “press riser” for PJTV’s camera and crew. When Pollock said that he’d be fine with filming not on the press riser, Albani said that filming would be “strictly prohibited” between 3rd and 7th streets on the National Mall (ground zero for the event). The email exchange is further down.
...
You don’t need credentials to film an event open to the public on federal land that has already permitted other media outlets. Comedy Central has not leased the National Mall, nor could it...
In fact, the Tea Party movement has done a bang-up job allowing as many kooky reporters and camera-toting people into their rallies, and simply found ways to deal with it without clamping down on free press...
Glenn Beck’s “Restoring Honor” rally granted 450 such credentials to journalists, but in the brief contact NewsBusters had with Beck’s staff there was no indication that any reporter who had requested credentials had been turned down.
Read more at the Washington Examiner:
“Rally to Restore Sanity� pledges to “strictly prohibit filming� at National Mall | Washington Examiner