CNN and NBC Scrap Projects on Hillary Clinton By AMY CHOZICK and BILL CARTER Published: September 30, 2013 The ideas seemed simple enough: a documentary on CNN and an NBC mini-series that would capitalize on the popularity of one of the world’s most visible public figures. But nothing is simple when it comes to Hillary Rodham Clinton. Both sides of the political aisle registered objections to the projects, which would have explored the life of the former first lady and potential 2016 presidential candidate. Members of the news divisions at NBC and CNN publicly protested the decision by their networks to go ahead with them. On Monday, the networks said they were abandoning their projects, bringing to an end two initiatives that were announced with much fanfare over the summer. CNN had commissioned Charles H. Ferguson, an Oscar-winning documentary maker, to examine Mrs. Clinton’s life on film. NBC announced this summer at a conference in Beverly Hills, Calif., that it had approved a mini-series about Mrs. Clinton, a former secretary of state, in which Diane Lane would portray her. Both ideas quickly became lightning rods. Reince Priebus, the chairman of the Republican National Committee, called the planned films a “thinly veiled attempt at putting a thumb on the scales of the 2016 presidential election.” He threatened to refuse to work with CNN or NBC on any presidential primary debates if the network moved forward with the projects. But as Republicans publicly worried that the projects would cast Mrs. Clinton in a favorable light, aides trying to guard her image privately grumbled about the projects, according to a person close to Mrs. Clinton who would not discuss private conversations for attribution. The aides expressed concern to CNN that a for-profit documentary, which would be released theatrically and broadcast on CNN, would pose a potential conflict with its news coverage, especially since the cable channel had no creative control over it. They contended that the NBC mini-series, while not a direct conflict with the separately run NBC News division, would try to enhance ratings by focusing on the more melodramatic aspects of Mrs. Clinton’s life. Over coffee at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in the Georgetown, Mr. Ferguson met with Nick Merrill, a press aide to Mrs. Clinton. Mr. Ferguson requested access and interviews to make his documentary. But what was supposed to be a cordial get-together quickly became confrontational, said the person close to Mrs. Clinton, who was briefed on the meeting. Mr. Ferguson aggressively promoted his résumé — which included the documentary “Inside Job” about Wall Street’s role in the 2008 financial crisis, and a 2007 film, “No End In Sight,” about the American occupation of Iraq. (Mrs. Clinton has strong support on Wall Street, and as a senator in 2002 she voted to authorize the use of force in Iraq.) Mr. Merrill had not seen Mr. Ferguson’s films, but expressed skepticism about his intentions after he complained to Mr. Merrill that Clinton aides had told potential sources not to cooperate with his documentary. Mr. Ferguson said he felt Mr. Merrill had “interrogated” him and was dismissing the project because of Mr. Ferguson’s history of tough coverage. Both men left the meeting feeling uneasy. What followed was a three-month tug of war between Clinton aides and Mr. Ferguson, who had planned to explore Mrs. Clinton’s life and career from her days working at the Rose Law Firm in Little Rock, Ark. On Monday, Mr. Ferguson abandoned the documentary and CNN said it would not find another filmmaker to continue the project. In a commentary posted on The Huffington Post, Mr. Ferguson said pressure from Clinton aides who did not want the film made became too intense. “I decided that I couldn’t make a film of which I would be proud,” he wrote. “And so I’m canceling.” He declared his failure to win the access he needed “a victory for the Clintons, and for the money machines that both political parties have now become.” (Mr. Ferguson contributed more than $30,000 to the Obama Victory Fund in 2008, which supported Barack Obama’s presidential campaign.) CNN declined to respond to questions about the Clinton team’s contact with the network. In a statement, it said, “We understand and respect” Mr. Ferguson’s decision not to move forward. NBC, in a statement, said it canceled its mini-series “after reviewing and prioritizing our slate of movie/mini-series development.” Several NBC executives denied there had been any pressure from the Clinton side that affected the decision. Nor was the unhappiness of members of NBC’s News division a critical factor, they said. One senior NBC executive said that NBC did not specifically bow to pressure from either the Republican National Committee or the Clinton camp. But the executive acknowledged that the Clinton project had already generated so much criticism that it was deemed not worth pursuing because it would only invite more as it went into production. The NBC executives would not speak for attribution because the network was limiting comment to its official statement. The premature deaths of the film and the mini-series (which did not yet have a script) reflect the sensitive territory both CNN and NBC had entered in starting the projects. Though Mrs. Clinton has repeatedly said she has not decided whether she will run, she is at this early stage widely considered the Democratic front-runner for the 2016 presidential nomination. As such, she would draw waves of positive and negative attention that would inevitably surround any projects devoted to her. In addition to Mr. Priebus’s complaints, David Brock, a Clinton ally and president of the liberal media watchdog group Media Matters for America, published an open letter protesting the CNN and NBC projects. Mr. Ferguson said he believed Clinton aides had influenced Mr. Brock to protest the CNN documentary. “My own personal view is that the principal reason they placed the David Brock thing was to broadcast ‘Don’t speak to this guy,’ ” Mr. Ferguson said in a phone interview. Mr. Brock said Clinton aides had not encouraged him to write the letter to CNN and NBC and that the letter was not intended to discourage sources from cooperating with Mr. Ferguson, though he said he was pleased if that was the unintended consequence. “He seems to be blaming the Clintons and their supporters for his own failure to find a story,” Mr. Brock said by telephone. “My concern was that there would be potentially an anti-Clinton animus to this film, and what he wrote in The Huffington Post today shows that I was right.” Mr. Ferguson said in the interview that he believed that Clinton aides tried to stonewall his attempts to persuade people to talk on camera. “They knew this wasn’t a whitewash,” he said. “And my very strong impression was that anything other than a whitewash is something they don’t want to support.” He specifically cited Philippe Reines, who has worked for Mrs. Clinton since her years in the Senate. Mr. Ferguson said Mr. Reines had “contacted various people at CNN, interrogated them and expressed concern about alleged conflicts of interest generated because my film was a for-profit endeavor.” Mr. Reines and Mr. Merrill declined to comment. But a person close to the Clintons confirmed that the Clinton camp had reached out on to Vinnie Malhotra, senior vice president for development and acquisitions at CNN Worldwide, to express “confusion” about how a news organization could cover Mrs. Clinton while also producing a for-profit movie about her life. This person close to the Clintons said no one had reached out directly to NBC to express similar concerns because its news and entertainment divisions are separate. CNN’s planned documentary was being handled by a separate division, CNN Films.
Posted on: Tue, 01 Oct 2013 05:01:43 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015