Variety:
MSNBC is taking its "Lockup" brand overseas.
News cabler has picked up the spinoff "Lockup: World Tour," which will include visits to prisons in Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
Want to reply to a comment? Hint: Click "Reply" at the bottom of the comment; after being approved your comment will appear directly underneath the comment you replied to
they need to cross this program with Reno 911.
What a stupid series to begin with-
Why is MSNBC to cheap to put
on better programming??
This is why MSNBC can't beat CNN or FOX,
because they don't take their 'down-time' serious-
BIG MISTAKE MSNBC!!!
When are you going to ask your viewers what WE want to see?
It's a joke that you put this lockup stuff on and CNN is 24 hours.
It makes you look cheap. Get to playing with the BIG BOYS or someone else will fill the void.
We want a political news channel that values truth. Is that too much to ask?
MSNBC is co-owned by the richest Corporations in America, General Electric and Microsoft.
Why is it that they are spending so much of their resources on Prison Porn, which is essentially what this programming is?
America's population is a mere 5% of the World's population and yet we lock of 25% of all people on earth who are in Prison today.
By the way, what we are seeing on these shows are not Prisons, but rather Gulags, no different than the ones that existed in Stalinist Soviet Russia, Germany under the Nazis and in China under Mao.
Only difference is is that these American Gulags are a little more high tech and have duly applied the lessons learned from the ones in the past and built on them.
Right now we're still at the stage where we're just locking people up en masse. If things get worse, which they probably will, history is replete with grim examples of what happens at the next levels.
Again, people need to be asking why it is that Microsoft and GE are sponsoring this heinous material?
What is the benefit of it to them?
Think about it long enough and I promise you it will produce some very uncomfortable answers.
Couple of points:
Microsoft sold their half of MSNBC to NBCU awhile back.
You answered the reason why the shows have merit with your own point, "America's population is a mere 5% of the World's population and yet we lock of 25% of all people on earth who are in Prison today."
Microsoft retains 18% of the stock and is still a 50-50 partner in MSNBC.
I don't think these shows have merit, far from it.
And I don't think our Corporate Masters of the World's largest companies are running over a full 24 hours of this chilling, vile and downright frightening stuff a week because they are popular and/or garner ratings.
I think these shows are on the air, just because they can show them, and they want the General Public to simply get used to the idea that such places like these Gulags exist.
Get inured and numb to it, and people stop questioning the fact of their horrific, nightmare existence, just take it for granted that that is the way it is.
Creepy.
I don't even bother to switch to MSNBC on week-ends.
But I do watch Ed, Keith and Rachel all the time.
I like Ed more and more every day, he's being doing a pretty good job so far.
Why MSNBC is so infatuated with this subject is unfathomable. I guess they must think that by showing these prison reality shows that they are doing some kind of public service that scares kids straight.
Yes, if you are MSNBC and you are unwilling to make sure your network is not on the majority of basic cable plans and Fox is because they spend a little money, it probably gets pretty good ratings. Incredible stupidity.
These shows do remind me of a neighborhood i once lived in.
There is only one reason MSNBC produces Lock-Up shows. They make money. MSNBC is not PBS.
MSNBC doesn't understand it's own potential. They could be the at the media forefront of a new cultural shift in this country and continue to expand their position as the main voice of a growing, progressive movement. Instead, they go for the quick ratings fix with this Lockdown dreck. Disappointing.
One of the few cogent comments on this topic.
That's it in a nutshell. Thanks.
Boooo! hissssss Lock-up sucks!!!
How about an in-depth series of investigative reports? Is it too much to ask for news on a 'NewsNetwork'?
Ugh what is the demographic (other than chayefsky) that wastes their time with that? What about throwing in a couple documentaries or something? I'd even rather watch "the life of Michael Jackson." or even Sarahhh Palin for that matter.
Maybe they can run it in the AM instead of David Vitter Joe!
ROFL. Thank you for excluding me from that hated demographic.
Okay, I admit it. I'm addicted to this series. It holds some grim fascination for me. Besides, who says voyeurism has to be sexual?
Sigh. Why?? The amount of air time this purported "news" channel wastes on such drek is astounding. How about some *real* documentaries on critical issues? Oh, wait - that would take investment in things like researchers and writers and producers. What was I thinking?
TV documentaries generally attract very small audiences. Plus they can be very expensive to produce. When MSNBC and CNN was producing this programming did you watch? Micheal Moore, the most successful documentary film maker of all time failed on TV. The boob tube is an entertainment medium for the most part. Even the Food channel has cut back on cooking shows for more entertainment.
Yes, they are expensive to produce (see my comment re investment). I haven't had cable forever so I don't recall the vaunted days, if they ever existed, when either MSNBC or CNN actually did documentaries, though I do remember when CNN gave you NEWS instead of gasbaggery - which they still do, but only if you can see CNN International when you're out of the country! I no longer watch CNN at all and I watch exactly two hours of MSNBC (Maddow & Olbermann). Car chases, prison shows, and endless repeats of horny dudes being arrested on Predator are no doubt cheap and draw ratings; they're also better suited to Spike TV.
I can not understand the facination with prison shows.
I can not understand the facination with "short eyes" Michael Jackson.
I can not understand the facination with Jon & Kate.
I think I am getting old and crabby.
You've got lots of company.
I agree. The concept seems dismal.
The same goes for highly scripted, carefully rehearsed, "reality" shows.
The truth about modern TV is 'all you need is a 1'.
Years ago double digits ratings were required for a successful program. Today all you need is a 1 rating. You can bee #1 in cable news like O'Reilly with ratings between 1.5 and 2.
Programmers are finding segments of audience never before catered to and creating cheaply produced but profitable shows. It's only going to bet worse (or better if you like this stuff).
Not old and crabby- intelligent and frustrated. Me too.
This makes me laugh. I don't know anybody who watches Lockup. In fact, everyone wants to know why MSNBC airs it in the first place.
Because it gets better ratigs then olbernut
link
99% can miss the show but money is made on just 1%.
Good point!
MSNBC is unwatchable till maybe 3pm ET on weekdays.
Tamryn and David do a reasonably good job.
And after that it's the political shows.
Favorites are Ed, Keith and Rachel.
Matthews sometimes is too flighty.
But, the morning and early afternoon line up is pure drivel.
And the weekends, forget about it.
Mathews has been somewhat unwatchable lately. The guy just seem to be one step behind on everything. At least he got the hint and eased off on the Buchanan appearances and replaced him with some other more tolerable whacko's.
They should replace Matthews with someone who will let their guests speak without interruption (and without a spit bath). Pat Buchanan is so hard right he should have a permanent spot on Faux News.
Does ANYBODY watch this dreck?
Believe it or not, but they usually win the weekend ratings with it.
Loading comments…
Posted: 07- 2-09 10:41 AM