Murdoch Puts Stake Through Buffy-lovers' Hearts

Most of the time, my writing about the profit motives of big media focuses on the negative consequences of media economics over mainstream journalism and the free-flow of information, or on the production and promotion of increasingly violent, misogynistic portrayals of women in entertainment fare.

This time, I have nothing that lofty to report... except that Rupert Murdoch has killed my favorite geeky pleasure. (That's right, geeky pleasure, not guilty pleasure -- I am not ashamed!) Seems that Fox's desire to "protect their interests" has led Murdoch's entertainment co. to vanquish the Buffy the Vampire Slayer musical sing-a-long tour:

After learning that fans of the canceled cult favorite have been, horror of horrors, demonstrating their undying love for the show by attending theatrical screenings of the Emmy-nominated musical episode "Once More, with Feeling" for the past year, 20th Century Fox's attorneys started sharpening their stakes.

The studio, which owns the rights to the former WB (then UPN) dramedy, red-lighted the dress-up and sing-along tour this week, canceling all future screenings--including a three-night run scheduled to kick off tonight in St. Louis at the Tivoli theater, which had already sold out for Friday's show.
...
20th Century Fox spokesman Chris Alexander said that "significant payments" would be owed to the unions to compensate for the screenings, adding that TV shows rarely are shown on the big screen anyway except under special circumstances, like charity events.

"We have to protect our interests, and that's what we're doing," Alexander said.

For those of you who haven't been inducted into Joss Whedon's strong-young-woman-saves- the-world-over-and-over-and-over-again cult, you probably don't know that years after the Buffy series left the small screen, Buffy geeks (yes, me included, she freely admits) gathered together in movie theaters in numerous cities -- some dressed as vamps, slayers, witches and watchers -- to view the Buffy musical episode on the the big screen with actors performing a high-camp, live-action version of the show while a couple of hundred fans sang along in unison to lyrics such as the following, from an opening number in which Buffy and her Scooby gang are trying to figure out why the whole town seems suddenly compelled to randomly burst into song:

Giles: I've got a theory, that it's a demon.
A dancing demon... no, something isn't right there.

Willow: I've got a theory, some kid is dreamin',
and we're all stuck inside his wacky Broadway nightmare.

Xander: I've got a theory we should work this out.

All but Buffy: It's getting eerie, what's this cheery singing all about?

Xander: It could be witches, some evil witches...

(Willow and Tara glare at him)

Xander: Which is ridiculous 'cause witches, they were persecuted,
Wiccan, good, and loved the earth,
and women power, and I'll be over here.

So, instead of the usual outrage I share with you about corporate news censorship of information crucial to our democracy, or the glorification of rape, anorexia or racism in TV, movies and advertising, today I'm just sad to note that another byproduct of corporate media greed is the squelching of simple, silly fun that is not only a buzz-kill for the cult-o-Buffy, but also bad business for Fox. The folks who turned "Once More with Feeling" into a Rocky Horror-esque sing-a-long phenom were keeping love for the series alive, which translates into continued interest in -- and, therefore, sales of -- DVDs, comic books and other merchendise for a show that has been off the air since 2003. In TV years, that's eons. By dusting the sing-a-long in the name of "protecting their interests," Fox isn't just bringing down the party, they're cutting off a revenue stream by generating ill-will with fans.

And just like an evil vampire, that sucks.

(Tip o' the hat to Liza Dichter, board member of WIMN, for the link to this story.)

Are you a Buffy fan with favorite show moments to mention, or do you have some other piece of Murdoch-related ire to share? To post your feedback or for more media criticism from dozens of women writers analyzing media coverage, continue reading here.

This post originally appeared at WIMN's Voices: A Group Blog on Women and the Media , a project of Women In Media & News, the national women's media analysis, education and advocacy group. To bring Jennifer L. Pozner to speak to your campus or community group, or to send WIMN blog tips, email info [at] wimnonline [dot] org. To subscribe to WIMN's free media alert list, see the Action Center at http://www.wimnonline.org/action/.

Comments

[drblack]

I hope people start having get togethers like this in their homes. That is perfectly legal if no money changes hands.
Fox is foolish because this would help keep Buffy in the spotlight and keep the money flowing.
This has often happened though, where control is more important than profit or decency.

[mamacat]

Apologies, but,
My family made me watch every Buffy episode ever made. While I'll admit to enjoying most of them, I was soooo glad when the series finally went off the air.

[roniweb]

When I got that email, I was shocked! I went to one show in Chicago and it was packed. FOX should let the show go on and set up merchandise tables. I'd be more willing to buy a tee of dreamy Xander at a show than thru their website.

Ah...Xander.

[Countess]

Murdoch is busy throwing parties and raising money for Hillary Clinton. She must be the best candidate money can buy.

[protagonia]

Rupe is scared of anything that encourages the evisceration of vampires.

[fact finder]

My wife and I are BIG Buffy and Angle fans. We both wish that both shows would come back. The reason that Murdoch took the show off was because GOOD ALWAYS PREVAILED OVER EVIL. And that scares the shit out of him.

[RumiSouth]

What Fox has done to the "Buffy" franchise is bad enough. But I will NEVER forgive Fox for what they did to "Firefly," which was the best scifi show if the last ten years, period.

[BillZBubb]

I always suspected Fox was really Wolfram & Hart. And wasn't Murdoch the mayor of Sunnydale?

[clevelandchick]

No decent liberal should watch ANY Fox Network, they are all blocked on all of my sets. Rupert Murdoch will never make a dime off me if I can help it.

[DemandTruth]

Ah, a fellow Buffy fan! You can always tell us because we're strong, witty, fanciful and just a little dark! I haven't been to Rocky Horror in years, but I would totally LOVE to see Buffy in this way. Too bad the episode is only an hour! There's a lot of Buffy fans out there. Maybe we can boycott or something to change their minds. FOX just sucks. They never let us have ANY fun.

[westwind]

If I didn't already own all the Buffy and Angel seasons on DVD, I'd tell Fox that I would refuse to buy them until they got some humanity and figured out that they would lose $0.00 by allowing this tour, and in fact would gain many more fans for the show and increase their sales of merchandise. But I'll still tell them they suck (and not in the good way.)