I'm taking a personal day today during the busy holiday/end-of-year season, buut should be back tomorrow. Nevertheless, I did want to offer a few brief comments on the decision by Sony Pictures to cancel the release of The Interview in the face of terrorist threats. I sort of understood the earlier decision by theater chains to cancel showing the movie. After all, they could have been legally required to beef up security in respose to such threats. And the holiday season is a significant part of theaters' business; having people stay away from the movies in December would be very tough economically on a thin-margin business that's more about selling popcorn than making apolitical statement (these factors tend to distinguish the movie theater biz from newspapers that pulled cartoons in the face of terror threats. The studio's decision--which apparently extends to home video and to future projects--is tougher to understand, given the degree to which Hollywood likes to think it Speaks Truth to Power. Then again, Tinseltown has been pandering to the People's Republic of China and domestic interest groups for years. Bowing to the treats of hackers aligned with North Korea is just another slidefurther down the slope.
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