CBS at TCA: Controversial Comedy "2 Broke Girls" Incites a Heated Exchange - Ed Martin

Ed Martin Live from the 2012 Winter Television Critics Association TourCBS had been on the receiving end of much problematic buzz during the first week of the Winter 2012 Television Critics Association tour because it had revealed days ago that it was not going to present a session with its wellliked entertainment president Nina Tassler But after days of protestations from TCA officers and members alike the network yesterday included a session with Tassler after allContinuing the trend of disarming executive honesty that has characterized the broadcast portion of the tour she began her session by offering a deeply personal explanation as to why she had initially not been included on CBS39 schedule Turns out it was her idea to change things upquotTCA makes me a nervous wreckquot Tassler admitted surprising those of us who have always found her to be so comfortable on stage quotI know so many of you in this room and we39ve had so many conversations over the eight nine years we39ve been doing this It39s just that TCA is a forum that is challenging That being said we had an amazing year You have the stats They39re really remarkable We39re incredibly proud And I thought how we achieved that success isn39t necessarily best expressed in this sort of warm and fuzzy roomquot Not surprisingly that last comment sent a wave of laughter rippling through the roomquotI thought maybe during the day we would have a chance to talk about the subtle nuances of what we do and how we do it and the strategies and the planning and the creative passion we bring to what we do every day and how fortunate we are to work with very gifted showrunnersquot Tassler continued as the laughter subsided quotSo that really was the motive And I swear to you I39m the most respectful person in the world It really wasn39t a sign of disrespect I have tremendous respect for everybody and the job that they do It was really an attempt to get really quickly to the heart of our success which is our shows and our stars and the writing and so on I just wanted to explain thatquotTassler39s humble bumble would have been the big story of CBS39 day had an unexpectedly tense session with the producer and stars of the network39s new sitcom smash 2 Broke Girls not boiled over about an hour later Its defensive showrunner Michael Patrick King clashed with determined critics hung up on the show39s racial stereotypes and raunchy humor resulting in one of the most combustible sessions in many a TCA tourSeveral critics were perturbed about the show39s very diverse supporting characters asserting that they are onedimensional stereotypes that were not fully developed during the first half of the show39s first season King clearly annoyed by this line of questioning tried to explain that since the characters are seen for only a few minutes a week it takes time to fully explore who they are quotThe characters are dimensional and they39re seen in segments of 21 minutes which limits the amount of dimension you can seequot he said tersely quotSo I will call you in five years and you39ll have accrued enough time to figure out if these characters became fully fledged outquot SnapOther reporters dared to ask about the show39s signature adult humor much of it about vaginas and the appropriateness of including such content in an early evening time periodquotIt39s 830 on Monday on CBS in 2012quot King proclaimed quotIt39s a very different world than 830 on Monday on CBS in 1994 I consider our jokes really 39classy dirty39 I think they39re 39high lowbrow39 I think they39re fun and sophisticated and naughty and I think everybody likes a good naughty joke The show is ballsy It is right in your face and hopefully funnyquotquotAre there restrictions on things you can sayquot one reporter wanted to knowquotCBS is very very vigilant with us in terms of what they consider to be the line between funny and passable in good taste and what they think is too far and we have a constant dialogue between each other as to where the edge is and the edge is usually somewhere that has an understandable and smart punch line attachedquot said King ending the exchangeAll controversies aside CBS put together a very strong day that included stars and producers from Two and a Half Men How I Met Your Mother Mike ampamp Molly the aforementioned 2 Broke Girls and NCIS along with previous participants from Undercover Boss the new team from CBS This Morning via satellite from New York and the cast of its midseason sitcom Rob about a lifelong bachelor who marries into a close MexicanAmerican family The latter isn39t a very good show but CBS went all out to promote it anyway parking a special Robthemed food truck out in front of the Langham Huntington Hotel and handing out bottles of water adorned with miniature Rob ponchos Had I planned CBS39 day I might have arranged to serve 2 Broke Girls cupcakes as the official afternoon snack but given how things had gone earlier in the day it was probably better than they went with churros instead

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CBS at TCA: Controversial Comedy "2 Broke Girls" Incites a Heated Exchange - Ed Martin

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