ABC Briefly Removes '9/11' Blog

ABC briefly removed a blog about the upcoming miniseries "Path to 9/11" from its Web site after users posted comments complaining that the program had a conservative bias.

The blog--written by the miniseries' director David Cunningham and writer Cyrus Nowrasteh--was removed Sunday, but restored late Tuesday afternoon. Readers' comments on the blog were almost universally negative, with many users noting Nowrasteh's right-wing sympathies and bias against the Clinton administration. (Rush Limbaugh claims to be a friend, and plugged the program on his syndicated radio show.) ABC did not respond to repeated calls for comment.

Even if the blog backfired on ABC, the network made a bigger mistake by removing it and then having to restore it, says one expert. "Whenever you start talking about 9/11, it invites talk of conspiracies. What's a better conspiracy theory than you've got a blog, and then you take it away?" asks Phil Gomes, vice president of Edelman me2revolution. "It's like, what are you trying to hide?"

Gomes notes, however, that ABC's response shows it is listening to the public, and suggests that the network capitalize on the furor. "[ABC's] got a big opportunity here. People are going to be hyperlinking to other sources. They can take it all in and run with the recommendations of the crowd," Gomes says. "Because if they don't do it, somebody else is going to visit the site and take the ball and run with it."

In addition to airing the show on TV, ABC plans to make it available for free on Apple's iTunes store, and also will stream it on ABC.com, according to a report in Tuesday's Variety.

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