Cartoon Network Head Resigns After Scare
Sean Stevens, 28, left, and Peter Berdovsky, 27, speak to the media outside Charlestown District Court in Boston Thursday, Feb. 1, 2007 after pleading not guilty to placing a hoax device and disorderly conduct. One of the men criminally charged after placing blinking cartoon advertisements around the city videotaped a police bomb squad removing one of the electronic devices, but did not tell the officers the object was harmless. Surveillance cameras caught 27-year-old Peter Berdovsky videotaping officers removing what they thought was a possible bomb. (AP Photo/Bizuayehu Tesfaye, FILE)
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Ridiculous. He should have stood by the campaign, noting that NO OTHER CITY overracted like Boston.
- 24 votes
In fact, it's getting -so- absurd that I almost have to wonder what Cartoon Network is hiding.
As certain as I was that they weren't really all that guilty of anything -- they sure are going to great lengths to seem guilty of something.
One wonders: Are there memos floating about? ("Milk this for what its worth." Or something like that.)
- 9 votes
Here's what I see as one the main problem:
One of the men criminally charged after placing blinking cartoon advertisements around the city videotaped a police bomb squad removing one of the electronic devices, but did not tell the officers the object was harmless. Surveillance cameras caught 27-year-old Peter Berdovsky videotaping officers removing what they thought was a possible bomb.
The two said in their statements they weren't aware of the panic they'd caused (which if true would have absolved them of the charges), yet now have been found to have videotaped the police at the height of the panic. I'd love to hear the videotaper's commentary as he was shooting the removal.
Too clever by 1/2? We'll see.
- 3 votes
With that said: It was still an over-reaction that should have never occurred.
But, I could be persuaded that there is evidence that Turner Broadcasting or the Ad Agency knew of the issue and purposefully let it escalate.
Worst case scenario -- both parties turn out to have egg on their face.
- 3 votes
There allegedly was communication from Interference Inc. to Peter Berdovsky during the scare to pretty please keep everything on the dl
Doesn't say if it was a memo,email,IM or voice mail.
- 3 votes
Why resign? Its not like you would look any worse if you refused to resign. Hell, it may even give the appearance you had a backbone.
- 2 votes
Why resign? In defense of innocent animations and a noble appearing excuse to put a 13 year old job behind you in exchange for pushing the throttle on a 60 ft motor yacht somewhere off the coast of Grand Cayman.
- 1 vote
This is just ridiculous. Bureaucracy @!$%#s on common sense once again.
- 5 votes
Unbelievable. He resigned because he cost his boss $2 million. The mayor of Boston should resign for being a pussy.
- 7 votes
Of course he resigned, he can get a much better deal elsewhere now after this success! A cheap marketing campaign went from possibly being noticed by a few thousand people to certainly being noticed and commented on by millions.
- 2 votes
But -- it didn't translate to numbers for the TV show. A marketing campaign that is talked about but that doesn't deliver -- still a failure.
- 2 votes
Yes, true. I'm sure I'll make more enemies of the cult fans but I don't think anything could actually help that particular show no matter how clever the stunt.
Except that the goal was to increase viewership (presumeably) which didn't happen. That people commented on the marketing campaign doesn't translate into advertising dollars for their network and as such, it would be considered a failure, not a success.
I thought the campaign was for the upcoming movie and not so much for the TV show?
- 2 votes
Chances are, they're blowing it -- at this point. The movie would have had to have been released within a couple weeks of the incident.
As much as they're bending in this case, I'm losing a bit of the humor that I saw in it in the first week or so.
- 3 votes
I would have to say campaign was a complete success. I doubt they ever dreamed of having this much exposure.
If you look at it from that perspective, then sure, it was a success. But if you look at from a business perspective, it was a failure. If after all that happened, it only increased viewership some 6,000 people, then it was a bust -- on top of which it cost them $2 million and their CEO.
Would a bomb squad have been sent in had this happened in a mainland European city?
- 3 votes
Broader question: would a bomb squad be sent in if it was any city other than Boston? Don't give me useless Euro-superiority. New York and other cities responded pretty much the way you imply those sophisticated Euros would have.
I think the Boston Police may still have some sort of complex over the fact that it was Boston where the hijackers boarded three of the four 9/11 planes. That doesn't excuse the fact that behaved like a group of police straight out of Monty Python in this case, but it might explain it.
- 1 vote
Regarding the resignation, a story circulates among certain management types about about a hotshot young exec whose over-enthusiasm cost the business $2 million. When asked whether he would be fired, the boss said "Why? I just invested $2 million in his education!"
Regarding this whole affair, I'm speechless. I'm a former resident of Boston and I always sing its praises, it's people are way sharper than this. I expect this sort of thing from Charlotte, maybe, but never Boston. This is the tea party city! My suspicion is that somebody with an excessive amount of political power escalated this thing. Why on Earth I cannot fathom.
- 1 vote
I just hope this doesn't hurt Adult Swim. They've produced some crap (Squid Billies, 5 Ounce Mouse), but they've also produced (or paid for) some true genius, like Venture Brothers, Robot Chicken and Moral Orel.
Aqua Team falls somewhere in the middle. Sometimes it's brilliant, sometimes it's played.
- 4 votes
Aqua Team falls somewhere in the middle. Sometimes it's brilliant, sometimes it's played.
It really depends on how stoned you are when you watch it ;).
- 2 votes
I still can't believe nobody is Boston got fired over this and now the head of Cartoon Network resigns. This is an travesty. The people of Boston are less safe then before because their government cried wolf over blinky lights. I can imagine what happens the next time Boston informs DHS of a "terrorist" threat. I sure hope it isn't one.
- 1 vote
I can't wait to hear some shows on Adult Swim rip Boston a new one.
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