Corrie ep dropped after shootings

Some of the comments that follow this article feature frank, fairly strong language, but are worth a look for getting in to the pros and cons of banning, or simply choosing not to broadcast, media content which can be seen as insensitive following news events. 9/11 and the invasion of Iraq saw largescale censorship of the media, especially in the US; this particular story comes about as ITV chiefs (and C4, who dropped an episode of a Charlie Brooker show) sought to avoid being seen as insensitive.

Article source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/jun/04/coronation-street-cumbria-massacre

ITV drops third Coronation Street episode in wake of Cumbria massacre

Broadcaster rescheduled the episodes to run on Monday and Tuesday next week

Comments (17)

Mark Sweney
guardian.co.uk, Friday 4 June 2010

Coronation Street's Tony Gordon.

ITV has dropped a third scheduled episode of Coronation Street, tonight's instalment, which features a plotline involving a a gun-wielding character taking hostages, following the mass murder in Cumbria.
The broadcaster, which also dropped Coronation Street on Wednesday and Thursday, has rescheduled the episodes to run on Monday and Tuesday next week. Coronation Street had been stripped to run at 9pm every night this week with a tense ongoing story line about Tony Gordon, played by Gary O'Brien, escaping from prison and holding hostages in the Underworld clothing factory armed with a gun.
"We apologise to ITV1 viewers for the interruption to this week's Coronation Street scheduling but, against the backdrop of Wednesday's tragic events in Cumbria, it would have been inappropriate to broadcast these episodes this week," said a spokesman for ITV.
Last night Channel 4 decided to pull the final episode of Charlie Brooker's You Have Been Watching, which was a crime special, which the broadcaster replaced with a re-run of an earlier show.
ITV replaced last night's episode of Coronation Street with Harry Hill's TV Burp. The hostage plotline will play out at 7.30pm and 8.30pm on Monday and 8pm on Tuesday.
Monday's planned episode of Coronation Street will air at 8.30pm on Wednesday night.
Next Thursday night will then see a double episode in a one-hour slot from 8pm to 9pm. Friday will return to normal with episodes at 7.30pm and 8.30pm.