From: empower@smart.net
Subject: Transcript of Magoo story on ABC 20/20 show
Thought this may be of interest.
Jamal
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                         SHOW: ABC 20/20 (10:00 pm ET)
                                OCTOBER 9, 1997
                           Transcript # 97100904-j11
LENGTH: 792 words
HEADLINE: GIVE ME A BREAK
BYLINE: JOHN STOSSEL, HUGH DOWNS, BARBARA WALTERS
HIGHLIGHT:
ARE CERTAIN CARTOONS OFFENSIVE TO DISABLED?
BODY:
   
BARBARA WALTERS: What makes you laugh?  Did it ever occur to you
that when you sit down and chuckle at the Sunday comics that you
may be in dire need of some sensitivity training? Or that when
you let your child watch Saturday morning cartoons, you may be
creating an unfeeling little person who finds the disabilities of
others funny?  Well, here's John Stossel with his take on
politically correct cartoons.  This week's "Give Me A Break"!   
JOHN STOSSEL, ABC News: (voice-over) Tired of all the conflict in
the news? Let's relax and enjoy the cartoons. How about some "Mr.
Magoo"?   
Mr. MAGOO: Road hog! 
 
JOHN STOSSEL: (voice-over) He's always getting into trouble
because he's so near-sighted.  Many people find that funny. But
not Marc Mauer (ph).     
MARC MAUER, National Federation of the Blind: Magoo has been an
image that has caused blind children to get into fights. It has
caused some people to be the victims of being spit upon and hit
with sticks. 
 
JOHN STOSSEL: (voice-over) Mauer, who is president of the
National Federation of the Blind, is furious that the Walt Disney
Company, which owns ABC, is making a movie based on the Magoo
cartoon. 
                                                            
      
 
MARC MAUER: Our lives are at stake here. Our futures are at stake
here.   
JOHN STOSSEL: (on camera) Aren't you being a little
hypersensitive?   
MARC MAUER: I didn't create the issue.  I only live with it.   
JOHN STOSSEL: So what should Disney do, beside meet with you?   
MARC MAUER: Disney should take the movie off the air.  That is to
say, decide not to produce it. 
 
JOHN STOSSEL: I'm a little embarrassed to be defending Disney,
but censorship demands always make me nervous.  And it's not just
Mr. Magoo who's been targeted.  Other cartoonists have been
pressured to make their work more politically correct. 
 
MORT WALKER, Cartoonist: Most of my mail right now is saying that
I'm a wimp, I'm a weak sister, that I caved into the P.C. people.
 
JOHN STOSSEL: (voice-over) Mort Walker draws the "Beetle Bailey"
comic strip, the one about the lazy private and his incompetent
general.  Walker had to change his strip this summer because some
complained that General Halftrack was ogling his secretary, Ms.
Buxley. 
 
MORT WALKER: They get excited if they get one or two letters, you
know?  And so, I began to lose a few big papers like the Los
Angeles Times.   
JOHN STOSSEL: (voice-over) In order to redeem General Halftrack,
Walker sent him to sensitivity training.  Then he had him
apologize to Ms. Buxley and Ms. Blip.   
MORT WALKER: Oh, my sister got real mad at me.  My sister said,
"It's not as funny as it used to be." 
 
PORKY PIG: Th-th-thi-this is Porky Pig. 
 
JOHN STOSSEL: (voice-over) Porky Pig's a problem, too, at least
according to a group called the National Stuttering Project,
which once demanded that Time Warner retire Porky to protect
children. 
 
(on camera) Give me a break.  I'm a stutterer, and I have never
liked watching Porky Pig, but does that mean they should have to
change the cartoon?   
(voice-over) Do we also need to change "the seven dwarves" to
"the seven vertically challenged people?" 
 
(on camera) Should we censor "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves"
because they insult short people? 
 
MARC MAUER: The "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves" movie is a
fairy tale, and I understand it's to be taken as fairy tale. 
 
JOHN STOSSEL: Well, so is "Mr. Magoo." 
 
MARC MAUER: That I do not believe. 
                                  
                                
 
MORT WALKER: If you believe what you read in comics, then you
believe that mice wear little red pants with gold buttons and
drive cars, you know.  Come on. This is a cartoon.  This is
funny. 
 
JOHN STOSSEL: (voice-over) Where will it end?  Will they condemn
Elmer Fudd because of his speech impediment?  How about Olive
Oyl?  She looks to me as if she has anorexia, and it's sexist
because she always gets saved by Popeye. And now there's a book
out criticizing Babar the Elephant saying he promotes a message
of colonialism because a rich, white woman teaches him to wear
fancy clothes and act educated.  Give Me A Break! 
 
BARBARA WALTERS: You mean elephants don't wear fancy clothes?   
HUGH DOWNS: I guess not. 
 
BARBARA WALTERS: Where will it all stop? 
 
HUGH DOWNS: I don't know, especially since a lot of humor has its
roots in being able laugh at somebody else, because it makes you
feel superior.   
BARBARA WALTERS: Well, I guess the only thing we can do is laugh
at ourselves. I'll laugh at you, if you'll laugh at me. 
 
HUGH DOWNS: It's a deal. 
 
BARBARA WALTERS: Promise?  OK.  I think you're very funny. We'll
be right back.   
(Commercial Break)
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End of Document
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