Over the past few years, we have often commented on the anti-Catholic remarks of Bill Maher, host of the late-night ABC show, “Politically Incorrect.” Whenever we ask the person in charge at ABC’s Broadcast Standards and Practices for an apology, we get the usual, “well, Bill Maher offends lots of people” type of response. Maybe so, but he definitely has it out for Catholics more than anyone else. Moreover, as he recently proved, he is capable of granting an apology. But not to us.
In January, Maher quipped, “Dogs are like retarded children.” After many complaints were fielded, he apologized; he admitted to crossing the line with this one.
On February 8, Maher crossed the line again. But there was no apology. That’s because it was Catholics who caught the brunt of his brand of humor.
On that episode of “Politically Incorrect,” Maher injected Christ into a discussion on AA. As usual, Maher led his guests on, keeping the subject of religion alive. Before long, comedian Richard Belzer opined that Mother Teresa “took tons of money from very shady people.” She was then accused of never opening a clinic for the dying children of Calcutta, etc.
It is interesting that Maher apologized for offending the mentally retarded, but not Catholics. Now if he were, in fact, known for being politically incorrect, he would have offered Catholics the apology and snubbed the retarded.
In any event, you may want to write to the person who deals with viewer complaints. Write to Ms. Olivia Cohen-Cutler, Vice President, Broadcast Standards and Practices, ABC, 2040 Avenue of the Stars, 5th floor, Century City, CA 90067.
