Rowan Expresses Anger-Anguish Over "Amazing Race" ....

[boardman]

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 22, 2013

No. 13-4
Mokie Porter
301-585-4000, Ext.146

VVA President Expresses Anger, Anguish
Over Irreverent "Amazing Race" in Vietnam

(Washington, D.C.) -- Responding to a hail of anguish and anger from Vietnam veterans from across the nation, John Rowan, National President of Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA), wrote a heartfelt letter to Leslie Moonves, President and CEO of CBS:

"Since the Sunday, March 17, airing of "Amazing Race," [which was set in Hanoi], our members have been contacting our national office to register their dismay regarding the insensitivity displayed by the directors, who chose to show the remnants of a downed American B-52 bomber as a prop. Many of our members are outraged and would go so far as to say that CBS has insulted the memory of those Americans who lost their lives when that aircraft was shot down.

"As a United States Air Force veteran, who flew over Vietnam many times, I am personally offended by the flippant manner in which the participants raced around the wreckage, without any display of respect or recognition accorded to the dignity of those lives lost in the downed aircraft.

"While it is understood the "Amazing Race" is a television reality show, intended to entertain rather than educate about the sacrifices made by our American heroes, it is unconscionable that CBS would deem it appropriate to use footage of a downed U.S. warplane with such irreverence.

"Americans died in that plane, and their memory is all that their families have of them. Needless to say, this is an insult to those who served during one of our nation"s longest wars and to those whose loved ones are memorialized on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., as well as those memorialized by the In Memory Plaque, dedicated to those veterans whose postwar deaths are attributed to their Vietnam War service.

"We ask that you and the producer of this segment and the overall show apologize to the families of those who lost a loved one in the downing of the plane in that (to some) long-ago war."

[boardman]

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 25, 2013

No. 13-5 Contact: Mokie Porter 301-585-4000, Ext. 146

CBS Apologizes for Insensitive Feature

On Vietnam Episode of “The Amazing Race”

(Washington, D.C.)--VVA National President John Rowan last week sent a heated letter to CBS condemning what he called “the insensitivity displayed by the directors of ‘The Amazing Race,’ who chose to show the remnants of a downed American B-52 bomber as a prop . . . that has insulted the memory of those Americans who lost their lives when that aircraft was shot down.” On Monday, CBS Executive Vice President Martin D. Franks, in response to Rowan’s letter, acknowledged that parts of that episode were indeed “insensitive to a group that is very important to us – our nation’s veterans.”

Franks wrote to Rowan, “On behalf of CBS, [producer] Jerry Bruckheimer, and everyone who is part of ‘The Amazing Race,’ we want to apologize to veterans–particularly those who served in Vietnam–as well as to their families and any viewers who were offended by the broadcast. He noted that this “message” was delivered at the top of Sunday night’s broadcast of the show, and he offered this link to view it: http://www.cbs.com/shows/amazing_race/march/.

“At CBS, we are proud of our longstanding efforts on behalf of veterans,” Franks added, citing public service announcements in support of veterans causes–particularly the “Wounded Warrior PSA we were proud to broadcast during this year’s Super Bowl,” as well as “countless hours of national and local news coverage of veterans issues [and] sponsorship of and participation at veterans job fairs.”

“For far too long,” noted Rowan, “Vietnam veterans felt scorned for having done our duty. It’s taken a long time for America to separate the war from the warrior. Though young people may not have known or understood the symbolism of the B-52 bomber, certainly the producer and the directors should have.

“Still, past is prologue, and we do thank CBS for owning up to what had been an irreverent oversight that hurt and angered many of us who still wonder, in our dark moments, if Americans truly understand the price veterans paid to fight for flag and country,” Rowan added. “In keeping with our founding principle, ‘Never again will one generation of veterans abandon another,’ we will always strive to ensure that troops returning from a combat zone will never feel abandoned by the nation that sent them there.”