HBO votes against Diebold's documentary request

HBO rejected a call by Diebold Election Systems (Wikipedia article) to pull the documentary "Hacking Democracy" from its schedule or air company disclaimers questioning the accuracy of film.

In a letter to HBO chairman and CEO Chris Albrecht, Diebold seeks to have 30-second disclaimers before, after and during the docu that is critical of the computerized election systems that are used in most precincts nationwide. The film is scheduled to air Thursday.

HBO spokesman Jeff Cusson said the company "stands by our film and has no intention of withdrawing the film from its schedule."

Diebold contends that previews of the docu contains serious "material errors" that make the film inaccurate.

"The material errors and material misrepresentations are so egregious that HBO should pull the documentary," Diebold president David Byrd wrote. "Failing that, a pre-aring rebuttal and disclaimer are not only appropriate but also in the best interests of HBO and its subscribers."

In particular, Diebold is upset about claims made in promotional materials provided on HBO's Web site that problems with Diebold machines caused widespread errors in the 2000 election. In its letter, Diebold points out that the company entered the electronic voting business in 2002.

You can read more of the article at Hollywood Reporter's site.

Diebold maintains that they only entered the electronic voting business in 2002, though they bought out another company that had operated electronic voting machines since 1991. In August 2003, Walden O'Dell, chief executive of Diebold, announced that he had been a top fund-raiser for President George W. Bush and had sent a get-out-the-funds letter to Ohio Republicans. In the letters he says he is "committed to helping Ohio deliver its electoral votes to the president next year." The company has also been beseiged by scandals, fraud allegations, concerns about secrecy and accusations of defective software. They are quick at rebutting media criticism, as a look at their home page shows.

New documentary: The Story of the 101st Fighting Keyboarders (do they give Purple Hearts for carpal tunnel?)

From Daily Kos:

Regardless of how one feels about the war in Iraq, it seems, everyone agrees that the men and women of our armed forces deserve our praise and gratitude for selflessly placing themselves in harm's way in a dangerous land. Yet there is another group of Americans who have been crucial to our success in the war, who deserve our thanks as well. You may know some of their names: Glenn Reynolds. Michelle Malkin. Jeff Goldstein. Robert Novak. Ann Coulter. But there are countless others, some known only to God. Theirs is a story of courage, determination, and above all, typing. They are the conservative bloggers, pundits, and commentators whose loud and prolific support of Republican foreign policy goals helped change the course of American history in ways that will be felt for many years to come.

They are the men and women--mostly men--who have come to be known as the 101st Fighting Keyboarders. And now, at last, their story can be told.

(snip)

Part I examined the role the 101st Fighting Keyboarders played in building support for the war during late 2002 and early 2003. Now, in Part II, we learn about the role they played during the invasion and occupation of Iraq: while American troops braved the tanks and guns of Saddam's defense forces in Iraq, the Keyboarders played an equally important role at home, using their bellicose rhetoric to create a crucial bulwark of support for their President. It would come to be known as their finest hour.

This is a very important story of some very brave individuals (snicker), the keyboard commandos who risked their lives fighting the good fight while wearing their pajamas sitting behind their basement computer defending our great country (like I should talk, right?). And now, Paul Henry salutes these armchair quarterbacks for the great patriots (tee hee) that they are. Because, as the saying goes, if you can't be an athlete, become an athletic supporter!

You can see this very entertaining and humorous documentary at War of the Words. The first two installments are up, with more to follow. And you can see the trailor here.

Perhaps this is the documentary that Ken Burns should have done.