By Andrew Dalton, Entertainment Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) --A&E Network has canceled the police reality series "Live PD" following weeks of protests inspired by the death of George Floyd and a report that a crew from the show filmed the arrest of a black man who died after he was restrained by police.
A&E Network has canceled the police reality series "Live PD" after weeks of protests inspired by the death of George Floyd and a report that a crew from the show filmed the death of another black man in police custody.
The cable network announced the move Wednesday, a day after the similar show "Cops," on the air for 33 seasons, was dropped by the Paramount Network.
"This is a critical time in our nation's history and we have made the decision to cease production on Live PD," A&E said in a statement. "Going forward, we will determine if there is a clear pathway to tell the stories of both the community and the police officers whose role it is to serve them. And with that, we will be meeting with community and civil rights leaders as well as police departments."
The cancellation also comes a day after a reports from the Austin American-Statesman and KVUE-TV that 40-year-old Javier Ambler, who was black, died in Texas last year after sheriff's deputies repeatedly used stun guns on him, despite his cries for help and pleas that he was sick and couldn't breathe.
Prosecutors who are investigating Ambler's death said the presence of the "Live PD" crew made the arrest, which was captured on police body-camera video obtained by the news outlets, particularly troubling.
A&E said in a previous statement that its video never aired because of a policy against showing a death, and it did not keep the footage after it was informed the initial investigation had closed. A&E said neither the network nor the show's producers "were asked for the footage or an interview by investigators from law enforcement or the District Attorney's office."
Just as Paramount Network did with "Cops," A&E had already ceased airing episodes of "Live PD" before announcing Wednesday that it was dropping the show altogether.
"Live PD," which had been on the air since 2016, had a more news documentary approach than "Cops," which let police speak almost entirely for themselves.
"Shocked & beyond disappointed about this," the show's host, veteran journalist Dan Abrams, said on Twitter. "To the loyal #LivePDNation please know I, we, did everything we could to fight for you, and for our continuing effort at transparency in policing. I was convinced the show would go on."
SMPTE elects board officers, regional governors
SMPTE®,the home of media professionals, technologists, and engineers, has revealed the board officers and regional governors who will serve terms beginning in January 2025.
Three new officers--Richard Welsh as SMPTE president, Eric Gsell as SMPTE executive VP, and Polly Hickling as SMPTE Education VP--have been elected for a two-year term from Jan. 1, 2025, to Dec. 31, 2026. One SMPTE officer, Lisa Hobbs, will be continuing her service as SMPTE secretary and treasurer for another two-year term. Additionally, Raymond Yeung will be stepping into the role of standards VP on Jan. 1, 2025.
“SMPTE’s membership has spoken,” said SMPTE interim executive director Sally-Ann D’Amato. “These officers have been tasked with an important responsibility, one each of them is prepared to tackle head-on. These next two years are looking bright for SMPTE!”
In addition to the officers, 10 regional governors were elected by the Society to serve two-year 2025-2026 terms.
These include the following regional governors, re-elected to continue their service:
Asia-Pacific Region Governor
Tony Ngai, Society of Motion Imaging Ltd.
EMEA - Central & South America Region Governor
Fernando Bittencourt, FB Consultant
United Kingdom Region Governor
Chris Johns, Sky UK.
USA - Central Region Governor
William T. Hayes, Consultant
USA - Eastern Region Governor
Dover Jeanne Mundt, Riedel Communications
USA - Western Region Governor
Jeffrey F. Way, Open Drives
Also elected were four newcomers to the SMPTE Board:
Canada Region Governor
Jonathan Jobin, Grass Valley
USA - Hollywood Region Governor
Allan Schollnick, Voxx... Read More