NBC apology necessary?

NBC apologized for editing out "under God" during a recitation of "The Pledge of Allegiance" in its artsy feature leading into the US Open golf tournament.

http://www.mediabistro.com/sportsnewser/nbc-issues-apology-for-omitting-god-from-video_b10807

Was the apology necessary?
Was it okay to edit out those words?

Discuss

 

They don't need to apologize but they need to explain the rationale for editing the phrase out.

 

Is anybody offended by the use of "Under God" in this context? If they are, they should seek therapy.

 

I haven't really been following this "story". Saw the headlines and figured someone flubbed the words.

But, they actually edited them out? That's strange. As currently constituted, the Pledge includes the words "under God". If you don't like that, then don't use the Pledge.

And, the apology was weak: "a portion of the Pledge of Allegiance that was in that feature was edited out." Well, that doesn't really get to the heart of the mater, does it?

What portion was left out? And why?

They also only apologized to, "those of you who were offended by it.” They didn't apologize for actually doing it.

As to the question of the "need" to apologize, it's like the calls for Anthony Weiner to resign. Especially when you look at the weasel words they used. They clearly decided the "apology" was in their best interests. There's no indication of true regret.

It's like a child who's told by their mother to apologize to their brother. They may say it, but they don't necessarily mean it.

 

Yep. You edited it out for a reason. Don't apologize for doing it. Tell us why you did it.

 

I am not offended by leaving "under God" out (despite 13 years of Catholic education), but realize when you do, some people are going to go Defcon-4. If you're not willing to stand by the consequences, don't do it. With this weak-kneed apology (like Weiner's to Breitbart), NBC has lost respect from both sides of the debate.

 

Why edit that part out? It's in there. And if you do, you better be armed with a good explanation.

It'd be like putting a tighter crop on the Mona Lisa. Not that the pledge of allegiance is the Mona Lisa...

You're going to offend a lot more people by cutting it out than by leaving it in. Simple as that.

 

I agree.

 

Better question: Why on earth would a free nation have a government-sanctioned oath of loyalty in the first place?

 

That's irrelevant to this discussion.

 

Didn't realize the Pledge of Allegiance was government mandated

 

Here's where it likely gets tricky: the reality is it was probably an editor who put the piece together and foolishly dropped the "under God" part on his own, either because of his personal views or for some more mundane reason. I'd be very, very surprised if anyone higher-up in the production was aware it was done before it aired.

That doesn't mean NBC doesn't have to apologize or at least explain itself. You just can't edit that out (and I say that as someone who believes it shouldn't be there in the first place).