In April of last year, KSL-TV decided that it was going to pull the TV series "Hannibal" from its schedule citing the violence that it contained. Their actions caused the show to lose hundreds of thousands of viewers, almost so many that the series wasn't renewed for a second season. I believe it shouldn't be the right of a local broadcaster to pull content and replace it with essentaily an hour of wasted space based on their beliefs when they are the only one to do so in the entire country. This only harms the viewers and makes the show, regardless of quality, impossible to enjoy.

The show has recieved very positive reviews from many reputible sources, with some calling it the greatest show NBC has broadcast in a decade. For the future of the show and for those in Utah who have watched the first season, it is ridiculous that we are not able to enjoy the same programming that is carried all across the nation.The ratings of the show dropped hundreds of thousands after KSL-TV stopped broadcasting it, which seems to indicate that people in Utah were watching it. It is strange that this show has caused so much trouble in Utah when others share similar qualities, yet have not been tampered with.

Hannibal's timeslot is at 8 PM MST, which would put it in the same timeslot that episodes of "Law and Order: SVU" and "Dateline NBC" have aired at one point in their time. All three of these shows share many similarities; They are all rated TV-14 (With the occasional episode of dateline being rated TV-PG), which means they are appropriate for audiences over 14 years old. They all deal with violent and occasionally sexual subject matter, some in more realistic fashions than others. Only "Law and Order: SVU" and "Hannibal" have a "Viewer Descretion is Advised" message at the beginning of each segment, which means that it is up to parents to understand what is on the channel at a certain time and to block access to their children accordingly. However between these three shows, only Hannibal has had a problem with KSL-TV. The network cites the "Extremely Gory" nature of the show as the reason, and that children who stumble onto the show may be disturbed. In my opinion, it is up to the parents to monitor, control, and prevent their children from being disturbed by something on television. It shouldn't be up to the network to decide we aren't mature enough to handle graphic programming.

The decision to drop the show came about as a result of a newspaper article criticizing a different show KSL-TV has had a problem with, "The New Normal", which portrayed an openly gay couple. KSL-TV is partially owned by the LDS church, and therefore the church has sway over the programming that is aired. After the network read the article, which stated "Locally. KSL yanks "The Playboy Club" and "The New Normal" off the air amid talk of how they are inconsistent with the KSL brand, but that brand is consistent with "Hannibal"?", they decided to pull the show. Other networks such as the ABC affiliate KTVX and the CW affiliate KUCW were happy to air anything KSL-TV didn't find appropriate, but this led to an even bigger concern. NBC will only renew a show if it has good ratings, and if we are not watching the show on NBC, then it is as if we are not watching at all. All of Utah could be watching and enjoying the show and it would still get cancelled, just because network executives find the subject matter graphic. If something is graphic and doesn't appeal to someone individually, this does not mean it doesn't appeal to others. Airing reruns of the news that day doesn't do anything to help the station's ratings OR the avid viewers, so returning Hannibal to its rightful slot would be a win-win.

I ask that everyone, whether you are a fan of the show "Hannibal" or not, may read and sign this petition for it is about more than just the show itself. It is about declaring that we Utahns, as Americans, should have the right to view any show broadcast nationwide, not just what the KSL-TV deems appropriate.

If you agree that organizations that don't necessarily share your beliefs shouldn't be able to tamper with broadcasts that are nationwide, then please, sign this petition. Share it with everyone you can and together we can make a difference.