Obama terms Sony canceling The Interview a "mistake," says studio should've spoken to him first

[Himanshu Arora]

Just a couple of days after Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) pulled the release of its upcoming film, The Interview, President Barack Obama termed the move a “mistake”, although he said that he was sympathetic to the concerns that the studio has faced.

Speaking on the matter at his year-end presser, Obama said, "We cannot have a society in which some dictator in some place can start imposing censorship in the United States,” referring to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Clearly indicating that he was not satisfied with Sony’s move to cancel the premiere, he said, "I wish they'd spoken to me first. I would have told them: Do not get into the pattern in which you are intimidated."

Reacting to Obama’s statement, Michael Lynton, CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment said the President was “mistaken,” explaining that the studio hasn’t given in, and their move to pull the plug on the film came only after some of the nation’s leading theater chains decided not to play it.

"The movie theaters came to us one by one over the course of a very short period of time ... and announced that they would not carry the movie," Lynton said in an interview with CNN. "At that point in time, we had no alternative but to not proceed with the theatrical release." He also added that the company did consult with the White House before withdrawing the film.

Separately, Sony has said that the company is taking steps to release the movie on a different platform, although Lynton revealed in the interview that no major video on demand distributor has been willing to distribute the film.

Earlier, the FBI formally accused the North Korean government of the cyberattack on SPE, saying that the act was intended to “inflict significant harm” on the studio as well as suppress the Americans' freedom of expression.

Although the White House had earlier said that the Obama administration was considering a proportional response, the President declined to provide details on that front. However, he did say that there was no indication that the rogue nuclear state was working with another country to launch the attack.

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/59216-obama-sony-canceling-interview-mistake.html

 

[The Truth]

Obama is pissed because Sony execs poked fun at him suggesting his favorite movies all had Black stars. It is another childish Obama rant and NOTHING more.

 

[Kibaruk]

Obama is pissed because Sony execs poked fun at him suggesting his favorite movies all had Black stars. It is another childish Obama rant and NOTHING more.

Yeah, because another country conducting cyber-terrorism on your country and freightened people responding to terrorist demands have nothing to do with it... dumb truth...

 

[Guest]

This is a cheap shot by obama, he knows by doing this he gains confidence of american people, thus giving him more chance in elections.

Haha, nice timing mr. Obama

 

[Nima304]

This is a cheap shot by obama, he knows by doing this he gains confidence of american people, thus giving him more chance in elections.

Haha, nice timing mr. Obama

You realize that Obama won't be up for reelection ever again, right? He's already served two terms in office.

 

[Kibaruk]

You realize that Obama won't be up for reelection ever again, right? He's already served two terms in office.

Haha, nice timing mr. Nima

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

This is a cheap shot by obama, he knows by doing this he gains confidence of american people, thus giving him more chance in elections.

Haha, nice timing mr. Obama

You realize that Obama won't be up for reelection ever again, right? He's already served two terms in office.

Even though he isn't running anymore he's still the face of a party who WILL be running in the next election, and the next one after that, and every one in between. Obama still cares about his approval ratings even though he isn't running for anything anymore. He doesn't want to hurt his party anymore than he already has, and he'll take any opportunity to look better, from cyber attacks on Japanese companies to grand jury investigations in small towns in Missouri.

The line about 'they should have spoken to me first' though?! What's that about? Do company execs normally call the pres for advice?

 

[davislane1]

This is a cheap shot by obama, he knows by doing this he gains confidence of american people, thus giving him more chance in elections.

Haha, nice timing mr. Obama

So you mean to suggest he's going to rally support for modification of the law and seek a third term in office, using Sony as his rallying cry?

Cool conspiracy theory, bro.

Edit:

[On second thought, if Jeb Bush announces plans to run for POTUS, that may be just enough to momentarily boost support for such a campaign.]

 

[davislane1]

The line about 'they should have spoken to me first' though?! What's that about? Do company execs normally call the pres for advice?

Remember, he's from Haaavaad. People really need to listen to what he has to say.

 

[bielius]

This is a cheap shot by obama, he knows by doing this he gains confidence of american people, thus giving him more chance in elections.

Haha, nice timing mr. Obama

So you mean to suggest he's going to rally support for modification of the law and seek a third term in office, using Sony as his rallying cry?

Cool conspiracy theory, bro.

Edit:

[On second thought, if Jeb Bush announces plans to run for POTUS, that may be just enough to momentarily boost support for such a campaign.]

The conspiracy is really about that there's a party that rules both sides, regardless of the leaders in question at this exact moment. Therefore, gaining any and all kind of credibility is an important goal of theirs, regardless of the current face.

 

[MoeJoe]

Obvious ***** president is obvious

 

[Hasbean]

Obama is pissed because Sony execs poked fun at him suggesting his favorite movies all had Black stars. It is another childish Obama rant and NOTHING more.

Yeah, because another country conducting cyber-terrorism on your country and freightened people responding to terrorist demands have nothing to do with it... dumb truth...

Please provide proof of this being a cyber terrorist attack from North Korea? And please exclude anything from CIA, Mossad, MI5/6, The Government and the presstitutes as these have been found to be dubious sources of accurate information and truthfulness.

 

[Darth Shiv]

This is a cheap shot by obama, he knows by doing this he gains confidence of american people, thus giving him more chance in elections.

Haha, nice timing mr. Obama

You realize that Obama won't be up for reelection ever again, right? He's already served two terms in office.

Even though he isn't running anymore he's still the face of a party who WILL be running in the next election, and the next one after that, and every one in between. Obama still cares about his approval ratings even though he isn't running for anything anymore. He doesn't want to hurt his party anymore than he already has, and he'll take any opportunity to look better, from cyber attacks on Japanese companies to grand jury investigations in small towns in Missouri.

The line about 'they should have spoken to me first' though?! What's that about? Do company execs normally call the pres for advice?

Do companies usually get hacked by state funded entities like North Korea? That's a pretty exceptional circumstance.

 

[amstech]

They should make another movie, about this movie being pulled.
Genius. I am a frickin Genius.

 

[cliffordcooley]

They should make another movie, about this movie being pulled.

They would have to make it a mini-series. It would be to long for a single movie. haha

 

[Kibaruk]

Please provide proof of this being a cyber terrorist attack from North Korea? And please exclude anything from CIA, Mossad, MI5/6, The Government and the presstitutes as these have been found to be dubious sources of accurate information and truthfulness.

You don't even deserve a reply (AND you should know it).

 

[Guest]

It's interesting that Obama tells Sony they shouldn't have caved to pressure, yet he was so quick to blame the Benghazi attack on a video and act like the government was going to go after the producer of that video because it was offensive to Islam.

 

[Darth Shiv]

You don't even deserve a reply (AND you should know it).

I don't know... it's a fair point. WMD anyone? Torture in Guantanamo? NSA compromising the design of global crypto? US creating malware to infect Iranian systems. They aren't beyond "rewriting history".

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

Do companies usually get hacked by state funded entities like North Korea? That's a pretty exceptional circumstance.

Yes, they do. All the time, although it's usually China. It's far easier to hack into a US company to steal designs for medicine, machines, circuit boards etc than it is to figure out how to make them yourself. It's exceptional that it has to do with free speech, but hacking from foreign govt isn't strange at all.

 

[captaincranky]

Do companies usually get hacked by state funded entities like North Korea? That's a pretty exceptional circumstance.

When you're dealing with a sociopath who is already unsure of his hold on power, and a movie about a plot to assassinate him, I think it's totally reasonable and rational to blame his state for the attack.

I realize the footage of North Korean military parades are propaganda from both sides. But you have to be in awe of how much they resemble displays of military might in Red Square during the cold war, or Hitler whipping the German people into a patriotic frenzy, just prior to the launching of his world domination pet project, "Blitzkrieg"....

 

[Hasbean]

You don't even deserve a reply (AND you should know it).

But you do deserve a reply. Not everything that is presented as information is for your benefit or truthful and impartial. Most provide dubious information intended to make you think to be beneficial for them. (AND you should know it).-