BEWARE – An App Store rant could pop up in this post at any moment!
The WB (you remember that network right?) has been resurrected as a really confusing website that runs lots of old WB Network TV, and a few new web based shows as well. One of those shows is from Rob Corddry, and it’s called “Children’s Hospital”. In it, “oversexed” doctors behave in “wildly inappropriate behavior” in front of “terminally ill pre-teens”.
What an amazing premise for a series. It’s supposed to be a send-up of the medical show genre, and the show’s intent is to mock absurdness of the genre by going overboard in every way shape and form. The little bit that I’ve seen of it seem to do just that…and it wasn’t in a good way, in my opinion.
What really frustrates me about this, though, is to see something like this in the iTunes store, while knowing full well that PG and PG-13 content has been rejected from the App Store, with no reason or explanation. I’ve had this issue with several comics that we’ve submitted, and it boggles my mind how this is somehow acceptable, but monsters fighting one another is “obscene” and “pornographic”.
Apple has an amazing double standard with the Music, Movie, TV, and Podcast sections of iTunes when it comes to the App Store – and I am continually shocked and amazed by what is rejected from the App Store – but completely acceptable in every other section of iTunes.
It’s interesting to see more internet based television find it’s way into iTunes. I was a big fan of “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-long Blog”, and I was glad to support it. This show, on the other hand, is not something I’m going to be getting behind.
If you want to check it out – you can do so right here.
2 thoughts on ““Children’s Hospital” premieres in iTunes”
I think the reason for the double standard is because of the carriers. AT&T has a long list of what you can and can’t access over their wireless network — unfortunately, I don’t have a link for the document anymore, but it was quite extensive.
The point I am trying to get at is that while the App Store is available over the cellular network, the iTunes store is not — therefore, AT&T and the rest of the carriers can’t censor what is made available.
Interestingly enough, 2.2 now allows for podcasts to be downloaded over the cellular network too — I wonder if Apple is able to sidestep the carrier censoring since the podcasts aren’t hosted by Apple and are instead downloaded directly over the Internet?
@Dennis
AT&T also doesn’t censor the Internet. Between the Internet and the podcasts I don’t think that’s truly the issue. If it was, Apple should let us host our own apps so that we can side step it.
Either way, it’s a completely ridiculous double-standard that is driving developers away. Hell, they even have a double standard within the app store itself. You can shoot bloody zombies in the face all day long on an iPhone video game – but if you show that in an iPhone graphic novel you get rejected.
It makes no sense.