"coming to you very much live and direct on Network 23." "Carter's the best known reporter we have on the air." "He satellites globally." "Where does all this stuff come from, Bryce?" "The components of Carter's mind." "M-M-Max, M-M-Max." "[Bryce] People translated as data." "It's computer-generated, whatever it is." "It looks like Edison." "Max." "Max Headroom." "Max?" "He's a computer-generated person based on you." "Two minds, but with one single memory." "[Man on TV] Sports." "Moscow Generators, 85." "Afghan Yankees, 117." "[TV chatter]" "[Man #2 on TV] Protesters claim solar eclipses caused by the 34,000 network satellites already in orbit are causing..." "Police riots broke out today..." "[TV chatter continues]" "And next up on-on-on Network 23, it's-it's Lifestyles of the Poor and Pitiful. [chuckles]" "A weekly look at how the other half lives... rather weakly." "If you were any kind of man, you would know I am staring at you in haughty arrogance." "[Man] How dare you?" "[Woman] You animal!" "You cheap oil mogul." "I will never grace your bed again." "I'm Harriet Garth." "the Porky's Landing fans' candidate in today's tele-election primary." "Remember, your ratings are your votes, so stay with us for a great first act and the right ending." "I promise." "Remember, I'm a fan." "Elect me by staying tuned to Network 66, the home of Porky's Landing." "I tell you, I love him, Eric." "Love him, do you hear?" "And you will never see him again." " Never." "Never, do you hear?" " [typing]" "Why?" "Oh, why, Eric?" "[Lauren] Network 66 is catching us up." "It doesn't make sense." "Porky's Landing is like visual halitosis compared to Max and Lifestyles." "So why are they accelerating like this?" "They've never been this close." "This is obviously linked to this morning's tele-election." "If this ratings surge holds, they'll win the audience meter auto-count by 9:00." "I can't believe it will hold." "The male lead is sensationally bad." "The whole show is sensationally bad." "That's why so many people watch it." "But why all night?" "Why now, just in time to grab ratings for the tele-election?" "Call Cheviot." "We have a crisis." "I've been watching, Edwards." " How are they doing it?" " We don't know." "But at this rate of increase, they have enough ratings to win the tele-election by the morning auto-count." "I wish Formby was still with us." "She used to handle things at night." "That's exactly why she's no longer with us, Mr. Cheviot." "What on earth is 66 up to?" "It's 3:00 a.m., and our ratings are fast catching Network 23, Chairman." "The ViewDoze device is working splendidly." "Excellent." "They'll be rioting down at 23." "[laughter]" "This'll kill Cheviot." "We must congratulate our new board member." "Your ViewDoze device seems to be a rating breakthrough, Mr. Grossberg." "Thank you, Chairman." "I'm rather proud of ViewDoze." "It's inspired." "Have you absolutely no idea how they're doing this, Edwards?" "None at all, Ben." "Overnight ratings haven't taken this kind of beating since Snow White and the Baby Eaters." "My concern is the impact on the tele-election." "If they beat our ratings by the 9:00 auto-count, it'll swing it from our man, Peller." "The system will automatically elect 66's Harriet Garth by a ratings landslide." "My God, we've got to stop this." "Get hold of Peller, Edwards." "Get him in." "Then get on to Bryce." "Tell him to find out what's happening." " I'm coming in." " [beeps] [beeping] [phone ringing]" "You better come in to 23, Peller." "Crisis." "Are you alone?" "What" " Yes, of course." "[stammering] What do you mean?" "We don't want any nonsense around tele-election time, Peller." " [beeping] - [sighs] Bryce." "I want you to use every machine in your department on this." "I want facts, figures, analysis, evaluation." "I want you to throw every techno trick in the book at them." "I must find out where they're getting these figures, and fast, fast, fast, fast." "You want this quickly, Mr. Edwards?" "R-R-R" "[Man] Network 66 Research Department." "All our lines" "Oh, hi, Bryce." "Long time, no interface." "Uh, busy." "I need information." "Oh, I'm fine, thanks." "How are you?" "What?" "Uh, fine, thanks." "Uh, why are Network 66 ratings so high?" "Are you guys using ratings enhancement?" "Because the show apparently stinks." "Bryce, you're unique." "We're using the new ViewDoze system." "It enables people to view while they sleep." " It's great for ratings." " Hmm?" "Is that a Dawcel Optics device?" "No." "It's a cheap scam." "A straight con dreamed up by our new marketing exec." "But, uh, how does ViewDoze guarantee viewers?" "It's supposed to be an exclusive 66 system." "It claims you can view while you sleep, so everybody leaves their TV on 66 all night because we're showing eight hours of Porky's Landing." "I call it a "drivel-in."" "You coming to the college reunion think tank, Bryce?" "Uh, no." "Last time we saw anyone, we were all ten." "Thanks for the hard data, Jenny." "[beeps]" "It's called ViewDoze, and it's a scam to persuade Network 66 viewers to watch TV all night." "It's scientifically invalid." "How on earth" "Bryce, you're unique." "I know." "Now, look, Thatcher, our research people have cracked your ViewDoze outrage." "Falsifying ratings is criminal larceny." "Illegal, damn it, man." "Nonsense." "It's merely ethically dubious." "Perfectly normal practice." "My network does not lower itself to cheap practices to gain ratings for its political candidate." "[chuckling]" "My congratulations, Mr. Grossberg." "You certainly seem to be able to upset Mr. Cheviot." "But, of course, you once worked for him, didn't you?" "On the contrary, Mr. Thatcher." "He once worked for me." "[phone ringing]" "Murray, it's Cheviot." "Yes-- [clears throat] Yes, sir?" "This is an emergency." "Get into Control and get Edison Carter." "Yes, sir." "[beeping]" "Edison, it's Murray." "Huh?" "Why?" "Because it's there." "Um, uh, get into Control." " Aw, damn it, Murray." "Come on." " Get a hold of Theora." "Don't argue." "Don't swear." "I'll meet you at the network." "[sighs]" "Because it's there." "[chuckles]" "[beeping] [phone ringing]" "Hello?" "Hello?" "My God, Edison." "What time is it?" "What do you want?" "Edison?" "Edison!" "We're needed at the network immediately." "Sorry I intruded." "[Man on TV] This is Network 23 urging you to reelect Simon Peller." "in this morning's tele-election." "Stay tuned." "Stay Peller." "[chattering]" "[beeping]" "[beeps]" "[Murray] Morning, team." "Uh, good morning, Murray." "How are you?" "What are you so glum about?" "I thought you thrived on action." "Good morning, Murray." "What's the drama?" "Hi, Edison." "Uh, we go out of the wrong side of someone's bed, I think." "Aw, knock it off, Murray." "Get to the point." "What the hell is this all about?" "All right, all right." "Big crisis." "Cheviot's coming in." "The ratings look bad." "They'll be worried about the election." "Aw" " Aw, ratings." "Audi-Audi-Audiences, you're playing my t-t-tune." "Give me my own show, and I'll rule-- rule-- r-rule the airwaves." "My ratings would get a baboon-- 'boon-- would get a baboon elected." "Come to think of it, even Simon Peller." "Max, you couldn't elect just to disappear, could you?" "Edison, leave him alone." "What's got into you?" "That's" " That's the old left brain-right brain con-con-conflict, and, of course, I'm the unemotional side, thank Bryce." "Children, please." "I wanna check any news-ups before Cheviot gets here." "Kurslar?" "Murray at 23." "You freelancers got anything on the news line?" "Dayside of the planet, I've signed exclusives on a couple genocides." "There's another plague of frogs in Egypt." "Here, nightside, there's just this morning's tele-election." "Dull as chastity." "All right." "If anything breaks, yell at me." "Everyone else is." "Network 66." "Let's see it." "[Woman on TV] ...Paris and everywhere." "Why, Eric?" "Why will you not give me my freedom?" "[Eric] I have given you enough oil wells." "Will you never be satisfied?" "What would you know of giving satisfaction?" "[scoffs]" "Love can be a gushing oil well, Amanda." "A man knows that." "Take your oil wells." "Take your house in Malibu" "[Edison] I wouldn't miss this for anything." "This is my very favorite drivel." "[Cheviot] Uncalled for, Carter." " [types]" " Look at the ratings." "Now, 66 is pushing Porky's Landing with a system called ViewDoze." "They're claiming you can watch it as you sleep, and that's a lie." "It's just a scheme to artificially push up ratings." "It's a bold tele-election hoax." "I want you, Carter, and your team to expose it." "I want 66 hit and hit hard before the tele-election at 9:00 this morning." "Keep me informed in the boardroom." "I'll show Thatcher." "Please do not concern yourself about ViewDoze, Mr. Chairman." "It is the tele-election and Harriet Garth that matters." "We need her." "She needs our ratings to help score her votes." "It's the natural order of the electro-democracy." "My ViewDoze scheme simply guarantees maximum ratings at the critical moment, and thus, automatic victory." "What troubles me, Mr. Grossberg, is that Cheviot can turn this his way." "What if he investigates ViewDoze, puts Edison Carter on the story?" "Now, he can make anything look earth-shattering." "Of course Cheviot will put Carter on the ViewDoze story." "I've anticipated precisely that." "But they will never get as far as the ViewDoze story." "In fact, they'll forget all about it." "They'll be much too busy with far more graver matters." "[typing] [automated voice] Phoenix File." "Authorized." "Executive eyes only." "[Grossberg] The Phoenix File." "Cheviot, the head of Network 23." "[types]" "Edison Carter, the world's top telejournalist." "[types]" "Murray, his hotshot producer." "[types]" "Theora Jones, his oh-so-clever controller." "[types]" "And Max Headroom, the world's first and only computer-generated person." "They are all about to regret the day they conspired against Ned Grossberg, because I have a story that will not only make us top network, it will destroy each and every one of these people, and with them, Network 23." "[TV chatter]" "[Woman on TV] But first, this special word from Network 66, your tele-election trendsetter and sponsor of Harriet Garth." " [beeping] - [whoosh]" "Ah, Harriet." "You look a little rattled this morning." ""Rattled"?" "I'm furious." "Calm yourself." "Is everything ready?" "If you mean, is there a freelancer creeping about outside my apartment and a total stranger standing around in it?" "Yes." "If you mean, am I happy about it?" "No." "Become happy about it, my dear." "You're about to earn politically useful notoriety followed by a surge of public sympathy." "That and ViewDoze ratings will have you elected by one minute past 9:00." "Or, if it goes wrong, political oblivion." "I don't like this, Grossberg." "It's dirty." "Naturally." "It's politics." "But it won't go wrong." "23 will take the bait like a ravenous fish." "Trust me." ""The bait"?" "[beeps]" "All right, Kurslar." "It's all set." "Are you in position?" "Yeah, I'm hooked into her home security landline." "I'm burgling time-coded pictures off her burglar alarm." "Oh, by the way, I'm doubling my fee, Mr. G." "Naturally, Kurslar." "That's why I'm tripling it." "It is a pleasure working with a man like you." "Talent like yours is an investment." "[mutters]" "Come on." "[chattering]" "[Woman] Will you talk to Mr. Kurslar on the View-Phone?" "Yeah." "Okay, Murray, I got something for you." "Uh, no, thanks, Kurslar." "I got the chairman in." " We got a big story rolling." " Not as big as this, pal." "I've got a very big story on Network 66." " 66?" " Mmm." "I'm outside Harriet Garth's townhouse." "I'm surveillancing her place." "She's in there with some telejournalist guy." "He's been there all night." "You see what I mean?" " Are you sure?" " Sure I'm sure." "I've got pictures of her home security system." "Edison." "Uh, Kurslar, this is all a bit circumstantial." "Interesting circumstances, though." "All right." "Show me." " Theora, pictures upcoming." " Okay." "Come on, Kurslar." "That could be anybody." " In Harriet Garth's townhouse?" " [Man] Murray, Mr. Cheviot." "[Cheviot] Right, Murray." "We got all that." "You're off the ViewDoze story." "This is dynamite." "This'll stop 66's tele-election scam." "Sex and politics." "It's perfect." "I smell ratings." "Get Carter down there." "Go for it." "Uh, Mr. Cheviot, I'm very unhappy about these pictures." "I mean, we need background, we need, infill, facts." "It's a public morals story, Murray." "I want a ratings peak by 9:00 to hit the tele-election count." "Get Carter down there now." "[beeps]" ""Sex and politics"?" ""I smell ratings"?" " What does he think I am?" " I don't know." "You better get down there." "See if there's anything to this." "Well, what do you want me to do, ignore a chairman?" "[scoffs]" "I'm not some cheap, doorstep, video paparazzi poking his camera into people's private lives." "That's not journalism, it's junk." "A private life is nobody else's business." "Well, you should practice what you preach." "You seem to think my private life is your business." "Get the chopper." "If Cheviot wants a scandal, he can have it and fast." "I want a clear-headed backup." "I want Angela." "What is the matter with him?" "Well, Theora upset Edi-Edison when Edison saw The-Theora on the view-phone." "But it wasn't seeing Theora that rea-rea-really upset Edison." "He's got no damn business inside my private life." "Right." "Might be good for your career if he was." "No, I am good for my career." "I would quite fancy you, though." "I think she meant me." " No." "She meant me." " [clears throat]" " Sh-She meant me." " She meant me." " She meant me-- me!" " Me!" "[Angela] Sounds like a hot story, Edison." "Thank you, Control." "We are airborne." "Harriet Garth, my word." "Yeah, our integrity and happy-endings candidate seems to have slipped." "[Angela] Well, we all slip from time to time." "Anyway, it'll give us a crack at the enemy." ""Enemy"?" "It's the ratings game." "Cheviot's going for the breakfast vote." "To me, it's war." "[Theora] Chopper 23, are you en route?" "[Angela] Yes, that's affirmative." "Almost there." " You do need to hurry." " How are you this busy day?" " Too busy to chat, Angela." " [Angela scoffs]" "She's a bit snappy." "What have you been up to?" " [Carter] Keep your eyes on the road. - [scoffs]" "I might just lead you astray." "[Angela] Control, we are landing at Harriet Garth's building now." "[Theora] I have you on the set cam." "Kurslar's trailer is 17 feet to your left." "[beeping]" "[Kurslar] The red dot's Harriet." "The white's her randy lover boy." "That's him going into her bedroom last night." "Now all you have to do is catch him slipping away, and your fish is landed, Carter." "[Carter] You ever been grunion hunting, Angela?" "[Angela] They're leaving." "Give me the camera." "I'll talk to the randy boyfriend." "[Murray] We're ready to go live, Mr. Cheviot." "Patch it through direct, Murray." "Angela Barry for Edison Carter, Network 23." "I wanna ask you a few questions about Harriet Garth." " Is she inside?" " I was interviewing her for the tele-elect show." " All night?" " She's a very busy lady." " [Angela] She certainly seems to be. - [chuckling]" "Now, sir, I'd like you to explain this interview which you conducted at precisely 5:05 this morning." "Now, we see you semi-nude, and Ms. Garth apparently deciding to conduct your interview in her bedroom." "My God, is that Harriet?" "Who is that man?" "Who put 23 onto this?" "This is catastrophic." "Grossberg." "[Angela] Can you tell us what positions Ms. Garth took" "Gentlemen, Network 23 has swallowed our fish whole." "I couldn't have wished for better results." ""Better"?" "Hell's teeth." "You're exposing a politician who is identified with this channel on the morning of a tele-election in front of millions!" "227 million." "Look at those ratings." "My, sex really sells, doesn't it?" "You're worrying quite unnecessarily." "You see, she's innocent." "It never really happened." "[murmuring]" "This young lady really relishes the kill, doesn't she?" "What are we doing, Murray?" "I have no idea." "Network 23 and Mr. Edison Carter, in their haste to discredit our friend, Harriet Garth, have relied on pictures which they have not verified." "The pictures do not show Harriet Garth, merely an unidentified woman." "Their allegations are entirely false." "Are you certain of this, Grossberg?" "I mean, if this is provable, then" "Yes, Chairman?" "Then we can run the counter-story, reverse the ratings, condemn 23 outright, and Harriet gets a huge sympathy vote." "[Grossberg] Brilliant, Mr. Chairman." "May I recommend you order that done immediately?" "[Woman on TV] Later, we will talk to Harriet Garth herself, but first, here is Network 66's recording of that interview." "The time code clearly indicates that at the time the alleged scandal took place, we were conducting an innocent interview in connection with this morning's election." "It is this kind of cheap, sleazy, muckraking telejournalism and gross character assassination that I am pledged to stamp out." "I absolutely deny the scandalous assertions being made by Network 23." "I accuse them of deliberate falsification." "Murray, Carter, what the devil is going on here?" "A false story mounted on flimsy evidence, my top reporter exposed as a shyster, a senior producer accused of criminal incompetence, and a major politician publicly accusing this network of character assassination." "Good grief!" "Carter, I want you before the board in 30 minutes." "I wanna know how Harriet Garth was having an interview at exactly the same time as you claim she was having this-- this affair!" "[beeps]" " Now, look" " Don't say it, Murray." " I shouldn't have let her do it." " Save it, Edison." "It was my mistake." "I can take the heat." "No, it's my fault." "I should've realized the guy was acting." "Well done, Sir Galahad." "Nice of you to protect the feelings of your new overnight friend." "Well, of course you would've spotted it immediately since you're the damn expert at men slipping away at dawn." "You know, pardon me for being bright, but I'll never understand why people waste so much-- so much-- so much energy getting excited over the very thing they'll-- they'll-- they'll need energy for" "once the excitement's over." "[chuckles]" "Anyway, st-stay tuned for Net-Net-Network 23's very-- very-- ver-- very own version of Porky's Landing." "[together] Shut up." "[chattering]" " Excellent." " Yeah." "[Grossberg] Our candidate appears to be pulling ahead in the polls." "Apparently the viewers deeply sympathize with her situation." " I predict an easy victory for 66. - [clapping]" "The only applause I need is the sound of the heartbeat of this great network." "I have only been able to help in some small way." "The man who's the real victor-- only one man can be identified as being responsible for this triumph," " Chairman Thatcher." " [applause]" " Thank you." "Thank you." " Well done, sir." "[chattering]" " [Man] Congratulations." " [Thatcher] Thank you." "Thank you." "It has to be a setup, Murray." "Someone wants to destroy us and Harriet Garth in one stroke." "The only question is, who?" "[speeded-up voices, chanting] Zik-Zak." "Zik-Zak." "Zik-Zak." "[Woman on TV] Network 66 News." "The major story of the morning is the Network 23 scandal." "We have this from the chairman of Network 66." "I am personally shocked and horrified that a top network like 23 should act so irresponsibly." "I can personally assure you of the innocence of my very good friend, Harriet Garth." "You have my word as chairman of Network 66." "It was obviously timed to coincide with the tele-election primary." "This is nothing less than political character assassination." "The head of Network 23 should resign-  [Man] Ridiculous." " ...and my rival, Simon Peller, should step down immediately." "[Man on TV] Continuous two-way sampler polls" "[Man] "Step down"?" "Damn, that's preposterous." "...in the last two minutes, away from Simon Peller." "How this affects the crucial tele-election ratings is not yet clear." "In an electro-democracy, we must ask the question, have networks like 23 become government?" "If they misuse their power, if they pervert information from their own end, if they make ratings into religion, where is integrity?" "Where is honesty?" "Where is truth?" "Where is the code of ethics?" "[Man on TV] We interrupt this commentary for a sports update." "Ben, what the devil is going on?" "It's clear to me that we have allowed ourselves to be misled." "[chuckling] "Misled"?" "We're being massacred!" "As head of this network, I hold you directly responsible for this" "Button your lip, Peller." "Carter." "The material we obtained appeared to be genuine, yet so did the interview conducted at the same time." "The question is, which one was the fake?" "And who faked it and why?" "And whether Harriet Garth was a willing participant." "If not, who set her up and why?" "We have to establish the truth wherever it lies." "The truth lies, all right, Mr. Carter." "We all saw the pictures." "We all saw Harriet Garth." "With respect, we saw her back." "Oh, we saw a bit of her front." "Ashwell, Carter means her face." "And he's right." "Could've been a stand-in." "We have no choice but to pursue this, whatever the risk." "Get on this, Carter." "Get to Harriet Garth." "[chattering]" "Here you go." "Anything?" "Well, Edison's outside her house." "No one's challenged him so far." "Her View-Phone link's operating, so she must be talking to someone." " Are you okay?" " Yes, I'm fine." "Uh, look," "I know there's something wrong between you and Edison, and I don't, uh" " I don't like my team to be unhappy." "You wanna talk about it?" "Oh, it's nothing, really." "Well, when Edison called this morning, uh, I wasn't alone." "I see." "Well, that's none of his business, as you say." "That's exactly how I feel." "Good." "So you're sure you're not worried about it?" "No." "Why?" "You don't smoke." "Why do I have to embroil myself with Carter?" "Peller's finished." "The job's done." "Well, yes and no." "I'm the politician, Thatcher." "Grossberg seems to think there's another round to play." "Harriet, use all your loquacious style for which you are justly famous, and soon you'll be swept into power." "Our ratings are massive." "What, after all, is one more lie?" "[breathing deeply]" "[doorbell ringing]" "Why, Mr. Carter, what a surprise." "Have you come for the orgy?" "Oh, no." "Don't tell me I'm the first one here." "Mind if I come in?" "Of course." "Just smash the door down and invade my privacy." "Had I know you were coming, I'd have taken off my clothes." "Oh, if you think we should conduct the interview in the nude, I'm happy to oblige." "I know our ratings would benefit." "However, I've got something a lot less entertaining on my mind." "I suspect, Ms. Garth, that you and I have been deliberately misled." "Almost ready to go live, Control." "We're just getting undressed." "This is Edison Carter with Harriet Garth, live and direct." "First, will you explain what happened at 5 minutes past 5:00 this morning?" "This global tele-election reaches every part of the planet." "My constituency is everywhere in the transmitted world." "I campaigned with the satellites, Mr. Carter, not the clock." "I was simply giving an interview." " [TV off]" " She's lying." "What?" "Harriet Garth is lying." "She's guilty of the indiscretions of which Carter and Network 23 accuse her." "I make it a habit to be thorough." "I've obtained and checked a copy of Kurslar's tape of her indiscretions." "You will note that the section used on air by 23 cut at this point." "Some technical matter." "The woman turns and reveals she is indeed [button clicks]" "Harriet Garth." "I have evaluated this position and can recommend one single course of action to save this network's reputation." "But they may accidentally run that tape on themselves, or Carter may break her down." "If she confesses, we're ruined." "Indeed we are." "Our righteous outrage will backfire." "Network 23 will show our denial to be a desperate cover-up to protect our political interests." "[Woman] Yes." "The whole idea was yours, Grossberg." "You will take full responsibility, publicly." "I would be delighted were it not for the troublesome incompatibility with the heavily broadcast evidence to the contrary." "I can personally assure you of the innocence of my very good friend," "Harriet Garth." "You have my word as chairman of Network 66." "What does this mean?" "It means Harriet Garth is lying." "[Man] And if Network 23 ever examined that tape or Carter discovered the truth from Garth, this network will lose all and any credibility as well as the tele-election." "Exactly," "Mr. Bartlett." "Exactly." "[Woman] This is grotesque." "You can't ask Chairman Thatcher to do this." "Are you suggesting I" "I'm not suggesting." "You consider." "[Bartlett] I move the vote." "Those for Thatcher remaining in office." "[beep]" "Those against." "[beep] [beep]" "Chubb?" "Chubb?" "[beep] [screen beeping]" "[buzz]" "Defeat is an orphan." "Victory has a hundred fathers." "Congratulations, Chairman Grossberg." "Thank you." "This is your chairman." "Moments ago, I accepted the resignation of Clive Thatcher." "It is my public duty to advise our viewers of the truth about Harriet Garth." " [button clicks]" " Run the prepared news item." "Moments ago, Network 66 made this shock announcement." "Following the Harriet Garth scandal," "Chairman Clive Thatcher has resigned over accusations of conspiracy in the Harriet Garth affair." " [Man on TV] We'll have the complete Thatcher story" " I don't believe it." " ...when Network 66 News continues." " They sold her out." "They sold out their own man." "Murray what if both tapes were fake?" "What are you talking about?" "You can't fake a tape." "Pictures don't lie." "At least not until you assemble them creatively." "No, no, I mean, what if both tapes were genuine, but the setups and the time codes were staged?" "I don't know." "Show me." "Okay." "Look." " Right." " [typing]" "Edit lock." "[beeping]" "Kurslar." "Kurslar hit the "edit lock."" "Why?" "Identifying her is what we wanted." "Yeah, but it's not what he wanted." "Murray, he was deliberately delaying the truth." "All right, all right." "All right." " Thatcher supports Garth, right?" " Right." "But then someone reveals she was guilty, and goodbye to chairman of 66." "Brilliant." "It's sinister." "The media is running events, not reporting them." "Murray, they're manufacturing their own truth." "She was set up, and so were we." "Grossberg set me up." "Harriet, why don't you tell a nice, old, guileless telejournalist exactly what happened, fully, frankly, and dressed?" "I am completely lost." "If she is guilty of this thingummy, uh, men and things-- why is Carter so sure she's innocent?" "How could she be?" "Politicians are always guilty of something." "Usually, the question is, of what or when?" "Seems to me she's guilty of professional suicide." "Look at the ratings." "At least it vindicates our original report." "We should get Carter out of there." "He's done a fine job." " The ratings are huge." " And our reputation is intact." "Seven minutes, and the tele-election is ours." "As ever, Carter's been very clever." " [intercom beeps] - [Woman] Mr. Cheviot, Edison Carter is on the line." "[beeping]" "Carter." "So Grossberg is back." "He and 66 have double-double-crossed Harriet Garth, and I think her story will illuminate the whole nasty setup." " I wanna go live on this." " You realize this may increase" "Garth's chances in the tele-election?" "I believe this is a moral choice, Mr. Cheviot, not a political one." "We've got four minutes." "Well, then let's do what we have to do, Carter." "[Man] Cheviot, Grossberg's on the view-phone." "Good morning." "I'm back, Ben." "You won't expect us to congratulate you." "You're not welcome." "Welcome?" "You and I built Network 23." "And you damn near destroyed it." "Drop the phony nostalgia and come to the point, man." "Don't trade insults with me." "I wouldn't trade cow flop with you, Ned." "You and I are at war." "And I'm going to win this first battle Cheviot, as 66 takes the tele-election." "So, Edison, you're going to go for me after all." "Yes, I am." "You really don't fool me, Harriet." "You knew exactly what was happening." "Save it, Carter." "A couple of hours is a long time in video politics." "This week ruined, next week revered." "One good show with the right ratings, I'll be back in days." "[phone ringing]" "You're beautiful, Harriet." "Everything seems to be going perfect." "Grossberg, Edison Carter." "I seem to have been a little premature." "Yeah, the last time you were a little premature was when you were announcing my death, as I recall." "Yes, I remember." "A long time ago, Carter." "Well, jerk yourself back to the present, where I'm about to make certain that the truth about you is made very public." "Your tame politician here is not gonna get elected." "This is one tele-election the public's gonna win." "[Man] Come on." "Let's move." "Comment, Edison?" "Will Angela Barry keep her job?" " Come on." "Talk to us." " Did Harriet Garth cause this?" "[Angela] We are running live, people." "[sighs]" "I've just left Harriet Garth." "I now know the truth about this affair." "You, the viewing public, have the right to know that you, as well as Harriet Garth, have been manipulated for political ends." "With just minutes to go, this is the truth behind this morning's tele-election." "What do we do now?" "We are going to win." "The public will not pay the slightest attention to Edison Carter's hysterical crusading." "They will switch to the next act of Porky's Landing, and the auto-count will elect you, despite everything." "You seem very certain." "Indeed, I am." "Soon the viewers will all be watching their favorite program again." "A full belly and a diverting show makes a bad revolutionary, Harriet." "Television is the opiate of the people." "Long may it be so." "Grossberg, what the hell do you do for a conscience?" "Occasionally, I rent one." "Network 66 persuaded millions of you to leave your TVs tuned to their channel all night, ensuring the ratings that would give them victory at the tele-election." "The man who devised this scheme is Ned Grossberg, now chairman of Network 66." "He's the same man who brought you the Harriet Garth story, a story that is entirely false." "You, the public, have been callously duped by a man who regards truth as a market commodity." " As for my own mistake-- - [Man] Check the election polls." "They're evening out." "[Woman] Peller's leading." "[Cheviot] It could go either way." "It's a horserace." "[Man] Again, they're both dropping." "[Woman] What's happening?" "What's going on?" "Network 85's trending up astronomically." "They can't win." "They can't possib-- [beeps]" "[button clicks]" "[Cheviot] The viewers have spoken, albeit a stutter." "[Woman] Mr. Grossberg's on the view-phone." "Cheviot, I will destroy you and your network, but not today." "So sweat a little, Ben." "You'll never know when it will come, but it will come, when I decide, when I am ready." "Vengeance, you see, is a dish best eaten cold." "[Lauren] Maniacal bastard." "[Cheviot] Well, it looks as if you're out of a job, Simon." "It seems the truth can be an expensive commodity." "But Carter did the right thing." "They abandoned both our networks by the millions." "They just voted with their channel switchers." "Maybe we don't fool them after all." "Is that your daughter or your mistress, Murray?" "[chuckling]" "[sighs]" "Excuse me." "Uh, you know, Kurslar" "You screwed up the tele-election, Murray." "[Murray] Yeah, well, he cleaned up your mess, Kurslar." "That, uh" " That frame-up of-- That was disgusting." "Yeah, but you fell for it, Murray, just like the viewers. [chuckling]" ""Beware of jealousy." ""It is the green-- green-eyed monster" ""which mo-mo-m-mocks the meat it feeds on." ""Who" " Who" " Who loves not his wronger who doubts y-y-yet doubts yet s-soundly loves." [squeals]" "Shake-Shake-Shakespeare." "And Edison Carter." "That's great." "[mutters]" "I'm sorry." "I had no right to act so... protectively." "It's my fault." "Well, it's refreshing to know that you're not perfect and invincible." "Let's not go too far." " [clicks tongue]" " Ah." ""Bless" " Bless" " B-Blessed are the peacemakers."" "What's happened to you people at 66?" "No, I'll tell you what's happened to you." "Ned Grossberg has happened to you." "That is what has happened to you." "This is war now." "Do you understand that?" "This is war." "Go eat your milk and cookies like a good boy, Murray." "I don't like milk and-- What are you doing?" " Hey!" "You can't-- - [crash] [grunting]" "Murray!" "Murray!" " What are you doing?" " Hey!" "What about me-- me?" "You're outnumbered six-six-sixty-six to 23." "You need all the help you can get-- get-- g-get." "[chattering] [grunting]" "Oh, my God." "[grunting] [bystanders gasping]" "[Man] Look out." "Look out." "Come on, Ned." "Come on-- Come on" " Come on." " I'll give you a damn good fighting-- fighting-- fighting." " Get out of my way." "[Max laughing]" " [grunts] - [bystanders gasping]" "[Men panting]" "Is that-- that it?" "What" " What about the bit where I du-duck, and the guy next to me gets hit?" "I think you can look forward to plenty of that now that Grossberg's back." "Well, I should hope you're quite pleased with yourself, Carter." "Thanks to your fearless reporting of the Garth business, we both lost the tele-election." "You overdosed my public." "I just reported a political farce, Simon." "It's decided to watch a different soap opera." "You should leave it to me next time." "Leave it" " Leave it-- Leave it to someone who understands show-- show business." "♪ If I ruled the world, yah ♪" "♪ Every day would be the first day of spring ♪" "Hyah!" "Closed-Captioned By J.R. Media Services, Inc." "Burbank, CA"